Posted on 12/24/2010 10:19:27 AM PST by wmfights
Pradyun Chakraborty reclaimed his torn fishing net from the river. He and his wife counted the fish they caught—only 20 small Bagdha Ponnas, enough to get him 20 rupees (40 cents US). The net alone cost him 200 rupees ($5 US) to rent, half of which he still owed to his creditor.
With fish escaping from his torn net and hardly any other work, Pradyun and his family were just barely surviving.
It was the same for Jalal Balan. He bought his fishing net on credit for 1,000 rupees ($22 US) and was slowly paying it off. The majority of the income he received from fishing and other daily labor went to feed his family. But work was scarce, and Jalal had no way to repay his debt.
Tahir Sampath, a Gospel for Asia-supported missionary, serves in the village where Pradyun and Jalal live. He knows firsthand of his fellow villagers' struggles. Before becoming a pastor, his family's financial strain pushed him to become a fisherman.
"Even though people here attempt to make life better, they have no opportunities and resources," he said. "The only option available to them is fishing."
Knowing how useful it would be for Pradyun and Jalal to have fishing nets of their own—one they wouldn't have to go further in debt over—Tahir petitioned for them to receive fishing nets as a Christmas gift.
"When we hand over fishing nets to these people, it may not be very big thing for people like us, but for these poor fishermen, it is a real big thing," Tahir explained.
Now that Pradyun and Jalal received their fishing nets, they are able to set aside more money for their families and pay off their old debts.
"I badly needed this net," Pradyun declared. "Because of the net, I am able to add a little amount of money to my income. It has become a great help for me."
"[With our] situation, we cannot buy a net like this," Jalal shared. "I wish you could capture the image of our hearts and know how much we are thankful to the Lord and the church for the gift we are given."
They can’t make their own nets? It isn’t exactly high tech. When my mother was growing up, that was children’s work.
What we need is a GOVERNMENT PROGRAM that takes money form others by force and gives it to these people! (do I really need a /sarc tag?)
In this case someone just put a dent in someone’s fish net rental business.
True.
I'm not sure, I'll ask the next time someone from Gospel for Asia speaks at my church if they discuss any rudimentary business planning with these Christians when they make these gifts. It occurred to me that the fisherman should be putting aside some reserves for netting material in the future.
“They can’t make their own nets?”
Probably, but they still have to buy string.
Having seen some of the abject poverty there first hand, I can understand how after barely being able to feed your family, you might not have enough left over to save for a net.
“They can’t make their own nets?”
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Probably, but they still have to buy string.
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And needles, and floats, and lead line... and still have time left to fish before their creditors came after them, and before the fishermen and their families starved.
I like what you said though and maybe what these people need are christian business people and not missionaries.
I happen think christian principles of “thou shalt not steal”, “do not covet”, and “love your neighbor as yourself” are the bedrock foundations of any prosperous free market society.
There’s a link on the article page where you can give gifts to these people: http://www.gfa.org/gift/
A retired friend of mine who has an MBA spent time teaching in one of the ex-Soviet republics. He was teaching people the basic principles of profit and loss. Having been raised in the Soviet Empire, none of them had a clue as to how a private business was run.
Amazing!!!!! The Lord chooses to bless these fishermen with nets and you folks go around second guessing HIS choice. This attitude is precisely what is devouring our churches. God help us!
I didn't think so. The whole idea is to help people and teach them at the same time so they aren't dependent on the giving.
...maybe what these people need are christian business people and not missionaries.
How about both. Hearing The Gospel and being saved is more important than anything.
You’re 100% correct. The non-socialist/non-communist way is to make sure they know it is a one time deal and they have to pull up their boot straps and make it work. At the same time however, (and this can apply to any country on the planet, rich or poor), government needs to get the damned way out of business and innovation.
People can make fine cordage from certain weeds. In the eastern US, American Indians used dogbane and milkweed fiber, etc. They used spindle whorls to turn the fiber into threads and strings to make cloth and fishing nets. For weights they used stones, sometimes grooving them or drilling them to improve attachment. For floats they used small gourds.
The fish net rental guy is probably some local politician who manages a microfinancing biz on behalf of a foreign aid program.
yeah I know.
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