Teaching Leaders in the African Country of Togo

I retired from teaching over five years ago. However, teaching is still in my blood. Since retiring I have twice gone to the African country of Malawi to teach in the pastoral training program there. At the end of August this year I went to another African country to teach, Togo.

When I told people I was going to Togo, they would typically look a little confused. I would have to explain to them that Togo is in West Africa. In truth, I wasn’t sure where Togo was when I first considered going there. It is a small country that manages to generally stay out of the news. Historically Germany first colonized Togo, but after WW I, France eventually took it over. In 1961 it became an independent country. French is currently the official language of Togo, but there are a number of dialects in the country as well. Many people speak at least three languages.

My biggest anxiety in going to Togo was yellow fever. Supposedly Togo required a vaccine for yellow fever to enter the country. However, in adults over 60 the vaccine has sometimes proven fatal so my doctor would not let me have one. I prepared by buying long sleeve shirts and spraying my clothes with a special mosquito repellent. In the end my worry seemed for nothing. I don’t think I saw any mosquitoes, and I felt quite safe inside the screened guest house.

I went to Togo to teach at the Wesley Missionary Institute. This is a fairly new training center in West Africa. It opened in January 2021. Located just outside Togo’s capital city, Lome, it is a place to specifically train indigenous missionaries to start new churches throughout West Africa. Students come from various countries in the region. It is a residential program so the students must commit for 18 months. When I was there, the students were the third class to go through the program.

I stayed in a newly finished guest house on the campus of the school. It is definitely the best building in the compound. I was only the second person to stay there. The best news was the air conditioning in the bedroom. That was an unexpected surprise. Someone cooked lunch and dinner for me almost every day so they took good care of me.

i was there to teach an overview of the Old Testament. My daily schedule started with a morning class from 9-12. Afterwards I had a three hour break for lunch and a nap. I then taught again from 3-5. The class was small with just 7 students. Of those three were from Sierra Leone and spoke English. One was from the Ivory Coast, and the rest were from Togo. The latter all spoke French. Since I don’t speak French, all my classes were translated into French. I had a great translator in Assah so that really went well. We got along great. The students were highly motivated and took the class seriously. They would ask quite a few questions which always indicates engaged students.

Along with their Biblical and pastoral classes, the curriculum includes training in how to earn a living. Part of that included learning how to take care of animals. They took care of goats and chickens which had the run of the compound. The goats were really cute, and I enjoyed watching them, especially the baby goats. Of course the ultimate end is to eat them so it’s best not to get too attached. They don’t milk them which I found somewhat surprising.

Throughout my time there Dosseh was the one who took care of me. He is the founder and the leader of the school as well as the pastor of a church in Lome. Although very busy with a number of responsibilities, he always made sure I had what I needed. I felt very well taken care of during my stay.

I was there over three Sundays, and they were an important part of my experience. Dosseh made sure I had a number of different opportunities. Each Sunday I didn’t just attend church, I had a responsibility. The first two weeks I preached. The final Sunday I led a communion service. The first and third Sundays were in the church in Lome which Dosseh pastors. The church building there is quite large, but it is incomplete. The window frames are empty. and wires hang from the ceiling waiting for fixtures. Nevertheless, the sanctuary was full, and the service was enthusiastic.

They have a full fledged band and worship team. The music was well done and energetic. Unlike Malawi, there was no special music shared. However, like most other African countries, people go up to the front to put their offering into the box. The congregation also separates themselves by gender for the most part. The chairs are also separated from each other which is a continuation from COVID orders from the government.

When I preached there in English, Dosseh translated it into the native dialect. However, when Dosseh addressed the congregation, he spoke in French, and someone else translated that into the native dialect. So when I preached, one person, who only knew French, had a personal translator to translate from English to French for her. I was surprised that all parts of the service were translated in some way.

The second week we went to a small country church. It took us about a half hour to drive there. There were only about 15 people at the service. The walls of the building were mats made from a type of reed leaning against the framework. However, they had a very loud sound system and used drums to provide a lively singing session. During the service I gave my camera to one of my students, Gentil, who took most of the photos below.

After the service they provided us with a meal, which was very generous considering how poor the area seemed. It was a typical Togo meal with a thick starch and then a sauce with a little meat in it. The natives take the starch (white yams pounded into a thick porridge) and roll it into a ball and then use it to scoop up the sauce. I used a fork.

The third Sunday we were back in Dosseh’s church. We hung around after the service for a while as Dosseh talked with various people. It was good to see the number of young men who were a part of the service. The kids were also fun to watch as they waited for their parents.

I wanted to make one other note about Togo. One of the common elements in Africa is that most cultures enjoy wearing brightly colored clothing. This is true of Togo as well. In fact stalls at markets as well as at the airport sell brightly colored fabrics. However, one of the unique aspects of this area of Africa is that the men wear brightly colored matching shirts and pants. It seems to be a dress up outfit in some ways. The younger men seem less likely to follow this fashion trend, but in the pictures above you can note these outfits on a number of men.

It has been a privilege to be able to teach in Africa. I am blessed by the students I have worked with. They are sincere and really desire to be able to carry out the ministry they feel called to. I am hoping that I will have opportunity to continue to teach and work with young men and women until my health and age no longer permit me to travel.

While this trip provided me with few opportunities to check out tourist spots. i was able to do a few touristy things on my last Saturday there and share that experience with someone special. Join me next week and find out who that person was.