I Have Seen God by Klaus-Dieter John

Author:Klaus-Dieter John
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Lion Hudson
Published: 2014-01-15T00:00:00+00:00

31

The Amphitheater

No one remembers just whose idea it was, but in retrospect the suggestion to build an amphitheater was a stroke of genius. In an area where there was neither movie theater nor concert hall, such a structure would offer interesting possibilities for all kinds of events.

As part of the construction plans for the hospital, Constructec had penciled in a semi-circular area that the ancient Greeks in Athens or Sparta would have been proud of. The sloping ground of the site was perfect for such an arena.

We were hoping to complete this part of the project with volunteer labor, in an effort to keep costs down. Anyone who might have happened upon our site on November 11 would most likely have rubbed his eyes in disbelief – thirty pastors from local churches showed up to haul away rocks. They had hoped to set an example for their church members to follow, and, over the course of the next four months, over 750 of them did.

Usually about twenty men and women would appear at the site on any given morning. They would wash boulders of all sizes, haul in and mix sacks of cement, then put the stones together like a puzzle to form beautiful walls. In a matter of weeks, eighteen rows, one above another, grew up the hillside. The reward for this back-breaking labor was a glass of the mango juice that Tina was producing by the bucketful.

The open-air theater became an example of good cooperation in every respect. Catholics and Protestants toiled together in the heat of the sun and under the weight of the heavy stones. It also took on an international dimension. The website www.Jesus.de picked up our project and offered to solicit donations online for a full year, bringing in $15,000 in gifts.

“On Saturday, April 23, we need to dedicate the amphitheater,” I told the Diospi Suyana team. “I need good photos for my US tour the following week.”

My logic did not seem to impress anyone. Maybe the workers thought it was a late April Fool’s Day joke. Either way, no one was in agreement with my ambitious proposition.

“Impossible!” said Udo Klemenz. “The stage isn’t finished, there are no handrails, the restrooms still aren’t functional… and we currently have no money to cover major expenses!”

“Where there’s a will, there’s a way!” I retorted. “Udo, you will manage it somehow!”

My confidence in Udo Klemenz and the construction crew was well founded, and they did not disappoint me. They built, painted, and sweated deep into the night for an entire week. As the construction team worked around the clock, we gained the attention of local TV and radio stations. Banners were hung over the streets, announcing the event. Invitations went out to VIPs in the state of Apurímac as well as to all the churches in the region.

We hurriedly put together a program that contained a balance of music, speeches, and presentations. In order to ensure that our guests did not go hungry, we calculated that we would need about 500 pounds of chicken, 3,000 sandwiches, and the same number of bottles of cola.

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