“Sympathy is the fruit of understanding.” AFM missionaries know this, and they make every effort to understand and absorb as much as possible of the language, culture and beliefs of their target people.

As Africans, Elmire and I can easily recognize the importance of sympathy in gaining the confidence of our Dendi people. But it is difficult to find and comprehend the special needs their culture and religion create. This requires a period of earnest and exclusive study and attention before we can offer assistance that can meet the people’s deepest needs. Though Dendi culture is quite similar to those of other Muslim groups we know in West Africa, we still need to learn to sympathize with the Dendi on the deepest level. This means manifesting a sincere interest in their daily lives and coming close to them in a personal way.

Islamic culture is very familiar to us from our family background. Elmire’s father is a former Muslim, and most of his relatives are still Muslim. My grandparents on my mother’s side are Muslims. From this and from our experience working with Muslims in countries dominated by Islam, we had some ideas of what to do to forge friendships with Dendi people here in Kandi.

Recently, Elmire and I embarked on an experience that fits with Muslim culture—the practice of zakat. The zakat is a tax required of Muslims, one of the five pillars of Islam. It is levied on five categories of property—food grains, fruit, livestock, gold and silver and movable goods. It is payable each year after one year’s possession. The amount of tax required by Islamic law varies with the category. Recipients of the zakat include the poor and needy, the collectors themselves, debtors, pilgrims, etc.

Anytime we have fasted, it has been our custom to give the money we save on food as offerings to the church. But last Friday, we decided to begin practicing an aspect of Isaiah 58:6, 7 similar to the zakat: “Is not this the fast that I choose: . . . to share your bread with the hungry . . .” Elmire and I decided to find needy families and individuals in our neighborhood and give them the resources we save when we fast. We have visited many people in the area, so we had some candidates in mind, including some very old widows and young orphans.

As we set out on our visits that Sabbath afternoon, our first stop was to be an old widow’s home three houses from ours. Our quarter is made up of both mud and concrete houses. Some are isolated, and some are common compounds. Some are home to single families, and some are big courtyards with as many as 15 families or more.

As we walked, we stopped and greeted many people along the way. The widow’s courtyard had no fence, so as we approached, we saw her sitting with a younger lady. We greeted them in Dendi, and they smiled and returned the greeting. We explained the purpose of our visit as best we could. “We are your neighbors, and we are visiting you to get acquainted. We are new here, and we’ve been visiting many families in the quarter.” The old lady was pleased and seemed to appreciate our initiative, but the young lady—probably her daughter—did not show us much welcome. Rather, she questioned us about our motives, an attitude we found very strange. Never before had we been treated like this in Kandi.

To our surprise, contrary to the customs of African hospitality, the ladies did not invite us into the house nor did they offer us seats. As the younger lady continued to question us, Elmire and I looked at each other and wondered what was going on. We’d never received such a cold welcome since we’d started our visitations. It made us think twice about our intention to give the widow the gift we’d brought.
As we were contemplating this, the old widow began moving toward the restroom to make her ablutions in preparation the day’s fourth salat, (Muslim ritual prayer performed five times each day, the second of the five pillars of Islam). Quickly, we explained in French that we had brought her a small gift. The old woman stopped and turned around. We could read joy on her face. As she came closer, Elmire went to her and gave her the small gift. It was cash, enough for about three meals. The old widow began to heap blessings upon us. Our small gift seemed so big to her that she asked whether it was all for her. She was very excited and grateful.

This experience was a confirmation to us that, when people are physically hungry, a long conversation is not what they need. This was another insight into the needs and attitudes of our Dendi people.

Since then, we have practiced our zakat again with another widow. When we came into her courtyard, she was cooking for three of her young grandchildren. This time, we mentioned right away that we’d brought a gift for her, and she received us with gratitude and warmth.

Didn’t our Savior teach us this principle long ago? “He mingled with men as one who desired their good, He showed His sympathy for them, ministered to their needs, and won their confidence. Then He bade them, ‘Follow Me.’” Thanks for your continued prayers.

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