A Pastor's Pig Project
Raising Pigs to Build a Church
Worshiping with believers around the world is a special treat for me. It’s like a foretaste of heaven as I’m reminded of Revelation 7:9. “After this I looked, and there before me was a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language, standing before the throne and before the Lamb.”
Worshiping on Easter Sunday 2021 in eastern Uganda was extra special for me. It was my first overseas travel in more than a year due to COVID. It was so good to once again be with great friends and coworkers. And, I was able to worship with three Ugandan congregations.
Yet, the highlight of my day occurred on our way to the first church service. Pastor Moses Otim proudly guided us through his pig project. Why was this the highlight of my entire Easter Sunday? What excites me so much is that this project is at the convergence of several One Mission Society and Mercy, Inc. ministry components.
- Moses is a Village Church Planting (VCP) trainer. With his pig project he is endeavoring to raise money to buy a plot of land for the church he has planted.
- Moses’ project involves animal husbandry, which is part of the training available from Empowering Lives International, a partner in the Shalom Africa pilot projects.
- Moses is a graduate of the Sinapis Aspire entrepreneur course. In late 2020, we partnered informally with Sinapis to deliver this course in Jinja, and Moses is applying what he learned.
- Finally, Every Community for Christ helped fund this project with a portion of the COVID relief monies. According to VCP coordinator, Ramla Saiad Fidelite, “Food for relief lasts only for a few days. A development project is sustainable.”
Funds were used to purchase three young sows and one boar when they were two months old. Pastor Moses rented space and constructed three stalls. Since then he has been feeding the pigs corn, silverfish, and food scraps from local hotels.
The sows have now been bred. Gestation is three months, and a typical litter is 10-12. Moses anticipates two litters per year. Piglets will either be allowed to mature and reproduce, or they will be fattened and sold at 10 months. A ten-month old pig will fetch about $280 when sold.
Pastor Moses’ pig project is an example of what OMS, Mercy, and ELI want to do in the Shalom Africa project. By combining the Gospel message with church planting, agricultural and animal husbandry training, and literacy instruction, our goal is to see families and communities uplifted and local churches established and strengthened.
By Chuck Rapp, OMS Africa Regional Director
To learn more about the Africa Shalom initiative or to give, click here.