PREMIKA TO YDS

PREMIKA IS A YOUNG NEPALI GRADUATE FROM THE NATIONAL THEOLOGICAL COLLEGE IN KATHMANDU WHO IS INVITED TO ATTEND YALE DIVINITY SCHOOL'S (YDS) SUMMER SESSION IN JUNE 2019. THE INVITATION IS OFFERED, ACCOMMODATIONS PROCURED, AND A TICKET AT THE READY. WHAT'S MISSING? A VISA. 

CURRENTLY IN PRODUCTION.

We first met Premika at the National Theological College (NTC) in Kathmandu. TheoEco’s Steve and Bobbie Richards were assisting at the seminary and Premika was a top student. Premika has since gone on to graduate from NTC and was recommended to Yale Divinity School as a promising student from Nepal at a lunch in November 2017 with YDS' Dean Greg Sterling and NTC's founder Reverend Rinzi Lama. Berkeley Divinity School’s (the Episcopal Seminary at Yale) Andrew McGowan and Cathy George quickly paved the way for Premika to attend in the summer of 2017.

We hoped it would be relatively straightforward: have Premika attend the summer session and see how it went before applying for a three-year M.Div. program. After all, Premika has never ventured outside Nepal, so both she and YDS could use some “getting to know each other time” and the short summer session is ideal. Tuition was waived and housing was secured at the Berkeley Center. 

But things turned out to be more complicated than originally thought, so plans were made for Premika to come the following summer in 2018. We felt that with all the documentation and prep work we would carry the day with the US Embassy in Kathmandu when it came time to secure a tourist visa. (A student visa is apparently not doable unless Premika is accepted for the M.Div. program.)

We were wrong. Even with the thick dossier of support, a formal written invitation, letters of recommendation, and more, the embassy turned Premika down flat in May of 2018 as it is assumed all young people without lots of money are going to vanish and never return to Nepal once they reach the US. So, we are trying again—this time with an immigration attorney in New Haven and others we know can help carry the day. 

Given her work at the Anglican Church in Nepal’s offices in Kathmandu, it is an especially big deal for Premika to make this journey as the Anglican Church in Nepal, unlike the Episcopal Church in the USA (also a part of the Anglican Church), does not ordain female priests. Premika’s time at Yale Divinity School could open doors for all kinds of outcomes that are hard to predict. Women’s rights and leadership roles in Nepal could be immeasurably enriched through Premika’s time at Yale, and the chance for this Nepali pastor’s daughter to meet and see women priests in the pulpits at Anglican churches in the USA will impact not just Premika, but also those that interact with her. All of which can only strengthen the church and body of Christ.

How can you help? There are several ways:

• Sign our online petition
• Share with your friends
• Pray for her - she will greatly appreciate it

Lastly, there are many expenses associated with this project including travel, video production, professional fees, and more, so please consider a contribution to TheoEco’s Nepal Project 2019 which is assisting in this effort.

Donate to Nepal Project 2019