Latin American Ecumenical News March - May 2014 No. 2
LAEN
Whoever speaks the truth gives honest evidence.
Proverb 12,17
Information Service of the Latin American Council of Churches
Pentecost Pastoral Letter from the Board of Directors of the Latin American Council of Churches (CLAI) Bogotá, Colombia May 2014 Pastoral letter from the Board of Directors Latin American Council of Churches, CLAI To the greater Latin American ecumenical family, He did not illuminate us to allow us to return, he will take us into the land he promised us.” This is the affirmation of faith of a beautiful song from the Latin American song book that encourages us today to continue the walk with a renewed hope and vigor. Meeting as the Board of Directors of CLAI from May 5-9 in Bogotá, Colombia, we have felt the presence and inspiration of the Spirit that encouraged the first community of an ecumenical and inclusive Pentecost faith. Amid the difficulties of the present time, we continue forward in the certainty of Jesus' presence that is felt along our paths to Emmaus and carries us back to the community of people that assume the challenge of being witnesses of the new life that he inspires in us through his Holy Spirit. For our communities Pentecost is a feast of ecumenism, with one Spirit inspiring us and giving gifts and tools to the community for a mutual and community transformation and building. The holding of our meeting of the Board of Directors and Secretariats in Colombia was under-
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stood by our brothers and sisters to be a gesture of solidarity on our part given the present situation of the country, caught up with the peace talks between the government of President Juan Manuel Santos and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrilla movement, and the campaign period prior to the election of the country’s president and vice-president. We also saw a new agrarian strike where peasants and producers were protesting because the agreements reached with the government last year have not been fulfilled. So as to set ourselves within the national and international context, we had the support of the director of Justapaz, Jenny Neme, a member of one of the CLAI member churches in Colombia, who in general terms informed us about the different problems of the country and the consequences and participation of the churches. It was a very valuable framework for our gathering. We are gathered together within the diverse community of CLAI by the One who has called us to serve him, in unity. The Spirit of Jesus becomes evident to us when we work on behalf of the children whose mothers and fathers have been deprived of their liberty, victims of violence, of sexual abuse, of mistreatment, of invisibility and forgotten. We make ourselves one in the life giving Spirit when we find ways to bear witness to the new life, in the throes of the pains and crosses of our days. The presence of God becomes visible in the community when we come closer and open ourselves up to the displaced, migrant people suffer-
ing because of ethnic reasons; handicapped persons, women who are abused, treated wrongly, unvalued, students who are silenced, persecuted, stigmatized, and in all places where there is injustice and pain. As the Board of Directors of CLAI we want to share with you that in spite of the context and difficulties, we look to the future with hope, because we know that God calls us to be light in the darkness, calling us in the face of new challenges, and we cannot allow ourselves to be paralyzed, to the contrary, we want to be characters directly involved in this building. Isaiah 43:18-21 affirms: Do not remember the former things, or consider the things of old. I am about to do a new thing; now it springs forth, do you not perceive it? I will make a way in the wilderness and rivers in the desert. The wild animals will honor me, the jackals and the ostriches; for I give water in the wilderness, rivers in the desert, to give drink to my chosen people, the people whom I formed for myself so that they might declare my praise. As an ecumenical family we have walked together for over 32 years through deserts and solitudes, working for peace, justice and equity from a witness of unity. The reality of our continent continues to profoundly confront our churches in a context of inequality, poverty, discriminations of so many kinds that continue clamoring for the voice and action of the church with those who suffer most, but we know that there will be light if we forge new roads of life so that the people who
suffer and are thirsty for peace and justice may drink. . CLAI has always been solidary with the pain of our people and we have been able to carry out the task in different times, thanks to the commitment and efforts of faithful luminaries of hope and justice in these dark times. We give thanks to God because we have not been alone, our churches have impelled the walk and we have the support of so many brothers and sisters from different latitudes accompanying the work of CLAI, through their prayers, special offerings, participating in programs and different spaces, in incidence in the political structures and also in the ecclesiastical, always in defense of a full and abundant Life that Jesus Christ offers us, the reason for our journey and struggles. Today, financial resources at the global level are more limited and this affects us in all the spheres of our work. However, the churches require – and our continent needs – that we begin modifications within a structure that facilitate the task, providing spaces for participation that will allow us a greater incidence in those matters that require urgent answers for our communities and which respond to the new models that the social and global changes demand. Our current organizational structure, that dates back a long time, has served us well up until now, but we need to take a further step to maintain our vision of a vital, renovated and strengthened ecumenical movement that allows us to optimize resources and assure processes that will carry us forward in the conviction that the ecumeni-
cal movement is not only something of the past but of the present time and of what awaits us ahead. That is the reason why with conviction we affirm that we need to move toward a new model of ecumenism, which programmatically and methodologically can be an example for the international ecumenical movement, but above all one that is pertinent for responding to the current needs and demands in the light of the gospel of “love your neighbor as yourself.” Because of this, as CLAI we began in Bogotá, Colombia, a process of renovation that we believe will allow us to better serve. We are aware that these changes will require of all of us arduous work and patience. However, we are willing and happy to be able to participate in this historical moment of rethinking both as an organization and ecumenical representation. We assume our mission with a renewed commitment, in response to the new challenges imposed by reality and the feeling of the churches in the Havana Assembly when a "new" CLAI was asked for. We have felt the prayers of the brothers and sisters of the churches and we hope to be able to continue having them, as well as their participation in the processes. Let us pray together for CLAI at Pentecost and that life and justice flow among us. In the Spirit of Christ, Pastor Felipe Adolf President, Board of Directors Latin American Council of Churches, CLAI
Gatherings, dialogue and ecumenism mark visit to Chile by CLAI president From March 9-16, the Rev. Felipe Adolf, president of the Latin American Council of Churches (CLAI), visited Chilean member churches and organisms of the continental ecumenical organization, along with others. Adolf has highlighted the “excellent reception and welcome offered by all visited.” ALC/Santiago he visit to Chile was in response to a call by the new CLAI board of directors at its first meeting in September, 2013, held in Quito, asking Adolf to visit the Chilean member churches and organisms It has been an opportunity to listen to the churches and
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to have space for dialogue with different Evangelical and ecumenical leaders in the country. Adolf’s visit coincided with the investiture of the new president of Chile, Michelle Bachelet, following which he participated in a high-level roundtable on the theme: “Reflections on the Development of Latin America and the Caribbean,” at the invitation of the executive secretary of the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), Alicia Bárcena. Also participating were Michelle Bachelet, Dilma Rousseff, President of the Federative Republic of Brazil, and José Mujica, President of the Oriental Republic of Uruguay. On the occasion of the installation of President Bachelet, Adolf also took part in an ecumenical liturgical celebration with the new government authorities, in Santiago’s Metropolitan Cathedral.
As part of the planned agenda for his visit, Adolf met with Methodist Bishop Pedro Correa, and attended the monthly Meeting of the Ecumenical Fraternity in Chile (FRAECH), where Cardinal Ezzatti and other ecumenical authorities in Chile were present. The CLAI president also visited the Christian Churches Social Aid Foundation (FASIC), and dialogued with the foundation’s executive secretary, Claudio González, and president, Bishop Neftalí Aravena. Following that, he met with the Rev. Jorge Cardenas, moderator of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church, and that church’s delegate to CLAI, the Rev. Gastón Ramírez. Adolf then paid a protocol visit to the Evangelical Theological Community of Chile (CTE), accompanied by the dean of CTE, Daniel Godoy, its president, Methodist Bishop Emeritus Neftalí Aravena, and the moderator
of the CLAI-Chile National Table, Pastor Pedro Zavala. Adolf’s agenda also included time for conversation with Pastor Juan Sepúlveda, a Pentecostal theologian and executive of SEPADE, the Evangelical Development Service agency. Bishop Guerra of the Wesleyan Church also received Adolf, as did Daniel Farfán, executive director of SEPADE, prior to a visit by the CLAI president to the University of Concepción and the Ecumenical Fraternity. The CLAI president’s busy agenda took him to see the churches in Coronel in the Province of Concepción, where he visited with Pastor María Muñoz, president of the La Hermosa Temple Church, and Pastor Irinaldo García, president of the Brothers in Christ Church. Following a gathering with the Evangelical Council of Coronel, Adolf met with the delegate to CLAI,
and then took part in a worship service in the Eben Ezer Pentecostal Church. Pastor Adolf’s visit to Chile ended with a worship service and lunch in the Pentecostal Church of Chile, Puente Alto, with Pastor Nivaldo Aréjula and Bishop Ulises Muñoz.
Rev. Felipe Adolf, President, CLAI (J.A.Paz ALC)
LATIN AMERICAN ECUMENICAL NEWS • MARCH-MAY 2014
2 Church and Society FOCUS:
World Cup: Let the games begin, but with justice and peace
Brazilian children cheering during one of the celebrations of the Peoples' Summit in Rio, 2012 (Marcelo Schneider WCC)
For host-country Brazil the games afford an opportunity to showcase Brazil’s society, culture and people, hospitably welcoming visitors from cultures, ethnicities and religious expressions around the world. For the National Council of Churches of Brazil (CONIC), the games offer a unique opportunity to assist visitors with pastoral care and to highlight a deeper understanding of the situation in Brazil. WCC, ALC/São Paulo he 20th edition of the FIFA World Cup football tournament in Brazil is a premier
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global event. Few events attract more attention than the World Cup. In her address to the nation on the evening of 10 June, Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff expressed her desire that the event also become a landmark in the global struggle for respect for human rights. “The World Cup will also be the cup of peace, against racism and all forms of violence, the cup of inclusion, against all forms of prejudice, the cup of tolerance, diversity and dialogue,” she said while noting that the country’s democratic context offers space even for those who question the promotion of such an event in Brazil. “We enjoy freedom and live with popular manifestations that will help us improve the lives of all. Our democratic Institutions support us both to ensure freedom of expression as to curb excesses and radicalism of
any kind,” she said. In a letter to Rousseff and the Brazilian people, World Council of Churches general secretary Rev. Dr Olav Fykse Tveit said, “Football is one of the most influential elements in the formation of young people around the world and it has the potential of lifting up and uniting them in fair and healthy activities.” “Sports can be a powerful tool for social inclusion and a way for building peace and dignity for all,” he said. Tveit also spoke of the ecumenical efforts being carried out by CONIC around the event. During the World Cup, CONIC is offering a series of activities and opportunities that will help visitors to better understand the Brazilian context and also to experience and share their faith. The programme includes inter-religious celebrations on the theme of peace and building awareness about such issues as human trafficking and sexual abuse of children and adolescents. CONIC general secretary Rev. Romi Bencke stressed the positive character of churches’ involvement. "We want to offer tools of prevention and create awareness around these issues, in addition to our specific celebrations that will take place in the cities hosting the World Cup matches," she said. "Our local congregations are also ready to offer pastoral care to visitors from around the world," she added. Source: World Council of Churches, WCC: http://www.oikoumene.org/en/press-centre/news/world-cup-let-the-gamesbegin-but-with-justice-and-peace
Lutheran children in Costa Rica begin campaign for collecting solid waste The Lutheran community of Carit in Puriscal has begun a campaign for collecting solid waste, involving the children of the Betania congregation visiting homes asking for a solid waste in exchange for a sweet and an invitation to deposit their
LAEN Latin American Ecumenical News is a quarterly produced by the Communication Department of the Latin American Council of Churches
solid waste in the church hall each Sunday at 10:00 am. ALC/San José he campaign is being carried out with the coordination of Pastor Gilberto Quesada, who for some time now has been involved in fomenting this kind of activity to create awareness and learning, as a contribution to the healing of the environment and a neighborhood free of garbage.
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Through the collection process, the solid waste is cleaned and then delivered to the Women’s Group of San Antonio, a neighboring community, who sell it as an activity that provides income sustenance for some 10 women. “We will be carrying out this activity throughout the whole year, and hope to have our own collection center and sales outlets in the future, so as to raise funds for the congregation,” said Pastor Quesada. Source: Costa Rican Lutheran Church, ILCO: http://www.ilco.cr/noticias/archivo/845-medio-ambiente.html
Editor: Geoffrey Reeson Translation: Geoff Reeson Layout and Editorial Coordination: Amparo Salazar Chacón Press service: ALC, Methodist News Service, ENI, Presbyterian News Press, ACNS, Zenit, Factiva, ACPress. Departamento de Comunicaciones CLAI Inglaterra N32-113 y Av. Mariana de Jesús Casilla 17-08-8522, Quito, Ecuador Telepone: (593-2) 255-3996/252-9933 Fax: (593-2) 256-8373 E-mail: rita@claiweb.org www.claiweb.org
Christopher Ferguson elected general secretary of the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC) The Reverend Christopher Ferguson has been elected as the next General Secretary of the World Communion of Reformed Churches (WCRC).He was elected by the WCRC Executive Committee after an extensive search process. “The WCRC is at the edge of a new moment of renewal and transformation. It is exciting and uplifting to be called to be part of this renewed commitment to communion and justice,” said Ferguson. World Communion of Reformed Churches, ALC, by Phil Tanis/Hannover I’m convinced Chris Ferguson will be an outstanding general secretary,” said Clifton Kirkpatrick, convener of the search committee. “I look forward to great things for the WCRC under his leadership.” “It is critical that in this new location we have somebody who has solid ecumenical networking to sustain the visibility and work of the WCRC. Chris has this, as well as ecumenical experience on all levels, from the local to the global,” said Jerry Pillay, president of the WCRC. Ferguson, 61 this week, was born in Canada, ordained to the ministry in the United Church of Canada, and has served in ministry in Canada, the Middle East, various parts of Latin America, and at the United Nations. “I’m very delighted that Chris
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After having served as editor of the Latin America and Caribbean Communication Agency (ALC) Portuguese service for 19 years, 64 year old Brazilian journalist Edelberto Behs has left the agency, and is succeeded by also Brazilian pastor and journalist Antônio Carlos Ribeiro. ALC São Leopoldo
Lutheran campaign for collecting solid waste, Carit de Puriscal, Costa Rica (ILCO)
Source: World Communion of Reformed Churches, WCRC: http://wcrc.ch/ferguson-elected-general-secretary/
World Communion of Reformed Churches General Secretary Elect Christopher Ferguson WCRC)
New Editor for ALC Portuguese Service
ISSN 1390-0358 Subscriptions: Latin America and the Caribbean: One year US$ 12, Two years US$ 20 Other regions: One year US$16, Two years US$26
has been elected,” said Setri Nyomi, current general secretary. “I think he will bring gifts to move this organization forward as a communion committed to justice. I’ve known Chris for many years and believe he is the right person for this position in this time and place.” Nyomi has served the maximum of two terms (14 years) as the general secretary of both the WCRC and its predecessor organization, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches. He will remain in office through the end of August. Ferguson and his wife Susan will relocate from Bogotá, Colombia, to Hannover this summer. He will begin his duties on 1 August, providing for a month’s transition time with Nyomi. The Executive Committee, the governing board of the WCRC, is holding its annual meeting in Hannover, Germany, 11-18 May. It is composed of 30 members from around the world.
Lutheran Confession in Brazil and who lives in Rio de Janeiro, is actively involved in the field of education and before becoming the editor of the Portuguese service was a correspondent for ALC. Behs was part of ALC from the beginning of the agency, and all who make up the ALC family recognize with great appreciation his profound commitment to an ecumenical communication of quality, grounded in the reality of our people. Edelberto’s commitment of faith and that of his life was palpable every day that he walked with ALC News. ALC and
ibeiro, a pastor of the Evangelical Church of
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Latin America and Environment 3
Gathered in Buenos Aires from February 21-23, the Sub-Regional Workshop of the World Association for Christian Communication – Latin America (WACC - AL), comprising the Southern Cone and Brazil, discussed the theme: “More rights, less gaps: broadening boundaries for the democratization of communication,” according to the project approved by WACC to be implemented in Latin America. ALC/Buenos Aires he central objective of the workshop attended by some 30 participants from Chile, Uruguay, Argentina, Paraguay, and Brazil, was the articulating of a sub-regional working mechanism in Latin America for knowing, valuing and exchanging local experiences that take advantage of digital means and information and communication technologies oriented toward strengthening the right to communication and information. The main panel discussions focused on digital gaps: the right to communication in the Southern Cone and Brazil regions, and the frameworks for the regulating of
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communication and information in Latin America. The presentations in the first of the panel discussions looked at identifying and reflecting on the communication gaps in the Southern Cone and Brazil region, and how they affect excluded groups: women, children, persons with disabilities, indigenous peoples, Afro-descendants, migrants, the LBGTI population, and others. Dennis Smith, World President of WACC, spoke on “The WACC Vision of Digital Gaps and Communication in Relation to Excluded Groups.” Verónica González, a public television columnist on persons with disabilities, and part of the NGO REDI and the PAR Network, spoke on “The Right to Communication as Seen by Persons with Disabilities.” Vera Vieira, Executive Coordinator of the Brazilian Women’s Education Network, who holds a Doctorate in Communication/Feminism from the USP/ECA, and is also the Executive Director of the Association of Women for Peace, spoke on the theme of gender. Two Argentinean government officials took part in the discussions of the second of the panels that dealt with a diagnosis of the current state of the frameworks regulating communication and information in Latin America, with the purpose of pointing out risks and opportunities. Representing the Argentinean government were Cynthia Ottaviano, Public Ombudswoman, and Cecilia
Participants at WACC-AL Southern Cone and Brazil Sub-Regional Workshop, February, 2014, Buenos Aires (WACC-AL)
Merchán, Coordinator of Strategic Articulation of the Ministerial Cabinet Office. The situation of Brazil in terms of the present regulating framework was presented by journalist, Dr. in Theology, and university professor, Antonio Carlos Ribeiro. Arturo Bregaglio, Director of Community Radio Trinidad, told of the historical and present experience with the media legislation in Paraguay, and Benjamin Rodríguez, Vice President of the Association of Community and Citizens Radios of Chile (ANARCICH), spoke on how the political and social reality of the media is experienced in that transAndean country. Also sharing their experiences at the workshop were different projects supported by WACC in the subregion: the De la Azotea Civil Association, Artemisa, ELA, and Nueva Tierra from Argentina, the Trinidad Association of Paraguay, Daily Woman from Uruguay, and the Women’s Education Network in Brazil. The last day of the workshop was dedicated to the preparing of a necessary tool with which to identify available information of the various experiences, which will allow visibility, recognition, and learning from successful practices and failures, to help reduce the digital gaps that do not allow or make difficult the right to communication and information. “I feel very satisfied with this seminar because beyond working on the democratization of communication in its different variants, meeting with colleagues reinforces the need to continue working together in all of our Latin America. The participation of people of diverse origins helps to amplify the message and role of WACC and I believe that ALC Noticias has the challenge of being a vehicle on behalf of that contribution. There is a challenge before us to continue working so that communication be plural, a right that people should claim for the constructing of a better future,” said Marcela Gabioud , Secretary of the Regional Executive Committee of WACC-Latin America.
Farewell Letter from Global Ministries: Disciples/UCC LAC Area Executive “Each place I visited I’ve seen that in the midst of oppression, racism, poverty, exclusion, the phobia of foreigners, exploitation, egoism, ignorance, hunger, misery and so much evil, God is present to affirm hope, forgiveness, reconciliation, peace as the fruit of justice, liberty, solidarity and new opportunities to live in communion with God, with our neighbor and with creation.” Global Ministries: Disciples/UCC Indianapolis March 20, 2014 o all the churches and ecumenical organizations in Latin America and the Caribbean: During this season of Lent, God’s grace continues always with you all. This serves to share that I will continue to serve in the office of Latin America and the Caribbean of Global Ministries of the United Church of Christ in the United States and the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) in the United States and Canada until July 31, 2014. I have submitted my resignation because I have the desire to finish my ministerial career the same way I began, serving as a pastor of a local congregation. We give God thanks because He has given us the opportunity to serve in Christian ministry for the past 43 years. I started very young, as a student pastor, and had the opportunity to pastor three congregations of my Christian Church Disciples of Christ in Puerto Rico, my nation. The last 29 years we have worked with Global Ministries. We served as missionaries in Paraguay, Haiti, Central America and the Caribbean for 18 years, and the last 11 years overseeing the rela-
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Felix Ortiz-Cotto (Facebook)
tions of our two churches in Latin America and the Caribbean. One of the greatest satisfactions of the pilgrimage in Latin America and the Caribbean has been to keep in contact with people and churches and ecumenical organizations seeking to do God’s mission in their contexts. Each place I visited I’ve seen that in the midst of oppression, racism, poverty, exclusion, the phobia of foreigners, exploitation, egoism, ignorance, hunger, misery and so much evil, God is present to affirm hope, forgiveness, reconciliation, peace as the fruit of justice, liberty, solidarity and new opportunities to live in communion with God, with our neighbor and with creation. I appreciate all of you for sharing in Christ’s life, for your witness in the midst of the “valley of the shadow of death”, and for the multiple ways in which you strive to do God’s mission. Thank you for everything we have learned over the years and continue to learn from you. We will be working with enthusiasm until July 31st. Then from where God tells us, from the pastoral, we will continue to affirm the shared life in Christ and friendship with you all. Cordially, Félix E. Ortiz-Cotto Source: http://globalministries.org/news/lac/farewell-letter-from-lacarea.html
Planning underway for world gatherings of theological educators From May 15-16 a meeting was held at the McCormick Theological Seminary in Chicago, to plan a “World Fraternity of Theological Educators: International Forum for the Development of Christian Leadership.”
some 150 participants in each, was looked at. The first, to probably take place in Germany, would be held
around October-November, 2015 or April-May, 2016, with the theme: “Preparing Christian Leaders in the
Carlos Ham Chicago fter analyzing the need to create a round-table type of space for the sharing of experiences among those responsible for theological formation and Christian leadership, the organizing of a series of three world events with
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Meeting at McCormick Theological Seminary to plan world gatherings of theological educators
21st Century.” The two later events would be in Africa or Asia. Also being worked on is that these gatherings be as inclusive as possible, by inviting participants that represent the diversity of Christian traditions and all the regions of the world. The goal is to invite a same number of women as men and with a strong participation of persons under 40, in addition to those with the most experience in the field of theological education and the formation of Christian leadership. A characteristic of the theological educators to be invited is that they be of an open mind and in close relations with the churches, and involved in an inter-disciplinary and inter-religious theological reflection.
Emphasis will be placed on an ecumenical theological formation since what is being looked for is an inclusive, participatory, innovative and inter-generational event. Also to be highlighted are the complementary functions of each participant, so that the gifts are expressed in relation to the other. The events will have sub-themes such as missionary and spiritual renovation, sustainable development, the ministry of reconciliation, working through world and inter-regional networks in theological education, the unity of the church and social commitment, as well as the relationship with people of other religions, among others.
LATIN AMERICAN ECUMENICAL NEWS • MARCH-MAY 2014
Broadening boundaries: Members of WACC Southern Cone and Brazil discuss communication as a right
LATIN AMERICAN ECUMENICAL NEWS • MARCH-MAY 2014
4 Church and Society
In a process of restructuring CLAI defines New Editor… strategies and rescinds services of general secretary From page 2
In carrying out the mandate of the VI General Assembly, “the second meeting of the Board of Directors that took place in Bogotá, Colombia from May 4-9, defined strategies to make CLAI’s work more effective as a more dynamic, fraternal and closer continental movement in its mission with the churches and society,” says a May 12 letter sent to the member churches and organisms by President Rev. Felipe Adolf. CLAI, ALC/Quito The full text of the letter is as follows: Quito, May 12, 2014. Dear sisters and brothers of the CLAI Member Churches and Organisms,
Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. fter analyzing the structure and functioning of CLAI, the CLAI VI General Assembly held in Havana in May, 2013, proposed that the Statutes and By-Laws be revised and that an institutional restructuring be begun, for the purpose of strengthening its mission and commitment in response to the new social, economic and pastoral challenges for the churches and organisms of Latin America and the Caribbean. In carrying out the Assembly’s mandate, the second meeting of the Board of Directors that took place in Bogotá, Colombia from May 4-9, defined strategies to make CLAI’s work more effective as a more dynamic, fraternal and closer continental movement in its mission with the churches and society. This process of restructuring requires a critical look at the institution’s structure and its lines of action. With that in mind an institutional evaluation will be carried out
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to deepen the strategic and programmatic orientation. The proposed restructuring will be presented to the Board of Directors at its next meeting in March, 2015. In this context, the Board of Directors considered that a change in the office of the General Secretary was needed and decided to rescind the services of the Rev. Nilton Giese as General Secretary, to whom we express our gratitude for the time served while carrying out his ministry with CLAI. Until such time as the Board of Directors has approved the restructuring plan, applications for the position of General Secretary will not be called for. In the meantime the
Rev. Carlos Támez has been provisionally appointed as coordinator of the administration of the office in Quito and the accompaniment of the CLAI programs. It is of public knowledge that various church and ecumenical organisms have undertaken similar processes of restructuring because of strategic and financial reasons, to be able to respond to the new contexts and challenges of the Missio DEI. The Board of Directors wishes to express its thankfulness to our member churches and organisms for their support and commitment during these 32 years of institutional life, and calls on all to work together to make CLAI a space for fraternal dialogue in favor of unity and solidary service. We greet the member churches and organisms at this time of being on the way toward Pentecost. Rev. Felipe Adolf President Board of Directors Latin American Council of Churches, CLAI
Edelberto will, undoubtedly, continue connected in the building of a communication for all, trusting in the direction and guidance of the God of Life. The Portuguese service currently has over 1.750 readers who receive the daily and weekly news stories with no charge. Inside photo: Antônio Carlos Ribeiro
Edelberto Behs (Unisinos)
Femicide courts in Guatemala a beacon of light in the fight against impunity On Mar. 15, 2013, around 9:30 a.m., 18-year-old law student Estéfani Julissa Estrada Neill, from the highland department of Quetzaltenango, sneaked out of her classroom and got into a green pick-up truck parked opposite the campus’ main entrance where a young man appeared to be waiting for her. That was the last time her friends saw her alive. Latinamerica Press/ALC Guatemala City By Louisa Reynolds few hours later, around noon, Estrada’s body was found on a gravel path leading to the nearby village of Xecaracoj. She had been strangled and her cellphone and wallet were missing. Estrada’s fellow students, who proved to be key witnesses in the case, told police investigators the young man she had disappeared with was her ex-boyfriend, 18-yearold Óscar Zacarías Ordóñez. The couple had secretly dated for a year as her parents didn’t approve of the relationship, and had continued to see each other sporadically after they split up. Estrada had confided to her friends that she feared she could be pregnant and that her ex-boyfriend had urged her not to tell anyone. Records handed over by Estrada’s cellphone service provider showed that prior to her death the young student had received a num-
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ber of phone calls from a number in the nearby municipality of Olintepeque, where her ex-boyfriend lived. The police searched his house and found Estrada’s cellphone and wallet as well as chilling evidence: two photos of the dead teenager inside Zacarías Ordóñez’s vehicle. They had been taken at 10:52 a.m. the day she was found. Based on this evidence and the testimony of Estrada’s fellow students, the public prosecutor’s office charged Zacarías Ordóñez with femicide — gender-based homicide — in a trial held in a new type of court specializing in violence against women. On October 26, he was given a 50-year-prison sentence. Frightening figures Estrada was one of 759 women who suffered a violent death in Guatemala in 2013, according to the National Institute of Forensic Sciences (INACIF), a 7 percent increase over 2012. Twenty one percent of those women were strangled, like Estrada; 69 percent were shot, 9 percent were stabbed and 1 percent was dismembered. Over the past five years, 3,577 women have been murdered in Guatemala, a country ranked by the Central American Integration System (SICA) and the Council of Ministers of Women´s Affairs of Central America (COMMCA) as having the highest number of femicides in the region. Guatemala is also one of the most violent countries in the world overall, with a murder rate of 48 per 100,000 people, compared to the
Latin American average of 25 per 100,000 and a global average of nine per 100,000. Zacarías Ordóñez’s trial was held at the Court for Crimes of Femicide and Other Forms of Violence Against Women in Quetzaltenango, one of the five departments where specialized courts for gender-based crimes have been set up following the approval of a Law Against Femicide in 2008. “This law drew attention to the problem of violence against women and to the fact that femicide is not simply the female counterpart to homicide; it is the result of unequal power relations and there are specific human rights that aim to help those groups to overcome their conditions of inequality,” explained to Latinamerica Press Hilda Morales Trujillo, director of the Public Prosecutor’s Office Victim Services Coordination Department.
more open-minded so they don’t resort to stereotypes such as ‘women enjoy being beaten’ or ‘only poor women get beaten’,” Morales said. Most of the judges who hear the cases are women. The courts also employ a psychologist and a social worker, and have daycare facilities to look after children while their mothers testify, so the difficulty of finding childcare does not hinder their participation in trials. “Thanks to these services, attendance has improved, whereas before the victims used to report the crime and didn’t show up again. We’ve managed to empower the victims so they don’t give up,” said Judge Ana María Rodríguez to Latinamerica Press. Another innovation is that these courts record the victim’s ethnic background, age and relationship with the attacker — statistical evidence crucial for research purposes. Statistics provided by CIDEJ show
Significant progress In 2010, Guatemala became the first country in the world to create these specialized courts and so far the results have been encouraging. According to figures supplied by the Center for Judicial Information, Development and Statistics (CIDEJ), while in ordinary courts less than 10 percent of femicides and other forms of violence against women result in conviction and sentencing, in the specialized courts it exceeds 30 percent. “The key to these courts’ success is the fact that the judges who hear the cases have been thoroughly trained [in gender issues]. This training process makes them far
Two perpetrators of a 2013 quadruple femicide in Guatemala were condemned to 180 years in prison (Luis Echeverría Latinamerica Press)
that more than 60 percent of aggressors, like Óscar Zacarías Ordóñez, are the victim’s husband or intimate partner. Despite the progress made, Judge Miriam Méndez of the Femicide Court in the department of Guatemala, said shortcomings in the use of forensic evidence and excessive reliance on testimonial evidence remain a problem. Angélica Valenzuela, head of the Center for Research, Training and Support for Women (CICAM) added that these specialized courts are still not operating all over the country. As the country’s grim statistics show, although gender-based justice can be a beacon of light in the fight against impunity, much remains to be done to guarantee Guatemalan women their right to a life free from violence. Source: Latinamerica Press: http://www.lapress.org/articles.asp?art=6998
Church and Society 5
Venezuela is submerged in waves of orchestrated violence aimed at destabilizing the country. In a February 27 letter to the Churches in Venezuela the General Secretary of the Latin American Council of Churches, CLAI, a member of the ACT Alliance, expresses condemnation of the illegal and anti-democratic intentions of the opposition in Venezuela to bring about regime change using violence. CLAI, ALC/Quito The letter is addressed to: Episcopal Anglican Church in Venezuela Evangelical Lutheran Church in Venezuela Presbyterian Church in Venezuela Pentecostal Evangelical Union of Venezuela and Ecumenical Action. ear brothers and sisters "I ask - ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory - to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength!" Ephesians 1.17-19 The Latin American Council of Churches, CLAI, has stated on previous occasions already that protests and demonstrations are legitimate
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recently ordained woman pastor
President Nicolás Maduro chairing peace conference initiative at Miraflores Palace, February 26 (Prensa Presidencial)
and sometimes necessary in democratic regimes. The people have the right to demonstrate, if they feel that the authorities are not acting for the common good. Also, it is almost inevitable that in demonstrations there are people who use violence. These violent attitudes are not tolerable any longer and should be restrained by the authorities. We express our solidarity with the families of people who have been assassinated and injured in the protests. We pray for the comfort and strength of God for each one of them. We have seen in the protests in this month of February in Venezuela, directed by the opposition, that their own leaders have confessed the aim of "regime change". The Venezuelan Constitution offers the possibility of a revocatory referendum half way through the term of a presidency, and in that legal and democratic way a government can be changed. However, the recent opposition protests, fed by a media campaign of exaggerations, with unverified messages, dissemination of lies on social networks, selective interviews in the international press, retouched photographs of massive protests, for the purposes of propaganda, have demonstrated the impatient claims
of the opposition, that don't want to wait to move forward legally. From the General Secretariat of the Latin American Council of Churches, we have sought to listen to the churches and you have confirmed that, in addition to the existence of greater social inclusion, there are serious problems of security, shortages and fiscal solvency that remain unresolved. Therefore the protests are legitimate in their call for greater security, against shortages and inflation, but the demand for a "regime change" does not match the democratic will of the majority of the Venezuelan people expressed in the last elections in 2013. We thank you for sharing your views and commitment to peace with justice and we plead with God to continue giving you the Spirit of wisdom to accompany your people in these difficult moments. We are open to your suggestions for how CLAI can accompany you with concrete instruments of promotion and participation in the building of peace with justice. Yours in Jesus Christ. Rev Nilton Giese General Secretary CLAI
Pastor Cira Hernández Gutiérrez, who was ordained to the priestly ministry in the Communion of Presbyterian and Reformed Churches of Chiapas on December 15 last year, was excluded from the National Presbyterian Church of Mexico just over a month later, because of differences in ways the Bible is read and understandings of the role of women in the church. ALC/Mexico City From a news story by Leopoldo Cervantes-Ortiz for ALC.
out Gómez. Now, the Presbyterians have only three registered women pastors, two of them involved in activities of service to the poorest in Chiapas, where they are living a unique experience. Hernández has presented a law suit in the Conciliation and Arbitration courts of the Mexican justice system, asking that her years of service given to the church be recognized. The Communion of Presbyterian and Reformed Churches of Chiapas has condemned the decision by the National Church to exclude Hernández from its listing of pastors, and to apply a one year disciplinary measure against Gómez for having taken part in the laying on of hands at the ordination of Hernández. In a public statement, the Communion has highlighted its distancing of itself from the National Presbyterian Church, because of disagreement over the role of women in the church and the fundamentalist and fanatical doctrines of the national denominational body.
astor Francisco Gómez Maca denounced Pastor Hernández’s situation on Sunday, February 23 in the Excélsior national newspaper, pointing out that she has been an active participant in the Presbyterian Church for 25 years. According to Gómez, a colleague of Hernández, she was dismissed without receiving any due compensation, and that as a defender of human rights she had “left the elders of the church astonished,” having previously been of service to them in so far as she carried out tasks permitted for women, in blind obedience to them. It was the Central North Presbytery of Chiapas (National Presbyterian Church) that decided to have Hernández excluded from the listing of pastors of the National Presbyterian Church, arguing that “only men have the privilege of presiding over celebrations in the temple,” pointed Cira Hernández Gutiérrez
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Dialogue between President Ortega and Catholic bishops in Nicaragua creates expectations as a result of its broad agenda of social issues The meeting between the bishops of the Episcopal Conference of Nicaragua (CEN) and President Daniel Ortega, that took place on May 21, and was an occasion for presenting to the president the most sensitive issues in the country, such as that of the family, violence, unemployment, the high cost of foodstuffs, and the situation of the environment, continues to spark discussion, with Bishop Leopoldo Brenes and First lady Rosario Murillo coinciding in that the dialogue was a positive one.
that the nation is experiencing. Arce added that the Evangelical church is not problematic since it concentrates on processes of personal, spiritual and social transformation. Liberal leader José Pallais, said that through the document that the bishops presented to the president,
more than trying to move Ortega’s conscience they were seeking to move that of all Nicaraguans. Following a religious activity last weekend in Masaya, 28 kilometers east of the capital Managua, Bishop Brenes said that the dialogue was very positive and that he felt in
ALC, By Trinidad Vásquez for ALC/Managua ennonite pastor Jairo Arce, remembered that in the past, the bishops have always looked for political and even military power, and he believes that the Evangelicals should propose to the government ways for the solution of the problems
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Nicaraguan President Daniel Ortega and Conference of Catholic Bishops (César Pérez)
harmony and with the presence of the Holy Spirit. The representative of the Vatican in Nicaragua, Fortunatus Nwachukwu who served as facilitator of the meeting, said Sunday that the bishops spoke for 55 minutes and President Ortega responded and spoke to the bishops for over an hour, “which means that it was a conversation and not a monologue.” With regard to the document presented by the bishops, Nwachukwu said that he thought it to be frank since it does not necessarily condemn, being “a document that proposes solutions and presents situations to the government.” In an official statement, the Alexander von Humboldt Center congratulated the bishops of the CEN on having taken an important step in presenting to the Presidency of the Republic a document titled “In Search of New Horizons for a Better Nicaragua,” which manifests the “common concern for the building
of a better Nicaragua and a more prosperous and hopeful society for all Nicaraguans.” According to the Humboldt Center, it is vitally important that the government take up the concern expressed by the CEN in relation to the Great Inter-Oceanic Channel Project of Nicaragua, because “it will radically affect the culture, the way of life and work of our peoples and of the future generations,” making it urgent that there be “proven and specific information about this great project to prepare us for the future.” The Humboldt Center statement points to the need to listen to “the opinion of national and foreign scientists experts in the matter and harmonizing the constitutional, geological, technical and environmental aspects, weighing with serenity the risks that such a mega project represents for the safeguarding of our environment and natural resources.”
LATIN AMERICAN ECUMENICAL NEWS • MARCH-MAY 2014
National Presbyterian CLAI calls for end to antidemocratic Church of Mexico excludes violence in Venezuela
LATIN AMERICAN ECUMENICAL NEWS • MARCH-MAY 2014
6 Latin America and Environment
A Call for Solidarity with Human Rights Defenders in Guatemala Guatemalan Lutheran Church Leader Rev. José Pilar Álvarez Speaks on the Struggle to Protect People and Natural Resources. LWF, ALC/Guatemala City Lutheran uatemalan church leader says neither threats to personal life, trumped–up charges in court nor other forms of intimidation will deter the church from speaking out for the rights of rural communities, access to their land and other natural resources, and for defenders of human rights in the Latin American country. In an interview with Lutheran World Information (LWI) Rev. José Pilar Álvarez Cabrera, president of the Guatemalan Lutheran Church (ILUGUA) talked about the church’s work, and why it is important for the global church family and governments to support defenders of human rights in a society that is losing the significant gains it had made against impunity.
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Why is the Lutheran church involved in the country’s struggle for human rights? The Guatemalan Lutheran Church is a member of the Ecumenical Christian Council of Guatemala, an alliance of Catholic, Episcopal (Anglicans), Evangelical and Reformed churches, which collaborate in several areas of work including advocacy on human
rights at regional and international levels. For the last ten years, ILUGUA has been supporting the Zacapa and Chiquimula communities who live around the Granadillas Mountain area in their struggles against deforestation and exploitation of the area, which is the main source of water, food and livelihoods for some 300,000 people. Despite these protests to safeguard natural resources, deforestation by outside companies has persisted, and we have learned that the intervention by the local authorities is not genuine. The Lutheran church and the ecumenical alliance agitate with the local communities in this struggle against companies who are waiting to exploit the forests and the rivers. What kind of threats and intimidation do you face? There are threats to individuals and communities in Chiquimula and Zacapa, and especially to the human rights defenders. People have died protecting the land and biodiversity of the Granadillas. The assassination of human rights defender Carlos Hernández Mendoza in March 2013 particularly stands out. I personally have received assassination threats and have been publicly accused of crimes I have not committed. Recently we [ILUGUA] were accused of stealing a truck full of logs from a public place, yet no truck had been parked there in the first place; these are just some of the baseless accusations we receive, but
Guatemalan Lutheran church leader Rev. José Pilar Álvarez Cabrera (middle), Mr Omar Jéronimo (left) and Ms Claudia Samayoa Pineda, during the visit to Geneva (LWF M. Haas)
we will not keep quiet. How do the local authorities respond to such threats? The Constitution provides legitimacy for our work, but the local authorities support the big companies who have the money to exploit our resources. The threats to human rights defenders in the country are an affront to the significant gains made in reforming the justice system. Efficiency has increased during the tenure of the current Attorney General Dr Paz y Paz. Having the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in Guatemala is also important. However, the Attorney General’s mandate has been challenged by the constitutional court, and she is
“This isn’t going to happen to me”: Campaign tackles adolescent pregnancy in the Dominican Republic “Did you know that in the Dominican Republic, 22 percent of girls between 15 and 19 years old have been pregnant?” With that question begins an ad which is part of a United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) campaign intended to make teens be aware about the dramatic statistics that make the Dominican Republic one of five countries in Latin America and the Caribbean with the highest adolescent fertility rates. Latinamerica Press/ALC Santo Domingo he 2013 United Nations Human Development Report shows that the adolescent fertility rate is 103.6 births for every 1,000 women ages 15 to 19. The campaign, “This isn’t going to happen to me,” started in Aug. 2013 and hopes to “call attention to the opportunities teens have so this won’t happen to them,” said Sonia Vásquez, UNFPA representative in the Dominican Republic. There are five audio-visual ads that are transmitted
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by the media as well as promotional materials distributed through teen networks. The strategy to reach the teens is to speak their language, which is why UNFPA tapped into young artists like salsa star David Kada, who in an ad invokes teens to use protection during sex to avoid pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections. “The campaign promotes decision-making and calls for awareness from teens about starting to have sex, as a part of determining their ability to build a future with greater opportunities,” according to UNFPA. Poverty and lack of education The percentage of teens who reached only basic or primary education levels and who have been pregnant is seven times higher than those who reached college, UNFPA noted, adding that a shake-up of the current system is necessary to tackle the problem to ensure there is access to teen-friendly health services and at the same time dismantle the stigma for teens who have an untimely pregnancy. For UNFPA, sex education is key to avoiding teen pregnancies. However, the Affective Sexual Education Program, which was approved a decade ago for schools, has only reached 7 percent of students because it isn’t offered on a
large scale. This is exacerbated by the fact that 30 percent of sexually active teens don’t have access to contraception. Poverty and lack of education are the key indicators for teen pregnancy, according to UNFPA. A pregnant teen “is no longer inserted in the workforce and if she is, it doesn’t go well, because she needed an education. We still believe education is key for people to get out of poverty,” Vásquez said.
being compelled to leave office in May 2014, seven months before her term expires. Yet all she has done is applied the constitution to prosecute those implicated in serious violations of human rights and genocide during the dark past of the armed conflict. She has applied the law to prosecute crimes related to armed gangs and drug dealers, and she supports the work of human rights defenders like us. What do you see as the way forward? It is important to sustain concerted advocacy to uphold the constitution and to protect citizens who are being denied their rights because of the commercial need to exploit our natural resources—cutting down
forests, excavating minerals and so on. Our recent (March 2014) ecumenical tour to Europe was one such effort. We met with church and government representatives in Germany, Norway and Sweden and international human rights organizations. We informed them about the serious setbacks we are experiencing in the promotion of human rights, and asked for their support through the EU and United Nations mechanisms. In meetings at the Ecumenical Center with different global church leaders including Rev. Martin Junge, General Secretary of The Lutheran World Federation, we appealed for the solidarity and accompaniment of the global ecumenical family with Guatemala’s Christians and human rights defenders. We need the global churches’ support to give us strength to continue providing pastoral care to communities that are fighting to protect their resources and their very own lives. (Mr Omar Jéronimo, coordinator of the indigenous community organization Central Peasant Chorti New Day and Ms Claudia Samayoa Pineda, coordinator of the Unit for Human Rights Defenders in Guatemala, accompanied Rev. José Pilar Álvarez Cabrera on the on the 21 March visit to the Ecumenical Center, as part of meetings in Europe from 5 to 24 March.) Source: Lutheran World Federation, LWF: http://www.lutheranworld.org/news/call-solidarity-human-rights-defendersguatemala
Francis effect?
Observers see shift in stance of Mexico's bishops Mexican prelates normally prize cordial and close relations with politicians and refrain from criticizing public policy. But Mexico's bishops posed uncomfortable questions for President Enrique Peña Nieto in a May 2 meeting, Catholic News Service Mexico City
Source: Latinamerica Press: http://www.lapress.org/articles.asp?art=7014
he bishops challenged Peña Nieto on the government's agenda of structural reforms and sharing the sense of dissatisfaction they hear from many ordinary Mexicans. "In no way are we trying to not recognize the great efforts and advances that have been taken under your management," Cardinal Francisco Robles Ortega told the president at the bishops' bi-annual meeting in Cuautitlan Izcalli, near Mexico City. "We want to pass on what we hear from the people of different social strata, their angst and anguish and -- allow me to say -their annoyances. We do so with honesty and a true desire to serve." Public questioning of the pres-
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Adolescent pregnancy (rumbodechihuahua)
Cardinal Francisco Robles Ortega (elcorreodeoaxaca)
ident is rare given the history of unhappy church-state relations in Mexico. The bishops' relationship with Peña Nieto had been considered close prior to his taking power Dec. 1, 2012. Church observers say the status quo is shifting, however: The bishops see their plans of playing a more prominent role in public policy diminished, and Pope Francis, who clashed with presidents while archbishop of Buenos Aires, Argentina, prefers prelates to side with the people instead of the powerful. Source: Catholic News Service, CNS: http://www.catholicnews.com/data/briefs/cns/20140506.htm#head6
Latin America and Environment 7 LATIN AMERICAN ECUMENICAL NEWS • MARCH-MAY 2014
WCC president for Latin America expresses concern over clashes in Venezuela Following clashes between protesters and police in Venezuela, which left around 20 people dead in February, the World Council of Churches (WCC) president for Latin America and the Caribbean, Rev. Gloria Nohemy Ulloa Alvarado, expressed concern over the violence. She made these comments on 10 March, conveying solidarity with the churches in Venezuela.
government, the opposition, the youth and the Venezuelan people to sit around the table and find appropriate solutions”. Drafted by the delegates of the 34th General Council of the Presbyterian Church of Venezuela, the initial letter emphasizes that
WCC, ALC/Barranquilla esponding to an appeal for peace made in a letter by the Presbyterian Church of Venezuela, Ulloa said, “We join in prayers with our brothers and sisters from the Presbyterian Church in Venezuela”. “We ask God to hear the anguished cry of so many families,” she said. Ulloa expressed her hopes that “the wisdom of God would guide the
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Rev. Gloria Nohemy Ulloa Alvarado, WCC Latin America and the Caribbean President (WCC)
“violence and death can bring only more violence and death”. The letter states that killings and conflict are by no means the way towards development in Venezuela, and it warns of the risk of sinking into “mindless fratricidal confrontation that benefits no one”. The Latin American Council of Churches (CLAI) has also encouraged Venezuelan churches to continue their work and prayers for peace, condemning “the illegal and antidemocratic intentions of the opposition in Venezuela to bring about regime change using violence”. The Venezuelan government led by President Nicolas Maduro has been accused by the opposition of creating the situation that has led to food shortages and violations of freedom of speech. On the other hand, Maduro and officials have blamed the opposition for threatening the nation’s security as well as economic problems. The rift between the two sides has generated the recent violence in the country. Source: World Council of Churches, WCC: http://www.oikoumene.org/en/press-centre/news/wcc-president-for-latinamerica-expresses-concern-over-clashes-in-venezuela
Lutheran Church in Chile Ordains First Woman Pastor: All LWF Member Churches in Region Now Welcoming Women as Ministers The Lutheran Church in Chile (ILCH) has ordained Rev. Hanna Schramm as its first woman pastor in a historic move that means all Lutheran World Federation (LWF) churches in the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region now embrace women ministers. LWF, ALC/Santiago The ordination of a female pastor in the ILCH is of relevance for the entire communion of churches in the LWF,” said Rev. Patricia Cuyatti, DMD area secretary for LAC. “It invites us to engage women from different backgrounds to explore ministry from their life
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experiences and contribute in witnessing the relevance of living liberated by God’s grace to serve.” Germany, Dresden-born Schramm studied theology in Leipzig before completing a two-year vicariate in Chile. She was ordained last month in the Church of the Redeemer in Santiago de Chile by Bishop Siegfried Sanders of the ILCH. “I want to express gratitude for the journey that made possible the ordination of the first female pastor in our church. We thank Hanna Schramm for her courage, sensitivity and courtesy during her vicariate, which made people appreciate her service,” Sanders said. “We realized that many people who had doubts and reservations regarding the service of a female pastor have been
The Lutheran Church in Chile has ordained its first woman pastor, Hanna Schramm (Leonardo Pérez LWF)
changed by Hanna’s ministry. For the ILCH, this means a change of mind, openness, and a more inclusive theology. The ILCH has moved to another time, to the reality of today.” The LWF’s Gender Justice Policy, approved by the Council in 2013, underlines the global communion of churches’ commitment to the empowerment of women and gender equality both within the LWF and wider society. Schramm hopes that her ordination will also encourage women in Chile to study theology and join the ministry. “The fact that a woman has come along and has been ordained and accepted as a minister is certainly a great contribution towards encouraging more young women to be interested in this calling. They can see that this possibility is now open to them as well,” Schramm said. “The ordination of a female pastor in the ILCH puts both churches in Chile in equal relationship and fulfilling the principle of equality,” said Rev. Dr Gloria Rojas, Vice President of the LAC region and a member of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Chile (IELCH). “With this accomplishment, the LWF member churches in the region meet the LWF guidelines that are studied, understood, internalized and followed in the everyday activities and relationships in our churches.” Source: Lutheran World Federation, LWF: http://www.lutheranworld.org/news/lutheran-church-chile-ordains-firstwoman-pastor
Fraternity and Human Trafficking (CNNB)
Fraternity campaign in Brazil focuses on the “globalized indifference” to human trafficking One of the most profitable activities in the world, human trafficking, produces some 32 billion dollars a year, according to the United Nations. It is the focus of this year’s Fraternity Campaign in Brazil, which celebrates its 50th anniversary. The theme of the 2014 campaign is: “Fraternity and Human Trafficking." ALC/Brasilia
Currently, this slavery weighs heavily in a way never seen before in the history of humanity. That is not by chance: we learn how to transform everything into merchandise and we connect ourselves globally, transforming the world into a single and large supermarket," says the coordinator of the NGO Repórter Brasil, journalist Leonardo Sakamoto, and Dominican friar Xavier Plassat, coordinator of the campaign for the eradication of slave work of the Land Pastoral Commission (CPT) of the National Council of Catholic Bishops of Brazil (CNNB). The International Labor Organization estimates at 21 million the number of victims of modern slavery. Over the last 20 years, 47 thousand people living in degrading
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work situations, in 2 thousand establishments in more than 600 Brazilian municipal districts, were freed. In an article for the Folha newspaper ofSão Paulo, the president of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops of Brazil (CNBB) and cardinal archbishop of Aparecida, Raymundo Damasceno Assis, pointed out four kinds of human trafficking. The first is sexual exploitation. The second is the exploitation of slave labor. Data of the Land Pastoral Commission (CPT) indicates that between 2003 and 2012, 62.8 thousand cases of slave labor or that similar to slave labor were found in Brazil. The third kind has to do with the trafficking of human organs for transplants, and the fourth is the trafficking of children and adolescents for illegal adoption. According to Cardinal Damasceno, some 20 thousand Brazilian children were sent abroad to be adopted, during the 1980’s. In his article, Cardinal Damasceno emphasizes the Christian hope that believes that no evil will have the final word. "May Christ's resurrection, to which Lent leads us, free us from 'globalized indifference’ and be our strength in the struggle against the evil of human trafficking," he wrote.
LATIN AMERICAN ECUMENICAL NEWS • MARCH-MAY 2014
8 Latin America and Environment
ACT leads high-level efforts opposing anti-racism law in the Dominican Republic An ACT Alliance member is backing efforts to overthrow a Dominican Republic (DR) law that is prejudiced against citizens of Haitian descent. Legislation passed in September denies people of Haitian descent basic rights of citizenship. It could ultimately force people back to Haiti even after many years in the DR or to work in unregulated sugar cane plantations in the DR. Enacted by the Constitutional Court, the law cannot be repealed.
posals of the churches are taken into account in this project that the President of the Republic is planning to submit. It also opens the space for churches to influence and monitor the proposal, ensuring it is within the law and be part of the implementation mechanisms.”
ACT Alliance/ALC Santo Domingo
Education among the human rights denied Alberto knew of a family of five children who were officially registered as citizens despite beign denied the ability to enter university. Despite having Haitian citizenship, Marcio Jean Baptiste Leger, 25, and sister Mirta Baptiste Leger, 21, are denied the ability to enter university. Their three younger brothers fear the same situation.
resident Danilo Medina is drumming up support for new legislation he hopes Congress will approve that would override the current law. If successful, his draft bill would recognise the rights of people born in the DR and ensure no DR citizen of Haitian descent would be expelled. Local ACT member, Servicio Social de Iglesias Dominicanas (Social Service of the Dominican Churches), was chosen by Medina to organise a consultation between Medina and 38 leaders of every evangelical denomination of the DR to discuss his proposal. With strong enough backing, Medina will present the bill to Congress. SSID is outspoken on the immorality of the Constitutional Court judgment, saying it denies human rights to people born in the DR,” said José Alberto, who works in the emergencies department of SSID. “From this meeting [between the president and churches], we can see that the voice and the pro-
“This type of case - where there are a number of Civil Registry cases and where there are young children involved - is the most glaring evidence of the denial of a right acquired by the pathways and mechanisms requiring the Dominican Republic at the time,” Alberto said. “Therefore , their status as children of Dominicans of Haitian immigrants should not be denied, as all the evidence shared with the state recorded them as Dominicans. “Their lives are on hold at this time. Under this law, they are no longer fully integrated into society, able to study in universities or schools, or have access to the labour market in order to be useful to society,” Alberto said. Throughout years of friction between the two countries, SSID has a long history of trying to help Haitians and Dominican Republicans find reconciliation, helping stem violence between nationals of the two countries living in the DR. The evangelical church represents over 20 percent
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In Port-au-Prince, emergency workers for ACT unload tonnes of relief material brought into earthquake-ravaged Haiti, from the Dominican Republic (ACT Alliance Paul Jeffrey)
of the total population in the DR and has an increasingly high profile in the incidence toward changing public policy. ACT Latin America and Caribbean programme officer Carlos Rauda says the current law vanquishes the rights of Haitian descendants. “The implication for the workers is that they don’t have any rights so they have to take any type of work or they have to work without salary or benefits. They lose property rights and their education is not recognised. Your title as a Dominican Republic citizen is gone.” He said many Haitians supported the law, saying the DR was suffering because of the Haitian migrants. “But everyone is a migrant in the Dominican Republic. Settlers exterminated all the natives. The Dominican Republic receives people from all the countries of the world. Haitians are of course the main migrants because they share a border. Haiti is the poorest country in Latin America,” Rauda said. SSID praised for diplomatic efforts SSID has been rewarded for its efforts to protect the rights of Haitian descendants. SSID director Lorenzo Mota King says the award, Premios/Prix Diaspora 2014, presented by members of the Haitian diaspora, recognises years of work by SSID to uphold the rights of people of DR descent, promote relations between churches and political bodies in the DR and Haiti to reduce tensions between the two countries. The award was jointly presented by the Haitian embassy, the UN refugee agency UNHCR, a network of sugar cane producers, the Centre for Sustainable Development in the DR, and the Zile Fundación. King said that up to one million people of Haitian descent live in the DR, of a population of 10 million. King said he was honoured by the recognition. “I feel humble and proud at the same time. In this time, when there is tension between Haiti and the Dominican Republic, we are working to improve relations between them. The Haitian diaspora recognises that some Dominican Republican organisations are helping to support their people.” Source: ACT Alliance: http://www.actalliance.org/stories/act-leads-highlevel-efforts-opposing-anti-racism-law
Lutheran Church in Chile appeal for Valparaiso fire victims
LWF Member Church in Valparaiso Raises Funds and Coordinates Relief The Lutheran World Federation (LWF) member church in Valparaiso is appealing for financial support and coordinating donations of food, clothing and other essential items to help thousands of displaced people after a devastating forest fire razed parts of the Chilean port city. The fire, the worst ever to hit the UNESCO World Heritage city, broke out on Saturday in the hills surrounding Valparaiso, 110 km west of the capital Santiago, killing at least 15 people. Officials said more than 2,500 homes have been destroyed, leaving 11,000 inhabitants homeless. LWF, ALC/Valparaiso
The reality in Valparaiso is really sad and the fires are still not under control. Each hour we add more damaged families who have lost everything,” said Rev. Rodolfo Olivera Obermöller, of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Viña del Mar on April 14. “As the Lutheran Church in Valparaiso, we are arranging donations and volunteering to help them.” The city’s poorest neighborhoods, often made up of little more than wooden huts, were worst affected. Many of these homes were built illegally, lacking water and sewer connections, with improper foundations on dangerous slopes and no way for emergency vehicles to reach them in a crisis. Thousands of people have been evacuated and are cur-
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rently living in schools and other temporary accommodation centers. Chilean Interior Minister Rodrigo Peñailillo said Monday it could take days to bring under control what he called "some of the most complicated situations." Experts said that it could take even longer to fully extinguish all the fires. The Evangelical Lutheran Church in Viña del Mar is distributing items such as first aid kits, milk, nappies, blankets, cleaning supplies, non-perishable food and water. Church members are using the media to announce collection centers across the city for donations and centers for animals rescued from the fire. The LWF member church is also working with volunteers at the city’s Holy Trinity Church to support people in need. It has provided food and household goods to people injured in the fire and those at the Escuela Grecia center. “We are supporting families who have lost everything. Right now, we are in the first stage to respond to the emergency, meeting basic need of the victims and also knowing their realities. The second and more difficult step will be the reconstruction part,” Rev. Rodolfo Olivera Obermöller. “We are keeping some donations to collaborate in rebuilding homes. Members from our church have contacted many families who have informed about their needs. We are also offering pastoral [care]. My primary job is to support the members in the church in the first step in the emergency which is part of the church mission.” Source: Lutheran World Federation, LWF: http://www.lutheranworld.org/news/chilean-forest-fire