GA08093

Learning the ‘dance of partnership’ in world health

by Shane Whisler

Dr. Carol Brees addressed the World Health Issues breakfast on Tuesday. Photo by Danny Bolin

SAN JOSE, June 25, 2008 — Having faith the size of a mustard seed is required when learning the “dance of partnership” with diverse groups, said the speaker at the World Health Issues Breakfast Tuesday morning (June 24) at the 218th General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)

But before taking any steps it is best to be certain faith is appropriately placed, according to Dr. Carol Brees, who returned with her husband, the Rev. Jim Brees, for health reasons after serving more than 16 years as mission co-workers at Memorial Christian Hospital in northern Pakistan. Brees spoke at the annual breakfast jointly sponsored by the Medical Benevolence Foundation and the PC(USA)’s International Health Ministries.

Brees said faith cannot merely be placed in a certain practice of medicine or technology or hospital. For example, one Pakistani couple had already visited one hospital, but the father was angry when they were told at the second hospital, which delivers as many as 8,000 babies annually, that their baby had died in utero.

Brees asked how much he was told at the first hospital.

“He told me, ‘Oh yes, we already knew the baby was dead, but we had faith in you,’” she said.

Brees used the illustration in part to say that people in the church should discern what it is in which they place their faith — is it a certain practice of medicine, technology or the living Christ?

Sometimes our healing power doesn’t work, just as the disciples learned in Matthew 17. When it doesn’t work, prayer is the only action to take, according to Brees’ interpretation of that gospel story.

The Matthew passage describes Jesus’ roles of teaching, preaching and healing every disease. “We are heirs of that mission,” she said, whether it be providing clean water, fighting AIDS or malaria or reducing infant mortality.

“Can we have faith that the Holy Spirit can work through our hospitals?” Brees asked. “Can we have faith that it can work in those people who are very different from us? That is to say, can we work in partnership?”

She said the needs are so great that “we need one another to address them.”

In conclusion, Brees told the 54 people who gathered for the breakfast that mission colleagues in Pakistan and around the world face great hardship.

“There are tremendous pressures on our partners, the infrastructure is as frustrating to them as it is to us,” she said. Many leave medical work in Pakistan when recruited by other countries.

“I thank God for our international partners who feel called to stay. Often they stay at great personal risk and loss,” Brees said. “We should never work ourselves out of the job of being present for and supporting those people.”