January 1, 2006

Dear Friends and Supporters,

As this new year begins, Keiko and I are into our nineteenth month here, and during this time Brazil has gone through the most serious ethical crisis in its history. Brazil’s democratic institutions, still very much in process of formation, have been shaken to the core. There have been so many charges of political corruption, so many investigations going on at the same time, and so many people implicated that it is simply impossible even for the best columnists and editorialists to keep it all straight. The ethical crisis is considered so damaging that it has compromised Brazil's current model of representative government and shown the need for the creation of new mechanisms for direct and participatory democracy. The need for democratizing mass communications is also much discussed because of the perverse power of the media, which serve the dominant interests and are attempting to criminalize the activities of the social movements and NGOs, the very people working hardest to reform Brazil.

Meanwhile, distrust in political action is at an all-time high, especially because of the failure of Lula’s government to implement the changes that the Brazilian people had hoped for in recent years. Lula is the first Brazilian president who was not a member of the elite; he has a working class background. And he was the overwhelming choice of the voters because they thought he was committed to social justice and human dignity. But opinion polls show that most people now believe that Lula has sold out to the very powerful conservative and reactionary forces that have traditionally controlled Brazil, as evidenced by Lula’s preference for agrobusiness over family farming, by his repeated delays in land reform, by his dismantling of the plans for urban reform, by his acceptance in principle of “free trade” policies that would hurt ordinary Brazilians, by his scant interest in development that is socially or environmentally sustainable, by his failure to address the problem of impunity (In Brazil the bad guys, if they’re rich or connected, seldom if ever get prosecuted), by his failure to attend to the population’s basic needs even when money is available for that purpose, by the vast corruption he and his party have caused or are heavily involved in, and finally by his brazen denial of the obvious.

Such is the ethical environment in which all projects and missions have to operate in Brazil. It is unquestionably a corrosive atmosphere. That is why I consider it a privilege to be working with ITEBA, which is very much part of the solution to Brazil’s problems. This doesn’t mean that things at ITEBA would meet the exacting standards of the best North American Presbyterian institutions. But how could anything or anyone in Brazil be so squeaky clean? It does mean, however, that ITEBA is working hard to construct a better Brazil, a Brazil in which ordinary citizens actually have some rights and a government that defends their welfare, a Brazil in which wealth and power are broadly shared and not monopolized by a tiny and arrogant elite, a Brazil in which education is widely available and affordable, a Brazil that is peaceful and tolerant. ITEBA’s contribution to this massive exercise in democratization is to train people theologically so that they can be leaders in their churches, communities, and society. It’s a slow process to be sure, especially since ITEBA often works with students who have been severely disadvantaged and discriminated against and who therefore have the most ground to make up. But every student educated, however imperfectly, represents an improvement and a contribution to the construction of a better Brazil and a better world.

For all these reasons, Keiko and I have decided to renew our commitment to ITEBA for an additional three to five years, and for these same reasons we ask all the congregations who have historically been interested in ITEBA to renew their hope and their commitment. Yes, it’s a struggle, but we think it’s worth it. For congregations who have gotten discouraged and stopped supporting ITEBA, we ask that you rethink that decision. And for congregations that might be interested in supporting ITEBA but haven’t yet made a commitment, we ask that you do it quickly because 2006 is a time of difficult transition for ITEBA as it moves into its own building, and financial and moral support is urgently needed.

Yours faithfully,

Bob Butterfield

The 2006 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 45