Pastor's message about the Haiti Situation
The tragedy that is unfolding in Haiti is impossible to imagine from this distance. The destruction in the city of Port au Prince is almost total. Time is rapidly running out for those who are buried under the ruins of collapsed buildings. The possibilities for widespread disease following the earthquake are many. The continuing aftershocks ensure that a whole city of traumatized people are continuing to live in fear, panic and confusion.
I invite you to join me in a time of prayer for the people of Haiti. Before this catastrophe, this country was in a chronic ongoing crisis of poverty. As relief efforts are mounted it will be difficult to distinguish between needs created by the earthquake, and needs that existed previously. The human needs are enormous.
The United Methodist Committee on Relief is already on the ground in Haiti. As any tragedy unfolds, you can be confident that UMCOR representatives are acting first and counting dollars later. They count on the fact that we will respond generously and lovingly to this crisis. We will, of course, be asking for special gifts at Sunday’s worship services. We will forward these gifts as soon as we receive them.
One heart-rending story in the midst of this tragedy is that three executives of the Board of Global Ministries were in Haiti when the earth quake occurred, and there are fears that they may not have survived. Sam Dixon, top executive of the United Methodist Committee on Relief, Clinton Rabb, head of Mission Volunteers, and James Gulley, an UMCOR consultant, were on the island working to streamline UMCOR’s work in Haiti. Please pray for them and their families.
Pastor Alan
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