Dear Family and Friends in Christ,

Greetings in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We hope you and yours are well and that God has given to you as we have received in this year in which the PC(USA) celebrates the "Year of the Child."

As many of you already know, on August 14 we became the proud parents of Jodimar Yuneidis, age 3, and Elías Jefferson, age 4. We could have not been blessed with two more beautiful and happy children. They are siblings from the same mother, but different fathers. They have been in an orphanage since Jefferson was 7-months-old and Jodimar, 28-days-old. Luckily, the orphanage was very good, and we are pleased with the care they received until we found each other.

Our first two weeks together were quite a roller-coaster ride, and we have had a few more weeks in between that have felt like that, but overall we feel we are adjusting to each other well. In fact, it feels like we’ve always been a family!

Both of the children enjoy music, Jefferson listening to it and Jodimar singing and dancing to it. They also love riding bikes. Luckily they are not into TV, except for Teletubbies. We have enrolled them in a preschool during the mornings and they enjoy it thoroughly.

Well, enough gloating for now. Thanks to all of you for your many prayers that helped make this dream a reality.

December Disaster

On December 16, one year will have passed since torrential rains flooded the entire Venezuelan coast, causing massive landslides in the state of Vargas, leaving anywhere from 50,000 to 80,000 people dead and approximately 35,000 families homeless. Many families have still not been relocated, and the scars of the tragedy are long from being healed.

Over 10,000 people have been temporarily relocated to our area in the Tuy River Valley and are currently awaiting permanent relocation. CEER, our ecumenical disaster relief organization, is working with the local churches, the regional health director, and government officials of our area to attend the needs of some of these families. In September, the church was able to bring in enough medicines from the Interchurch Medical Association to serve 50,000 people for three months. A medical team also came in October from the Methodist Church for two weeks to treat refugees here. Additionally, CEER is proceeding with a housing project that it hopes will provide homes for at least fifty families.

Thanks to all of you for your prayers and support. Please continue to pray for the victims and send support via the Presbyterian Disaster Relief Fund as the reconstruction of all the areas will be a long arduous process

The road is long, but God is with Venezuela and even through the tears, joy comes in the morning.

Mission Teams

Two groups joined forces in October to fulfill a three-prong mission. From First Presbyterian Church in Mount Holly came two people and from Miami Shores Presbyterian Church, 11 people. Four of the team members were from an organization called "Hope for the Handicapped." They worked with amputees, other handicapped persons, and trained several persons working with handicapped children. Patricia Gregory, from Miami Shores and a native born Venezuelan, gave workshops in several schools regarding nutrition issues. The rest of the group worked diligently to paint the outside of the Jubilee Center’s main building and work on the new front entrance.

Other News

The seminary program is in a transition period since the Venezuelan Presbyterian Church and the Colombian Presbyterian Church decided not to continue their partnership with the seminary program. At present, the Venezuelan church is exploring an ecumenical project with the Lutheran Church of Venezuela. We request your many prayers as we attempt to define God’s will for this greatly needed program.

In August, the minister’s council of our Presbytery hosted a retreat for all the pastoral families and more than 30 people attended. We shared much-needed rest and companionship together during three days. It was a time of true blessing.

Prayer requests

• The seminary program and its destiny
• CEER and the disaster relief efforts
• The seven churches here that do not currently have pastors
• For the improvement of the social and economic conditions in Venezuela
• All the homeless children left by the December Disaster

Christmas Traditions in Venezuela

(This is a shortened version of something we wrote in 1995. )

"Pesebres" or Manger Scenes The manger scenes here are elaborate pieces of art. A mountainous platform is built in the living room that can measure anywhere from one foot to four feet square. It is covered with painted newsprint or burlap. The manger with Mary and Joseph usually goes on the highest part. The baby Jesus is not put into the manger until Christmas Eve. The magi are put at the lowest part and are slowly moved up until they arrive at the manger on January 6, Epiphany, which is called "Three Kings Day."

Letters Letters requesting something for Christmas are not written to Santa Claus, but to El Niño Jesús (Baby Jesus) in the form of a prayer.

Visiting Making visits is one of the most important aspects of Christmas. Everyone tries to visit as many friends as possible during this time. Each visit is greeted with joy and with a taste of the Christmas foods.

Family The time for being with all the extended family is New Year’s Eve. Christmas is shared with one’s nuclear family.

Fireworks From around December 15 until February 1 fireworks are shot off in great quantities.

Food This is the best part of Christmas! One does not visit a home without being served some or all of the delicious dishes prepared by the family during this season.

The main dish prepared during Christmas is hallaca (pronounced ah-YAH-kah), which is like a tamale made with hominy meal rather than corn meal and stuffed with pork or chicken, olives, raisins, onions, and green peppers. Plantain leaves are used to wrap the hallacas before boiling them.

Other foods commonly prepared are ham bread, which made from dough that has been rolled out, sprinkled with ham, olives, and onions, and then rolled up like cinnamon rolls. Most families also prepare a leg of pork, chicken salad, and papaya candied in its own syrup. Sweets do not play as important a role here as they do in the United States.

Church In the Protestant and Pentecostal churches some type of Christmas Eve service is observed. Advent is not normally observed except in Reformed churches. Many churches prepare a pesebre in the church and some use Christmas trees.

In the Roman Catholic church, a special Mass is held on Christmas Eve, often ending with the people going through the streets singing typical aguinaldos (Christmas songs). From January 1 to February 2 many towns choose one evening in which to celebrate the tradition of robbing the Baby Jesus from the church or someone’s home. Guests are invited to go looking for the Baby Jesus and wander through the streets with musicians singing Christmas songs. When the Baby is found, he is paraded back to his manger, a short ceremony is held, and everyone is fed. There is normally much rejoicing and dancing.

Music From gaitas (pronounced "GUY-tas") to villancicos (pronounced vee-yan-SEE-cos), Christmas music is heard throughout the season. Traditional hymns can be heard in the churches, but in the daily life typical Venezuelan music is what is played. This music is extremely varied and often has profound messages.

We hope all of you have a Christmas full of family and love.

Feliz Navidad

Deborah & Carlos Clugy-Soto

The 2000 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 258

The universe declares God’s glory, the heavens proclaim God’s handiwork. Each day informs the following, each night whispers to the next; without speaking, without words, without a sound, yet via all the earth the message rings out and the good news reaches one and all.

(Psalm 19:1-4)