The Presbyterian Church in Cuba

A monthly column for the PC(USA) by the General Assembly stated clerk

by the Rev. Gradye Parsons
General Assembly stated clerk

LOUISVILLE — Yes, Virginia, there is a vital Presbyterian Church in Cuba.  Read more.

I was invited to travel to the island last month with the presbytery and synod staffs of the Synod of the Sun. We spent time at the Matanzas Evangelical Theological Seminary talking about the mission of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) and the Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba. We also toured churches in each of the three presbyteries.

We heard remarkable testimonies of faithfulness and hope in these Cuban congregations. Church members told us about the long time in their history immediately following the revolution when only one or two people would attend Sunday worship. Today, the sanctuaries of those same congregations are full for worship. We also met a group of young adults who were preparing for a mission trip to Canada.

Particularly striking to me was the story told by Dora Arce Valentin, a pastor in Havana. Dora is the daughter of a minister who led his church during the difficult time right after the revolution.

Dora’s grandmother lived with them, and it was her job to get Dora to Sunday school each week. Not only was Dora frequently the only child in the class, which her grandmother taught, but she was often the only young girl in the congregation. So, like preacher’s kids everywhere, Dora protested this solitary assignment.

Dora remembers what her grandmother told her every Sunday. “Dora, you have to go to Sunday school. It is important that people see you there. God will bring the other people.”

Paul reminds us in 1 Corinthians 13 that now we see in a mirror dimly. Now we wonder where the church is going and what will it look like when we get there. Now we question how our little faith and hope will keep our congregations vital and alive.

Cuba holds a lesson for us: God is ever more faithful that we can imagine. So, Presbyterians, go to church. It is important that people see you there. God will bring the other people.

Winnebago Presbytery supports a number of local partnerships between our congregations and local agencies and programs.

One answer to the question, “Where do our dollars go?” is:

The Emergency Shelter of  the Fox Valley

The mission of the Emergency Shelter of the Fox Valley, Inc., is to provide temporary shelter to homeless individuals and families in a safe environment, while providing guidance to those both homeless and at-risk that promotes independence.

The Emergency Shelter of the Fox Valley was established in 1981 as a non-profit organization to provide homeless men, women, and children safe shelter. Our current facility currently can house adult men, adult women and families not to exceed 75 total residents.

The Emergency Shelter of the Fox Valley serves any homeless individuals regardless of their city, county or state of origin providing they adhere to our admission criteria. All residents fall below the federal poverty guidelines for income.

The Emergency Shelter of the Fox Valley celebrates its 30th Anniversary this year. We invite all interested community members to attend our Annual Report to the Community meeting on Tuesday, March 23, 2010. More details and registration information are available at under “Upcoming Events” on our website: www.emergencyshelterfoxvalley.org. You may also contact Jill Mitchler, the Emergency Shelter’s Fund Development and Volunteer Coordinator, at 734-9603 or jillmitchler@esfv.org. “It is in the shelter of each other that people live.” Irish proverb.

During the Presbytery meeting  at DePere First United on February 13th, their Family Ministries Program is holding a Family Adventure Day in which they will be assembling hygiene kits.

Please consider bringing supplies to the Presbytery meeting so that even more kits can be assembled.

Collect items locally and bring them to the February 13th Presbytery Meeting in DePere.  Let’s see how much we can gather.

ACCEPTING ONLY THESE ITEMS:

·        Hand towels (approximately 16″ x 28″)
·        Washcloths
·        Wide-tooth combs
·        Nail clippers (NO files or emery boards)
·        Bath size bars of soap (in wrapper)
·        Toothbrushes (in original packaging)
·        Band Aid strips or other adhesive strips
·        Monetary donations are always welcome

When the earthquake struck Haiti, a 40-foot container was immediately prepared with hygiene and baby kits and sent to the Dominican Republic for transport into Haiti.  Kits have already been distributed.

When very large quantities of kits are sent, few to no kits are available for the next disaster. We understand that the shipment to Haiti completely depleted both warehouses of hygiene kits and baby kits. Therefore, the kits that are being prepared now will allow kits to be available for immediate shipment to other disasters and/or available for additional shipments to Haiti.

A recent report from Church World Service indicates delivery of the following number of kits for response to the Haiti earthquake:

ESTHER, is an interfaith social justice organization in the Fox Valley.  In Omro, WI the local ministry established Casa Esther two years ago.  That group established a local community garden in the city; the resulting produce is given to local food pantries in Omro and Oshkosh.

When the land was sold in this past spring, the Mission Committee and Session of First Presbyterian Church came forward offering  space on their church property so the project could continue another year.

Early in May members of Casa Esther, Fr. Joe Mattern, Garden Manager Mike Stadler,  and Pastor Ed Slusser planted the garden.   The harvestwas large enough that extra produce was  offered to church members in gratitude for the use of their land.

August 2009

Dear Friends:

As I write, the rain is coming down hard on my roof, nothing unusual for the extended rainy season here in Costa Rica (May-December). The worst is yet to come in October. Fortunately, unlike so many, I have a safe and warm place to be.

These past few months have been about the search for new faculty for the university. Between last year and this, four faculty members are leaving the School of Biblical Studies. It is a challenge to keep up with all the course work both in Costa Rica and in our associated centers throughout Latin America. For me it has been an especially challenging time as I have been struggling with unexplained chronic anxiety. I appreciate your prayers as it makes every task a challenge.

Our largest group of students these months is from Perú and Bolivia. It has been interesting to share with them concerning the many things going on in their countries— especially Bolivia. Our Honduran students have been very concerned with what is happening in their country, of course, due to recent events.

I must say that our students amaze me sometimes. Most of them come from situations of great need and have struggled to fulfil their dream to study. Victor Hugo is one of those students. I met him for the first time when I taught a course in Lima, Perú. He was front and center, inquisitive, a critical thinker, interpreting our study of Ezra through the lens of the many injustices in his country. Last year Victor Hugo finished his undergraduate degree with us and is now on his way to Costa Rica to begin the master’s program shortly. I say “on his way” because, due to economic constraints, he is travelling by land, a week-long trip. We trust he arrives safely. You see, Victor Hugo earns his living as a taxi driver, or rather, driving a taxi that belongs to someone else. They say Lima, Perú, has the best educated taxi drivers in the world! (During my time there an economist drove me to and from classes.)

I don’t know what Victor Hugo’s perspectives are for the future. At the Latin American Biblical Institute (UBL), we do our best to prepare our students for pastoral and academic ministries. Will his dreams come true? Jobs are few and far between, no matter how great the need for theological education. The economy has other priorities. But Victor Hugo is moving forward with his dream, overcoming obstacles we can only imagine, both internal and external. We look forward to having him here again.

Dreams are what keep us moving forward. We have dreams at UBL—to open new master’s programs in the area of gender and theology, AIDS ministries, Bible translation, and others. Our faculty is going through a time of turnover, with several retiring in the next couple of years. We dream of a team of diverse, energized, visionary professors to move us forward into this century.

Some of the challenges we face are the varied educational backgrounds of our students. The educational level varies considerably from one country to another, and while some students come to UBL and excel, others struggle because of a lack of basic skills. Finding ways to meet these needs and provide quality theological education is one of our goals. The diversity of the student body is enriching and many times an eye-opener for some of the students. For people of all different cultural, racial, and religious backgrounds, learning to live together in the dorm is an education in itself. Many inner conflicts come to the fore under stressful situations, which is why we have a staff psychologist ready to work with the students and accompany them during their time here.

One of our big dreams is to renew the deteriorated married student housing that is just off campus. It means tearing down the seven apartments that are there and building something new, both for students and to rent for scholarship income. It’s a huge project, a huge dream that requires financing, and we’re going at it little by little. When the time comes to build, we hope work groups from the United States will volunteer with us in helping make this dream come true.

My own personal dream of working on my Ph.D. is on hold for now. But I trust not for long.

May your dreams, hopes and prayers come true as we dream forth life in troubling times.

Don’t forget to support the mission worker of your choice and thus become a part of the dreams of many as we partner with churches, hospitals, and seminaries around the world.

Sincerely,

Elisabeth

The 2009 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 283