This is What ROM is About

Since 2001 Allen Belton has been a speaker and mentor every summer at the ROM (Renewing Our Minds) Gathering which takes place in Fuzine, Croatia. Here is Allen’s brief report on the past summer ROM Gathering.

My time in Fuzine at the Renewing Our Minds Gathering 2014 was rich inspirational experience for me and everyone attending the gathering.

I would like to share one story that demonstrates that. It is about two young couples. Both couples were married just before ROM and both couples decided to come to ROM for their honeymoons. Shenaj and Erman Belegu are from Kosovo. Shenaj’s first time at ROM was in the summer of 2013 and she decided to bring her husband to the next ROM. When I asked her why they came to ROM for their honeymoon she said, “Because I don’t know of another place that has so much peace, that I can feel so comfortable and be myself. I wanted my husband to experience this place for himself.”

The other couple just married who came to ROM 2014 were Marko and Mateja Stupar, from Serbia. They have been part of ROM for a number of years. “ROM is our extended family and we wouldn’t miss it”, they said. They shared a joint wedding reception, together with Erman and Shenaj, at ROM Gathering 2014.

The remarkable thing is that not all is well between Serbia and Kosovo, and ROM is probably the only place in the recent history of Serbia and Kosovo, where one could witness two couples, one from Serbia and another one from Kosovo, celebrating their marriages together, in the same room.

This is what ROM is all about. Each person that experiences ROM is a change person. I am a changed person. ROM is a time to learn from one another, a powerful time of building relationships, learning about Jesus, a time to have our minds renewed and being challenged to home and make a difference.

As a speaker at ROM I felt that what God gave me to share with those present at the last ROM was well received, understood, appreciated with open minds and hearts. I had many one-on-one conversations, and God used me to help others see that Jesus loves them, and that in God’s eyes we are all ‘Designer Originals’.

Allen Belton, published by Balkan Task Force Newsletter, October 2014.

Human Dignity Means Responsibility

Leo van Doesburg, Director for European Affairs and Policy Advising of European Christian and Political Movement (ECPM) talks about ECPM and its views on dignity of human life, family values, gender equality, legalization of same sex marriages, euthanasia, prostitution, human trafficking, quality of life, religious freedom, difference between church and state, speaking Christina values into politics, meaning of freedom, peace building and reconciliation. Leo van Doesburg is External Affairs Manager for the European Christian Political Movement (ECPM), a European political party committed to promoting Christian Democratic values with its social expression in public life. He is actively involved in policy-making at various national and European institutions and has offered many trainings and courses on Christian Democracy, Freedom of Religion & Conscience, Family Values, Human Dignity and Peace & Reconciliation. In 2011 he was awarded the Conscience and Freedom Award for diligently promoting religious freedoms in Europe, in 2013 he was awarded in the recognition for the fight against Roma discrimination in East Europe by the International Romani Union. Leo van Doesburg and ECPM are our European partners. Time 28:08 min.

Baklava, Palacinke and Flowers

At the annual Croatian Fest on October 5^th, 2014 at the Seattle Center, the Balkan Task Force (BTF) made and sold 300 baklava, Croatian (aka Turskih) coffee, and hundreds of palacinke (Croatian pancakes).

This is the 5^th year that the BTF had the opportunity to raise funds and communicate with the public about the initiatives in Southeast Europe that it supports, and about Forum for Leadership and Reconciliation (Forum), recently formed non-profit organization involved with the Renewing Our Minds (ROM) ministry, Economic Diplomacy and Integrity Forum (EDI), and other reconciliation and leadership development activities in the region.

All the proceeds go to Forum and the Balkan Task Force. Generous donors provided the cost of ingredients. Many thanks go to all who helped with the baklava, palacinke making and selling.

Many thanks go to the many people who helped at the Balkan Task Force Annual Plant Sale fundraiser on June 7 in the parking lot area of the Wedgwood Presbyterian Church in Seattle. Many thanks to Smith Gardens Nursery in Bellingham for their generous donation of a truckload of beautiful plants for the sale, and to the Wedgwood Presbyterian Church for free use of their space.

Balkan Task force Newsletter, Seattle WA, October 2014.