Location: Bekaa Valley, Lebanon
Founded 1956
How it all started
The town of Mejdelanjar, with its 20,000 inhabitants, lies close to the Syrian border, about 30 miles from Beirut. In 1956, the mayor of this Muslim town asked Sisters from a Swiss-German Christian mission organisation, Christlicher Hilfsbund im Orient, to begin a school in his town, and local people call it ‘the Sisters’ school’ to this day.
It began as an elementary School, with just 30 children, but gradually grew to incorporate an intermediate section. For a few years during the Lebanese civil war of 1975–1990, the intermediate section was forced to close when some of the students began carrying weapons to school. This section reopened in 1994.
Although the School is popular, with up to 600 students attending in the late 1990s, this number has fallen to about 450 students in recent years, due to a reduction in income. The economic crisis in Lebanon and widespread unemployment means that parents are increasingly unable to pay school fees and the government is several years behind in its payments to the School.
Current activities
The 450 students at the School are aged between 4 and 16 years. Most of the children are from poor families, and all are Muslims. More than half of the students are girls, since many of their mothers and grand-mothers were once at the School themselves. They know that, because of the spirit of acceptance and freedom at this School, their daughters will be treated fairly and will receive a good education.
The School teaches the usual governmental curriculum and one of the most popular lessons is Computer Studies. Until recently, this was taught on a blackboard, with just four old computers. Children were unable to put the theory that they were taught into practice, until BibleLands gave a grant that allowed 12 new computers to be installed. The School told us: “When the new computers arrived, we could feel a sense of ‘electricity’ in our School. Everybody was excited, the director sent messages into the town, the teachers happily worked overtime and the pupils were eager to practice what they had learnt before the next lesson. The happiest face, of course, was that of our computer teacher, who can now teach his subject with the equipment he needs.”
One of the main aims of the School is to promote religious tolerance. As the only Christian School in the Muslim town of Mejdelanjar, it has a unique role to play. Whilst all the students are Muslim, most of the staff are Christians, who travel to the town each day. The School does not teach Religious Education as a subject, as it is illegal to teach the Christian faith to those of another religion. However, a Christian atmosphere is nourished through the staff and leadership; through the Christian groups who sometimes visit the School; through the books in the library, many of which have a Christian theme; and through monthly video showings, which include Christian films. In a town where religious beliefs range from the nominal to the fundamental, this School’s focus on religious understanding and mutual respect is becoming more and more vital. As result, many young people in the area have not only been well educated, but have become a new generation of citizens who have learned tolerance and co-operation. Christian and Muslim can live now peacefully side by side, in a multi-cultural and multi-religious country.
The School does not simply aim to educate each child in an academic manner, but also seeks to care for them in a wider context, for example, by visiting each child at home. This allows the School to get to know each child’s parents, brothers and sisters, and often the extended family. In their final year, a few months before they sit their governmental exams, each pupil preparing for these exams receives a home visit. As well as being an encouragement for the children in their individual development, these visits often act as career guidance sessions, providing invaluable advice for the students, who would not otherwise be aware of the options available to them. Such visits also allow staff to keep in touch with older brothers and sisters who have left the School, as well as beginning new relationships with younger siblings who may soon attend the School.
The School is held in high regard in the town of Mejdelanjar. Local people often say that it has achieved a big fadl (merit) for the whole town, not only because it has helped many poor children but also because it has helped to dramatically raise the educational standards of the town and increased religious tolerance in the local area. With the economic situation in Lebanon so uncertain for the future, BibleLands’ support of this School remains vital, allowing it to continue to offer its services to the town’s children.
Like most schools, the Swiss Evangelical School
has various sports teams, and participates in
competitions with other local schools. The boys
in this photo are members of the basketball team.