All of us have been grieved by the pictures, stories and reports coming in from Haiti . The sheer scope of the disaster is breathtaking. Our teachers at school are being reminded to pray for those suffering incredible loss in this horribly impoverished area. There are a few things, however, that need some examination and that I would like to hear more about . . . .
- The generosity of the American people. There is so much to be sad about in our culture, but I am so thankful when I see the outpouring of generosity from American families. This part of our national ethos deserves more attention. Most of what I hear concerning the relief effort is how it is failing. The supposition is that the other countries of the world (mainly the
US ) have some sort of responsibility to immediately show up in other countries and fix problems. This bespeaks our faithfulness and our generosity—people just expect it. When we are not meeting needs in the most efficient, most comprehensive manner, the rest of the world gets angry and we take critical stock of ourselves. That show a depth of character that is impressive. Presidents Bush and Clinton are taking the lead. We are an amazing people.
They are much more impoverished than their neighbors, the
Dominican Republic . I would not be quick to point toward some satanic covenant that they made in the past (like Pat Robertson recently did), but we need to know how to best help the Haitian people in the long run. The fact of these obvious deeper problems should not slake our generosity. When we were lost, God reached out to us in love. We must follow suit. God’s redeeming love does not leave people after rescuing them. God’s love sanctifies us and we should work to sanctify Haiti by encouraging economic independence, helping them stand on their own, helping them eventually becomes those who can help themselves and bless others in need. This is the call of the gospel. I pray for the sake of the Haitian people that we heed this call. Haiti got into this mess.
