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> Haiti - An Anglican Responsibility

Posted On : March 23, 2010 3:48 PM | Posted By : Webmaster
ACNS: http://www.aco.org/acns/news.cfm/2010/3/23/ACNS4692
Related Categories: ACO  South Africa  USA

?The Anglican Communion needs to be actively involved in helping the rebuilding and healing of 
Haiti, working with the Église Épiscopale d?Haïti
(the Anglican/Episcopal Diocese of Haiti) and its bishop the Rt Revd Zaché 
Duracin.? This was the message that Archbishop Thabo Makgoba of the Anglican Church 
of Southern Africa wanted to share with the wider Communion after a visit to Haiti 
4-7 March 2010. Archbishop Makgoba was present in Haiti on a solidarity visit and in 
support of the work of The Gift of the Givers, the largest disaster relief 
organisation based on the African continent, which is in process of delivering the 
first shipment of relief supplies to meet urgent needs in Haiti following the 
earthquake on 12 January 2010. Already the organization had sent medical teams 
immediately after the catastrophe.

Archbishop Makgoba was accompanied by Bishop Pierre Whalon who was visiting as 
an emissary of the Presiding Bishop of The Episcopal Church
(TEC), of which the Diocese of Haiti is a constituent member. Bishop Whalon, 
the Bishop in charge of the Convocation of Episcopal Churches in Europe, is, 
along with Bishop Duracin, one of the two francophone bishops of The Episcopal 
Church. After his visit Bishop Whalon spoke about the experience to Clare Amos 
of the Anglican Communion Office, and the following is based on their 
conversation.

?What has happened in Haiti is probably the greatest natural disaster in 
recorded modern history. It is estimated that up to 400,000 people have died, 
and that is out of a total population of about 9 and a half million people. 
Even before the catastrophe Haiti was in fairly dire straits, but the quake has 
destroyed such things as the rudimentary sanitary system. Many, many people are 
living in makeshift camps in shelters made of sticks, blankets and tarpaulin. 
Within a month?s time the rainy season will arrive, and then three months down 
the line it is the hurricane season. Obviously the dangers of typhoid and 
cholera are present ? and will be more so, once the rains start. It is going to 
get worse before it can get better. Many of the dead have not yet been buried 
because their bodies are still trapped under the rubble. Of course this 
intensifies the threat of disease.

In terms of its structures and buildings the Episcopal Diocese of Haiti has been savagely 
hit. The cathedral compound in Port au Prince ? which also included a convent, the 
theological college, primary, middle and high schools, a music school, vocational 
training centre and a nearby home for special needs children ? has been almost completely 
destroyed (see pictures). The stunning frescoes in the cathedral ? a UNESCO World 
Patrimony site with scenes depicting Christ as a Haitian ? only remain in fragments. 
Nearby, the diocese?s university and another secondary school were destroyed. Nine 
university students lie buried in a mass grave, awaiting three others still under the 
mountain of their school?s rubble. The families of all twelve also perished. The bishop?s 
house and a nearby apartment building were obliterated.  A historic centre of the 
Episcopal Diocese at Léogane, to the west of Port-au-Prince, where there is another 
complex of churches, hospitals and schools, which offers the only four year nursing 
diploma in the country, has also been severely damaged. The hospital which forms part of 
the complex has been replaced temporarily by a field hospital ? though work on rebuilding 
the original hospital has already begun. Of course in both complexes, at Port au Prince 
and Léogane, there was considerable loss of human life. Seeing the makeshift graves 
? and seeing and smelling still unburied bodies ? is a memory that will remain with me 
for a very long time.

And yet in the midst of all this death and destruction there is the beginning of 
resurrection. The spirit of the people was quite remarkable. People are working very 
hard. They are determined to survive and they are doing so energetically. This was 
really apparent in relation to the work of the Diocese itself. Not many people know 
that the Diocese of Haiti is the largest Diocese in The Episcopal Church, with 
120,000 faithful and over 250 schools. It was ? and still is ? a leading light in 
the Haitian nation. In spite of the destruction of its physical plant, the Diocese 
has organised relief, using its extensive network of lay leaders, and has put 
together 23 camps where 30,000 people are sheltering. The theological college has 
re-formed, and the home for special needs children has found a temporary home ? both 
at Montrouis, in a less affected part of the country. I was greatly moved when we 
went to visit the children there. It was completely dark so that we couldn?t 
actually see the children but they still sang to us in French. ?We are happy to see 
you, happy to have you here, please come again.? As we travelled on assessment 
visits with the director of The Gift of the Givers ¬it became obvious that he 
was deeply impressed with the capability of the Diocese to act as a key partner in 
the delivery of relief supplies. And it is worth pointing out that this director is 
a Muslim
? so it is a good example of interfaith cooperation to meet the needs of our 
common humanity.

I would like to echo Archbishop Thabo?s reflection. The Anglican Communion 
needs to be clearly identified with helping the church in Haiti in its work of 
redevelopment of the country. I have certainly already been hearing of examples 
of such support. Episcopal Relief and Development, along with many other 
Anglican charities, has offered generous aid. The involvement of The Gift of 
the Givers represents the desire of the families of Africa to be closely 
involved. I have just been told about a recent song concert that school 
children in Hong Kong have given in St John?s Cathedral to raise money for 
Haiti. Around the world we want to show that as Anglicans we belong to each 
other. Sharing the suffering of our Anglican brothers and sisters in Haiti, and 
supporting them to rebuild their nation is a vital part of what it means to 
live in Communion. ?