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By Talina Sarmiento Beck

On May 8th, I graduated with a Master of Theological Studies from Wesley Theological Seminary. My seminary journey was beautiful, challenging, and sometimes painful. The story of Moses and his time at Midian brings light to my journey: “When Pharaoh heard of it, he sought to kill Moses. So Moses fled from Pharaoh. He settled in the land of Midian and sat down by a well” (Exodus 2:15). Conscientização defines Moses’ journey from fleeing from Egypt, his time at Midian, to his return into Egypt as a liberator years later. Conscientização, a word I intentionally write unitalicized to normalize the use of different languages in writings, is the name that the Brazilian educator Paulo Freire gave to the apprehension of our reality that causes us to act and transform oppressive circumstances into liberating ones. It consists of recognizing the oppressive realities we experience and, through community and praxis, searching for their causes and working toward liberation. The Moses that arrived at Midian was not the same person that went back to Egypt. In Midian, he found a community, started a family (Ex.2:21-22), and heard God’s voice calling him to go and do something about Israel’s oppression (Ex. 3:2). In Midian, he also told God how inadequate he was for the task (Ex. 4:10-17). In Midian, Moses comes to the realization that God will not sit still in the experience of oppression of God’s people. Moses is convicted that he must do something to change Israel’s future. Midian is the place where he turned his fear and his anger into the courage, love, determination, and praxis needed to change the oppression of Israel.

 

“Midian is the place where he turned his fear and his anger into the courage, love, determination, and praxis needed to change the oppression of Israel.”

 

The story of Moses in Midian makes me think about my seminary journey, particularly, my visit to the HSP Summer Session. Like most of those I met during my visit to the Summer Session, Moses was a foreigner. He named his first son, Gershom, because he was a stranger in a foreign land (Ex. 2:22). Seminary exposed me to realities I didn’t see before and raised my awareness of the different oppressions people experience. During my first Summer Session in  2021, I attended the theology class taught by Dr. Christopher Tirres, “Liberating Spiritualities in the Américas.” In it, I discovered and learned about my ancestors, the Hispanic immigrant community in the USA, and myself in a way I did not anticipate. The concept of conscientização and the writings of Paulo Freire were the most impactful on me. This moved me to realize that, just like Moses, God was making me aware of the oppressions that exist in our world. God was also sending me to denounce oppression and announce different systems that liberate the oppressed. In other words, the Holy Spirit helped to conscientize me to think and act to liberate.

 

“Like Moses, I felt inadequate to do any of the tasks I knew necessary to make our communities places where all people’s dignity is respected and restored. Like Moses, who found wise guidance and support from his father-in-law, Jethro, I encountered the gentleness of mentors and friends in HSP, who continue to help and support me in my journey of conscientização.”

 

Just as Midian was the place where Moses experienced his conscientização, my visits to the Summer Session in 2021 and the HSP J-term in 2022 with Dr. Jorge Rodríguez were visits to Midian for me. Both of these experiences raised my awareness of the oppression of my people. They were like Midian because they were empowering and calling me to praxis. During my classes, I found knowledge and training. I discovered a community that understood me and helped me to articulate the oppressions I was seeing and feeling but had been fleeing from admitting. Like Moses, I felt inadequate to do any of the tasks I knew necessary to make our communities places where all people’s dignity is respected and restored. Like Moses, who found wise guidance and support from his father-in-law, Jethro, I encountered the gentleness of mentors and friends in HSP, who continue to help and support me in my journey of conscientização.

 

“I encourage anyone who has participated in any HSP program – J-term, summer session, etc. –  to join the HSP Alumni Network, as we seek to continue this journey of conscientização together, as we further discover our Midian.”

 

As I prepare for my next HSP Summer Session this 2023, I reflect on the experiences, individuals, and community that are my Midian. In the Fall of 2021, a group of HSP alumni and I created the HSP Alumni Network, which has become a family and a place of empowerment for which I am grateful. I encourage anyone who has participated in any HSP program – J-term, summer session, etc. –  to join the HSP Alumni Network, as we seek to continue this journey of conscientização together, as we further discover our Midian.

Talina Sarmiento Beck

Talina Sarmiento Beck

HSP Alumn

Talina Sarmiento Beck recently graduated with a Master of Theological Studies from Wesley Theological Seminary and holds a BA in International Commerce Relations from Universidad Intercontinental, Mexico City. She is a Deacon candidate in the United Methodist Church. Talina lives with her husband and four children in Virginia, where she aims to make this world a little better.

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