December 8, 2006

Dear Friends,

“Come thou long expected Jesus, born to set thy people free” goes the hymn by Charles Wesley. Advent is a time of waiting in great expectation for what is to come, for the fulfillment of a promise, for the long awaited to become reality. There are many advents in our lives. Pregnancy is an advent. We wait nine months for the life within us to grow and develop, to be born and live among us. Like pregnancy, waiting for something to come to fruition has its ups and downs. In fact, it can make you feel downright sick at times. It can also delight your soul and fill you with joy and hope. Giving birth is hard work and not without certain risks to both the one giving birth and the one being born. But as every parent knows, there is scarcely a joy on earth that compares to a delivery where mother and baby come out fine. The expectation of Advent has born its fruit and that which was so long awaited is now reality.

I have been working with the Presbyterian Church in Cameroon (PCC) as an HIV/AIDS and public health consultant for nine months now—nine months of growing personally and professionally, nine months of working among a people I did not know, but am coming to know and love. My time here has had its ups and downs, and at times I have felt downright sick by the realities I see. I have also felt joy and hope by a vision of how things could be.

On October 29, 2006, I joined the Christian Women’s Fellowship. The CWF is probably the most powerful movement in the PCC. It started 45 years ago and has grown to over 910 groups and close to 40,000 members. They meet weekly for Bible study, prayer, and other activities. Their Bible study materials are excellent. They include not only biblical material but information that can empower women to build better lives for themselves and their families. Lessons include skill-building for income generation, family life issues, HIV/AIDS information, and more. One of the lessons this year covered the importance of having a marriage certificate. Most people have traditional marriages that do not involve a legal certificate, so if the husband dies the widow has no legal grounds for inheritance. In the case of polygamy, if one wife has a certificate, she stands to inherit everything and the others will be left with nothing. Many widows end up destitute and turn to the sex trade for survival. This contributes to the spread of HIV/AIDS and other diseases. Through the study material, the CWF fills women with the hope and expectation that their advent will bear the fruit of stronger families, a sense of empowerment, and greater security for the future.

The HIV/AIDS program of the PCC has also been in advent. They have waited with hope and expectation for my arrival. Together, we have labored these past nine months, growing and developing the HIV/AIDS program toward its mission as a source of healing to the people of Cameroon. We have made plans for 2007-08 that fill us with new hope and expectation for the fruit it can bear. Let me share some of our plans with you.

There are 23 presbyteries in the PCC. The goal is to establish an HIV/AIDS control committee in every presbytery, which in turn, will establish HIV/AIDS control committees in their respective congregations. This will help ensure that HIV/AIDS work is done throughout the PCC. We hope to travel to all 23 presbyteries to help and encourage and train people. Training will include how to set up an HIV/AIDS Control Committee in the local congregation, the role of the committee in helping congregations carry out HIV/AIDS activities, project planning and management, and proposal writing. We will also introduce a biblically based HIV/AIDS study program to be used in the local church.

Pastors are a vital link in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The church is a highly respected institution in Cameroon, and many people seek the local pastor for counsel and aid. One of our expectations is to educate pastors on HIV/AIDS and train them to give pastoral counseling to persons affected by and infected with the virus. We will be conducting pastor’s workshops as we travel from presbytery to presbytery.

The cost for all of this will be great. Many pastors and HIV/AIDS committee members will have to travel a great distance over rugged terrain to get to the presbytery headquarters where workshops will take place. Therefore, we must provide travel, lodging, food, and training materials for every person. It amounts to about $100.00 per person per workshop. We need to train 365 pastors and 23 Presbytery HIV/AIDS control committees. We wait with hope and expectation that God, who is able to do more than we could ever ask or think, will move people to support the workshops by sponsoring a pastor or committee member.

Advent is a time of waiting in great expectation for what is to come, for the fulfillment of a promise, for healing and salvation to come to women and men suffering from HIV/AIDS. Will you help us bring this long-awaited vision into reality? See below for giving information.

Peace in Christ,

Shirley

Contributions from individuals may be sent to Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Individual Remittance Processing, PO Box 643700, Pittsburgh, PA 15264-3700. Contributions from churches should be sent to: Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) Church Remittance Processing, PO Box 643678, Pittsburgh, PA 15264-3678. Write the title (Cameroon Health and HIV/AIDS Project) and the ECO number (E053502) on the subject line of the check and put it on your cover letter, too.