Genderside: Men at Risk

What happened to the men who were most productive in Stalin's reign of terror in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic? They were ranked as the top of their professions and Stalin sent them to the gulags or prison camps.

What happened to them in the camps? Most of them died. Here is the story.

By 1928, Stalin was entrenched as supreme Soviet leader, and he wasted little time in launching a series of national campaigns (the so-called Five-Year Plans) aimed at "collectivizing" the peasantry and turning the USSR into a powerful industrial state. Both campaigns featured murder on a massive scale. Collectivization especially targeted Ukraine, "the breadbasket of the Soviet Union," which clung stubbornly to its own national identity and preference for village-level communal landholdings. In 1932-33, Stalin engineered a famine (by massively raising the grain quota that the peasantry had to turn over to the state); this killed between six and seven million people and broke the back of Ukrainian resistance. The Ukrainian famine has only recently been recognized as one of the most destructive genocides of the twentieth century (see Robert Conquest, The Harvest of Sorrow, and the Web resources compiled by The Ukrainian Weekly). The Five-Year Plans for industry, too, were implemented in an extraordinarily brutal fashion, leading to the deaths of millions of convict labourers, overwhelmingly men. These atrocities are described in the corvée (forced) labour case study. The millions of deaths in Stalin's "Gulag Archipelago" (the network of labour camps [gulags] scattered across the length and breath of Russia) are dealt with in the incarceration/death penalty case study.

Socialists cannot stand the notion that some people are superior in intelligence, talents, gifts and work habits. In socialist nations, the statistical truths contained in "The Bell Shaped Curve" are denied and fought at every turn. This meant that those who had by intelligence, hard work or family inheritance owned a far or store or had raised more hogs and cattle had to be eliminated. To the Communists it was "NOT FAIR".

What do you think about this notion?

Why Kill the Men?

Most Americans do not realize the brutality of the Communists in the USSR. Under both Lenin and Stalin multiplied millions of people were tortured, murdered, starved, worked to death and in other ways eliminated. Almost all of them were males. Why did Lenin and Stalin wipe out so many men when they were, themselves men?

Almost every person to whom I have ministered in modern day Russia comes from a family who suffered terrible persecution death and loss of goods at the hands of evil men. Their grief is long standing and generational. Thank God for His wonderful gifts of healing and grace because we are seeing many people brought to faith and wholeness through prayer and God's word.

Part of it was probably due to their evil, paranoid personality disorders. Had they been ordinary citizens they would probably have picked on the poor, weak and helpless members of society. But they were not just ordinary men, they were heading one of the largest governments in the history of the world and it gave them absolute power over their citizens.

But the reign of terror in the Union of Soviet Socialist Republic was carried out with such awful devastation on friend and foe, it must have been rooted in some kind of belief system. For example, they carried out a devilishly clever plan to change all workers and they did it in this way. Remember, one of their main slogans was, "Workers of the world, unite!" Here is how they united their Socialist workers.

Every person in a specific work classification was rank ordered from best to worst. All farmers, mechanics, electricians, secretaries, lawyers, doctors, engineers, etc. This meant that a Party Worker could go into the records of a village or town and know with some precision who the best and most productive workers were. It was clear which farmers grew the best crops or the biggest hogs and cattle and which ones were lousy at those and other tasks.

What would you do with such information? You could offer scholarships to the better farmers to go to school and become better farmers. Or, you could send the poor farmers to school to improve their production.

What did Lenin and Stalin do with that detailed information? If any of you can write me with a correct guess, I will send you a free book.

Spiritual Emotional Life and Addictions in Russia

Papers are reporting that even the chimps in Russia are caught up in severe addictions.


MOSCOW - A Russian chimpanzee has been sent to rehab by zookeepers to cure the smoking and beer-drinking habits he has picked up, a popular daily reported on Friday. An ex-performer, Zhora became aggressive at his circus and was transferred to a zoo in the southern Russian city of Rostov, where he fathered several baby chimps, learned to draw with markers and picked up his two vices.

"The beer and cigarettes were ruining him. He would pester passers-by for booze," the Komsomolskaya Pravda paper said.

It added he has now been transferred to the city of Kazan, about 800 km (500 miles) east of Moscow, for rehabilitation treatment.

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We have been working to establish Family Treatment Centers in the former USSR since 1994. Dr. Galina Chentsova came to Cincinnati to learn the Teleios System of ministry and returned to recruit mature Christians to head the effort. Now there are many training centers in churches and homes all over the nation.

The story above seems bizarre and comical but it illustrates the depth of the problems facing the good people of Russia, Ukraine, Poland, Romania and the rest of the Eastern Bloc. During the Seventy years of Communist rule, the high levels of shock, trauma and abuse are so high that it is difficult for us in the West to believe.

Entire families were intentionally destroyed and persecuted leaving generations of children and grandchildren to suffer from the brutality. Thank God for the ways He has taught us to bring hope and healing to those people through Jesus Christ. And, thank God for the faithful Pastors, Priests and Laity who stayed true to God's word during those terrible times.

Ministry in Russia and Ukraine

There is a YouTube video of "You Have Talent" from Ukraine of a remarkable young woman who does sand painting. It is very emotional and powerful representation of the German invasion of the USSR. Maybe it can assist you in better understanding the trauma of WWII in that region of the world.

I am reminded of a trip Art Gasch and I took to Moscow several years ago. Arthur has a magazine that reviews medical devices for doctors and hospitals. He was able to get a machine donate to our Russian friends that tells how much oxygen is in our blood. It was, as far as we know, the only machine of its kind in all of the former USSR for the common people.

The trauma and abuse the good people of that area have suffered left them with extreme cases of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. The need for inner healing though love, renewed thinking and prayer is very high. Thankfully we have a team of well trained Christians who know how to facilitate God's loving presence.

During one of our training visits Steve Griebling and I were teaching the dynamics of uncovering the deep wounds behind PTSD. One of the young women opened up about her dysfunctional life and shared how the terrible inner wounds had left her unable to develop an healthy relationship with a man. Alexis, not her real name, was beautiful and well educated but could not bear to talk with a man of her age.

We taught the training group how to draw up a genogram with past traumas and dysfunctions and then how to open themselves to the healing power of a loving God. After several hours of teaching,listening and prayer Alexia had a huge load of shame and trauma lifted off her by the Holy Spirit. Thankfully she was not the only one who personally experienced God's healing love. When we minister in groups the Holy Spirit is able to touch every single one of us with faith, hope and love.

The entire team of ministry in Russia continues to grow in maturity at the same time they are facilitating the growth and healing of others. It is the key to healing that great nation because its people, especially the Christians, have suffered so much and so long.

Pray for our brothers and sisters in the former USSR. And, if God leads, send a donation to us for their continued ministry of love. See the web page for an online donation.

Liferoute Russian Ministry

C/O Sweeten Life Systems

P.O. Box 498455

Cincinnati, Ohio 45249

Sin and Cold Weather Deaths

I have been posting on the topic of sin. I trust you will remember that my definition of "SIN" or the "Fallen Nature" includes all the traumatic issues that occur in nature. The tsunami a few years ago was the result of an earthquake that reminded us of just how fragile and broken "Mother Earth" really is. In my thought, this is evidence of the Fall. As scripture says, "Thorns and thistles cover the ground". When sin entered the earth the perfect, peaceful and life giving earth was changed into a place of trauma, death and destruction.

Here is the latest evidence.

In Ukraine 27 people have frozen to death since the thermometer dropped last week. Authorities in Romania said 11 people had succumbed to the chill, and in the Czech Republic the toll was 12.

In Russia and Ukraine and other Eastern European countries alcoholism is rampant. The ministry of our friends there does everything possible to take the gospel of Christ and His healing love to those nations and those people. Only the gospel widely preached and practiced will set them free from addictions.

Many of these deaths are the result of drunkenness. Sober people rarely fall into the cold snows and die from exposure. The people there were deeply wounded by Socialism and alcohol is a way to dull the pain. Pray for Liferoute.com and the team of courageous Christian's who are raisin g up an army of love, truth and power.

Jesus came to rid the world of sin. His birth reminds us that we can live free and enjoy His healing in our daily lives. Why live as though Jesus never came to earth to set us free? Accept your freedom and your place in the kingdom of God.

Jesus heals the broken hearted and sets the captives free."

Alcoholism in Russia

A great news story on Fox News today showed the devastating effects of smoking and drinking. Our ministry has trained a cadre of experts who are mobilizing churches and Christian leaders to reach the alcoholics and their families.

Tuesday, August 11, 2009
By Dana Lewis

Russia is grappling with a major public health crisis in which residents are essentially drinking and smoking themselves to death, according to the country’s public health officials.

About a million Russians die each year from alcohol- and smoking-related causes -- between 600,000 and 700,000 of those deaths are attributed to drinking alone, Andrei Demin, of Russia’s Public Health Association, told Fox News.

“It’s threatening the future of the country,” he said.

The problem? Unlike other countries, Russia has refused to levy hefty taxes on cigarettes and alcohol to discourage drinking and smoking.

The resulting statistics are staggering:

— The average Russian drinks 50 bottles of vodka a year.

— A bottle of beer can be purchased on the street for less than the cost of a bottle of water.

— Twelve million of Russia’s 141 million residents have died over the past 15 years due to alcohol-and smoking-related causes.

— A pack of cigarettes can be purchased for about 30 cents.

— The average Russian male lives to be 60 years old, dying 15 years earlier than his American counterpart. Russian women die 13 years earlier than American women.

Although the country has launched a series of television commercials encouraging Russians to choose healthier lifestyles, many critics say this is of little benefit.

So far, Russian President Vladimir Putin has refused recommendations to raise taxes on cigarettes and alcohol, with some health critics saying the Kremlin would the Russian public stay “pacified and anesthetized."


Support the Russian Ministry by donating to www.sweetenlife.com

Prayers for Russia

It is dangerous and difficult to live in Russia, especially if you are trying to make positive changes. I have enormous respect for my friends in Russia and keep them in my prayers. I am asking you to pray for them as well.

Although this story about the killing of people in Russia has nothing to do with our friends or with the church there, it is a reminder of the need to bring the good news of Christ into a dark and dangerous world. We in the USA are so blessed to live in a safe nation that, for the most part, protects its citizens.

Here is the story from Russia.

Just days after the kidnapping and murder of prominent human rights activist Natalya Estemirova, another civil rights activist in Russia has been buried after being found dead. The body of Andrei Kulagin, head of Spravedlivost ('Justice'), was discovered in a quarry on July 10, roughly 600 miles north of Moscow.

Please keep the Russian people in your prayers. The Believers there are doing their best to bring peace, love and joy as well as healing to the populace. It is a long hard road but in Christ still possible.

Mrs. Clinton's Miscues

I have done a lot of international travel and training. This means I have made many mistakes over the years when I tried to say or do something in the language and traditions of my host. It is embarrassing to flub a term or do something that is vulgar or offensive and you only find out later what you did.

Mrs. Clinton, the new Secretary of State under President Obama, has already flubbed her lines on several occasions and she has not been in office that long. In some ways I am glad she and other top officials often open mouth and insert foot. It makes my mistakes seem petty in comparison.

Recently Mrs. Clinton visited Russia and gave the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov a made up copy of the famous RED BUTTON only used by Russian and US Presidents when nuclear war is threatened. Here is the rub, the State Department misspelled the key word for "reset" that Madam Secretary Clinton was using to make the point that the old regime is gone and a new day has arrived.

Instead of the Russian word for "reset" (perezagruzka) the button featured a slightly different word meaning "overload" or "overcharged" (peregruzka). The Russian media made light of the slight and Mrs. Clinton recovered nicely. However, it is getting off on the wrong foot when the State Department does not have anyone who knows Russian well enough to see the mistake.

I am off to Norway and Denmark Sunday and will not return until March 19. I am hoping and praying that in my fortieth or so visit to these nations that I will be more successful than Mrs. Clinton.

Please pray for my trips and my teachings. I will be teaching several times over the ten days and meet with old friends and Christian leaders. My friends in Scandinavia have taken our model and skills and implemented them wonderfully in a variety of settings. I am excited to reconnect with them and see what God is up to now.

Gary Sweeten

Prayer for Russian Ministry

On Monday the Palace of Culture will close for 3 months. Starting Wednesday the building will be sealed by the prosecutor's office. It is not clear yet whether the building will actually be opened in 3 months or ever again. An official reason for that is fire inspection of the building.

We know the "The Official Reason" in Russia is rarely the "Real Reason".

This space is critically important to the ministry there. Ask God to break through and break in.

Gary Sweeten

Russian Economy

Gary and Galina near Moscow

When I talk about my trip to Russia I am often greeted by Americans and Europeans who say, "Their economy is really great. It isn't in trouble like ours is it?" This is dead wrong. How in the world can we in the West assume that the Russian economy is in great shape?

Maybe because what we read in the papers and hear on TV. They usually report how much money the Russian government is taking in through their oil and gas revenues and assume, wrongly, that the citizens of Russia are benefitting greatly from the billions controlled by The Kremlin.

Remember that Russia is not a Democratic Republic built on Capitalism. Most of the Russian people live from hand to mouth and have to work two or three jobs to pay rent and eat. Even those with high jobs in the military, police, government and medicine must try to eke out a better living by using their cars as a taxi or taking bribes.

Bribes are everywhere. Ikea was not able to open their store in Moscow for eight years because they refused to pay a large bribe. It is often impossible to find an office space or run a business unless you pay bribes.

Our taxi was stopped one day and the driver had to pay a $40.00 fine ON THE SPOT to the officer. That is a huge fine to a taxi driver and much more than he would make by driving us and more than the officer can make in his salary. As they say, "We pretend to work and they pretend to pay us".

Prices in Moscow are sky high but the people make very little. The Kremlin is rich in oil revenues but the common citizen gets little or none of it. A few thousand oligarchs get it all. This is one reason why so many churches can only exist if they get support from Western friends.

Pray for our Russian friends. They are doing a great job of spreading the good news to thousands. They are loyal Russians who love their country and are not trying to change it. They are far too busy trying to survive to get involved in politics.
Gary Sweeten

http://www.sweetenlife.com/

Friends

I mentioned in my last post about the volunteer team here in Russia. They work so hard and face so many barriers that I am amazed at their courage and perseverance.

One Pastor travels for 75 miles each way to lead the groups in Moscow. He and others get there early to clean up, set up food and drinks and even put light bulbs in so we can see. They take them out after the groups or they will be stolen. They bring toilet paper, towels, bread, meat, tea, coffee, etc. They actually have to make the place work every time.

Pray for space that is theirs.

Moscow Revisited

I am sitting in a Moscow Internet Cafe named Asia Cafe eating an omlette with Tiger Prawns an cheese although I thought I ordered ham and cheese. Such is the state of trying to communicate in English only with a young waitress who speaks only Japanese and Russian. Living and traveling in the largest city in Europe certainly proves that we are experiencing the global village in a whole new way. The trains, subways and streets are filled with people from every nationality, tribe and tongue. Cars from every imaginable country run rampant through the streets are breakneck speeds and a pedesrtian must always be alert or be killed. It is great fun to experience the excitement of international interaction.

I am staying in a flat (apartment) near Christ The Savior Cathedral and it is a very high class, busy section of this huge city. The Cathedral stands as a huge testimony of the failure of the Bolsheviks. It seems that the Communists hated this church more rabidly than most even though they hated all churches. In a fit of pique they blew it up in an attempt to erase its powerful message from the consciousness of the Russian people for all time. (It was originally built as a memorial to the defeat of Napolean's armies so the pride of Russia and Moscow was great.)

The Communists, in a typical stroke of genius, decided to build in its place a big office building dedicated to the rise of Communism. Here was the problem: God openly rebuked their efforts by making such a structure impossible. The prayers of the people and the church somehow softened the ground under the structure and the engineers and architects found themselves unable to get a foundation to stick. (Hmmm! A lack of foundation. Isn't that interesting.)

So, after several tries, the Party gave up and made it into a big swimming pool. It was as though God placed a large baptismal fount right in the middle of the city for all to see as a symbol of the atheistic attempts to destroy the church. Many of my friends swam in that pool and it kept the story of the Party's failure alive in the hearts and minds of the Muskovites.

Just after the fall of Communism, the Orthodox Church decided to rebuild the Cathedral. Despite warnings that the ground was too soft to sustain it, they went ahead. "How" they asked, "could the ground sustain the original Cathedral and not a new one?" Now Christ The Savior stands as an open rebuke to all attempts to destroy Christ and His message of victory and hope.

My spirits are uplifted each time I see the church and I am reminded of God's power and truth.

Pray for our ministry here. The efforts at helping Christians grow and prosper in a very difficult place are succeeding but it is slow and challenging. Pray for Galina and her team of intrepid and skilled workers. The culture and society has been severely damaged by seventy years of crushing oppression and trauma. Alcoholism and other addictions are rampant destroying many Christian families. Our friends are making headway but the enemy is strongly resisting.

Gary Sweeten

www.sweetenlife.com

www.liferoute.ru

Why Minister Internationally?

I have been traveling a lot over the past 15-20 years and some of my friends and church supporters are not very happy about it. They ask a lot of questions indicating that they are somehow slightly or greatly aggrieved that I spend so much time helping people other than Americans.

"Why are you doing this, Gary? Aren't the problems and concerns in America worthy of your best efforts?" It sometimes feels like sibling rivalry. The same issues that roiled the Smothers Brothers who made millions saying, "Mom always loved you best."

I do love my brothers and sisters in Singapore, China, Scandinavia and Russia. But, warm, caring feelings are not enough to cause me to fly in a seat half the size of my backside to stay in cramped quarters and work all day and all night. (Nor is it the glamour or being an "international minister".)

It was the call of God that originally got me on those airplanes and it is the confirmation of the Spirit that keeps me going. The Lord has confirmed my call by showing me the critical importance of having American Christians involved in the spiritual, social and economic growth of the developing world. Unless you live in a cave it is obvious that many citizens around the world are very reactive to U.S. foreign policies. However, once they get to know us a Christians and humans the people tend to like Americans.

I leave Tuesday for Russia and Denmark for two weeks. I need your prayers and your financial support. There is tremendous warfare raging in Russia that tears at the souls of Russian Christians. It is very expensive to live in Russia and the costs for Believers and churches is even higher emotionally and financially.

Sweeten Life Systems does its best to support the work but rent, travel costs to the various Russian cities and daily living is difficult so those who volunteer must give up jobs to serve Christ. We are trying to raise funds to provide small stipends and grants for the teachers. They appreciate all we do.

The only hope for peace, security and economic stability is God and we are supporting our Russian friends as they trust God in their desperate circumstances. Help us help them.

Sweeten Life Systems

P.O. Box 498455
Cincinnati 45249

Great International Relationships

The challenge of Believers in Russia and the other nations who lived for seventy years under the cruel rule of the Socialists is great. Thanks be to God, they are, with our support, making progress.

Our friends are working hard to develop great relationships with God and one another for many years. However, they need our help.

The Socialists did so much damage to the people, the nation and creation that it will take decades to repair. Read this report about the crisis.

Nikolai Malakhov, mayor of the southwestern town of Chapayevsk, formerly home to Soviet arms factories that produced toxic agents, wants to close the town permanently. he told visiting officials that closing the town and resettling its residents would be the "ideal solution". It is reported that "mortality rates caused by tuberculosis, cancer of the throat, liver and the kidneys are three times higher in Chapayevsk than in the rest of the region."

Pray intentionally for the Russian people. Take a look at their http://www.liferoute.ru/ web site.

Pray for Russian Friends

Did you know we have friends in Siberia? Were you aware that Lifegate.ru in Russia has ongoing programs in Siberian towns? Steve Griebling, Rich Halter, Art Gasch and I have all met folks who live in Siberia and minister there all year around.

Take a look at the Siberian Deep Freeze story to see what is going on now. Pray for our friends like Bishop Anatoly who has planted numerous churches in Siberia.

Jupiter Kalambakal - AHN News Writer
Moscow, Russia (AHN) - Russians are bracing for temperatures of as low as minus 55 degrees Celsius (minus 67 degrees Fahrenheit) in Siberia as Russia's emergencies ministry warns on Wednesday of its impending dangers in the coming weeks.

Government agencies were placed on high alert, reports AFP. The ministry ordered local administration officials to prepare for the extreme chill expected to last until Jan. 21.

The ministry warned that the unusually cold weather could kill, cause frost-bite, conk heaters and cut electricity to homes, disrupt transport, increase the rate of car accidents and even destroy buildings across Siberia.

The Allure of Tyranny

Communists Demand a Return to the Old Ways

Russians voted away their freedoms, and Venezuelans almost did. Why? BY BRET STEPHENS Tuesday, December 4, 2007 12:01 a.m. EST

OpinionJournal [OpinionJournal@wsj.com]

"It is ultimately a cruel misunderstanding of youth to believe it will find its heart's desire in freedom," says Leo Naphta, the great character of Thomas Mann's "The Magic Mountain" "Its deepest desire is to obey." On Sunday, voters as far apart as Caracas and Vladivostok took to the polls and put Naphta's theory to a practical test.

In Russia, the result of parliamentary elections was a triumph for President Vladimir Putin: His party, United Russia, won 64% of the vote. Add that to the votes taken by the Kremlin's allies and the Putin tally reaches 80%, with the principal "democratic" opposition represented (at 11.5%) by the Communists. The vote sets up Mr. Putin, an exceptionally fit 55, to rule Russia for another four-year term, and perhaps several terms beyond that.

By happy contrast, Hugo Chávez's effort to establish himself as Venezuela's president-for-life via a constitutional referendum seems to have failed by a narrow margin. Even so, an astonishing 49% of voters were prepared, according to the official count, to permanently forgo the opportunity to choose a president other than Mr. Chávez.

Surely you now know why we pray for Russian Christians and do everything we can to take the good news to the good people of Russia?

Without a great deal of healing, Russia will never develop into a democracy of safety for the masses.

Learning to Care

The book is called, Listening for Heaven's Sake. This shows the back cover of a book that I introduced to the Russian Church Leaders in 1994 and is extremely popular among the Christian Ministers, Therapists and Counselors as well as the Lay Leaders. My friend tells me it says:

"If you use the truths from this book, you will…

• learn how listening can be the key to the growth of
love, peace, patience, righteousness and faith.
• learn the biblical foundations in order to develop a
healthy personality and adequate self-esteem
• See how to overcome the barriers and problems, which
complicate the true communication and close relationship
• discover many special techniques, which will help
you to make your communication with people more pleasant and healthy
• find out how to really help other people without
unnecessary emotions, over-stress and sense of guilt".

Why So Important In Russia?

The Bolsheviks intentionally attacked and attempted to destroy caring relationships among married couples, parents and their children and friends to say nothing about the horror of those who worshipped God. Why do atheist dictators do such things? Why would they want to keep people in misery and pain? Why were the Socialists dedicated to wiping out religion, family life and marital happiness?

This is important because it left the Russian people emotionally and spiritually devastated. That means that we who minister there now must spend a lot of time restoring God's approach to relationships. The Orthodox and Protestant Churches tried to maintain godly caring but they were treated with such violence and evil that showing the love of Christ was a very costly venture.

This is why we are publishing our books and doing so many seminars and workshops. It is going to take a complete Revolution of Love and Grace to heal the Russian people.

Pray for our team of love builders and hate breakers.

Missions

Our overseas friends need a new office for meetings, ministry and gatherings. They desperately need an SUV to move about the city and nation. The office will cost at least $200,000 and the SUV $40,000. Please pray about supporting these basic needs.

Send your donations to:

Sweeten Life Systems

P.O. Box 498455

Cincinnati, Ohio 45249

Attn: Missions

Russian Web Page

I forgot to add the web page of the Russian Ministry. It is called Liferoute in Russia because that name is easier to understand in Russian that our former name, Life Way Ministries.

Here is the web page: www.liferoute.ru

(Our new name is Sweeten Life Systems and our new address is

P.O. Box 498455, Cincinnati, Ohio 45249. You can still send your donations to the old address but we are changing as we write.)

On the Liferoute web page you will find photos, brief stories about their various workshops and seminars as well as the Recovery Bible in the Russian Language. To my knowledge, it is the only web based Bible dedicated to recovery, co-dependence, spiritual growth and healing. The USSR required all of the people in their captured satellite nations to learn the Russian language. Although the Soviets made life difficult and painful for almost everyone they ruled, the fact that millions of folks learned Russian that could not read it before.

(Thanks to Stephen Arterburn for permission to use the Bible and to Kay Martin for all her assistance in translating it.)

Thanks be to God, because for using Soviets evil intent against evil. God arranged things so the Bible can be studied by needy people all over the world. As Joseph said after he was made COO of Egypt, "They meant it for evil but God meant it for good."

What is Going On?

I received a short note from Galina. It was just a few words and she was very sad. After reading it I am also sad and mad as well. It is a helpless feeling really and has turned into anger that has new expectation that we can actually get something done. So, hang on. I might need you help.

For the second time in a row Galina Chentsova, M.D., PH.D. Psychiatrist and well known therapist and educator from Moscow was rejected for a Tourist Visa by the United States Embassy. Galina was a bit more upbeat than last year just because the person with whom she spoke was not a nasty as the one who rejected her last year for, "Being too close to Americans" and "having too much religious activity."

Has the United States under the leadership of George Bush turned things into such a Topsy Turvey situation that millions of the illiterate and unemployed can walk across the border illegally but a well educated, well employed, sponsored legal alien cannot get in? The answer seems to be a resounding, "YES!" Should we just have her fly to Mexico and then walk across the border?

Of course we shall not do that but the INS seems to have gone completely crazy. Pray for me as I contact my Congress Woman in Washington, D.C. How can we in America prosper when we keep out the best and the brightest?

This does not kill our desire to support her work in Russia but it keeps us from hearing from her and developing better ways to support Christians in Russia. We will keep trying.