Dear Friends in Christ,

"Presbyterians do mission in partnership…." How many times have we heard that statement? It became a distinctive mark of Presbyterian mission in the 20th century. It remains central to our concept of mission in the 21st century as well. That means, among other things, that whenever the Church of Jesus Christ exists in an area, we find a partner in the Church there to work with. It means that we do not go about the world trying to make Presbyterians of all those who may hear the call of Christ on their lives because of our witness. Rather, we work with the established Church in the area we are called to serve.

In the case of Haiti, our partner church is the Episcopal Diocese of Haiti. We have been partners with that part of the Body of Christ in medical missions and agricultural missions for many years. "Partnership" strongly implies equality of relationship. Our American contribution may be backed by far greater material resources, and we may have more experienced health professionals willing to work here. St. Paul reminds us that as the Body of Christ, "if one member suffers, all suffer together with it; (and) if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it." All of us like to rejoice when anyone is honored, but we find it painful to suffer together with another who suffers. We have sensed the power of this message in full recently.

Judy and I were asked to take this assignment in a very rural part of Haiti, as the first health professionals to serve as missionaries at Mombin Crochu Hospital. There were many American Presbyterians who doubted that this hospital was viable, or needed. We wondered ourselves. Many others who had worked here, visited here, and contributed sacrificially in support of this health work had no such doubts. All agreed that there were many "problems" here. What were the problems, and what is the viability of medical missions in this area? How were the visiting medical groups from U.S. to be usefully employed here? How was community health to be expanded? There were many such questions.

When a committee representing the Episcopal Diocese of Haiti, the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), and the Medical Benevolence Foundation met in Port au Prince, Haiti, on February 10, 2001, they unanimously decided that, for the work to succeed here, the medical director (that’s me) and the (Haitian) hospital administrator both had to be replaced. Both of us were told to leave within three months of that date. That startling decision initially came as a shock to us, but in the weeks which have followed, we have come to see how the hand of God is moving. We now see that decision, painful as it was for us all, as the only way out of a most difficult situation. For, as partners, we all suffer together just as we all are honored together. This is as it should be if, indeed, we "are the body of Christ and individually members of it." Partnership, St. Paul reminds us, carries with it both joy and sorrow, celebration and crying. Above all else it reflects our concern for one another.

The healing ministry of Christ that we proclaim must be greater than any personalities. It must rise above interpersonal conflicts to minister to those in such great need all around us. If it fails to do so, it ceases to be part of the Body of Christ. That’s how this decision came about.

We do see great hope for the future of this healing ministry in Haiti. We fully confirm the need for a hospital in this place, on the frontier between Haiti and the Dominican Republic, in these mountainous regions with such difficult access. There are scores of villages here who have no other access to health care. The scope for community health outreach is great. In our estimation, an abrupt change in leadership is essential for the program to serve these people.

In the remaining months of ministry here, we have much to do. There is much to be hopeful about. Other doctors from PC(USA) are now available to replace us. We have seen Haitian Agente Sante cadres trained, and others selected for such training. These are people from surrounding villages chosen by their villages to be trained as their own health promoters. We see scope for training of traditional birth attendants. We have a graduate student from the masters of public health program at Tulane University here to help us for three months. She is Ms. Beaura Mensah, a Liberian war refugee, who has come to assist our planning, and to gain field experience in developing-world community-health matters, which she intends to make her career.

Visiting health professionals from the U.S. attract many severely ill people seeking help. They often arrive with far-advanced disease conditions, because there are genuine barriers to accessing health care in this area. Our visiting health professionals from Presbyterian churches in the U.S. truly learn from us even as they teach us. They experience the challenges of trying to deliver quality care at an affordable cost—something few people in the U.S. seem to be concerned about. These groups are needed and many still want to come here, year after year, for which we thank God.

There will be an ongoing presence of four health professionals from nearby Cuba, two doctors, one nurse, and one well-trained laboratory technician. There are about 450 health professionals from Cuba serving similarly in rural areas throughout Haiti, and thousands more working elsewhere around the world.

Our address from April onward will be at our daughter and son-in-law’s, Maritza and Michael Granger, 275 Butterfield Lane, Fayetteville, GA 30214-3683, telephone: 770-716-1226. Our e-mail address is uncertain now, but might again be: pwjewett@juno.com or pwjewett36@juno.com. Please keep Mombin Crochu Hospital in your prayers as new leadership is being recruited, and as the staff and community are feeling unsettled by these events. We look forward to rejoicing together as others are honored in this work. That is the pain, and the joy of "partnership in mission."

In Christ,

Paul and Judy Jewett

The 2001 Mission Yearbook for Prayer & Study, p. 245