The Bible
Society Fellowship has responded to the disaster in Haiti with initial
humanitarian aid (food, water and medicines) and also with Scriptures
to feed the spiritual hunger of the people. Financial and prayerful
support has been provided to the Haitian Bible Society. The Dominican
Republic Bible Society
have transported aid to Port-au-Prince.
Magda
Victor, General Secretary of the Haitian Bible Society, reports on
the situation in Port-au-Prince:
" I would like to thank all the Bible Societies for all the wonderful
help we have received. On January 21, at 11 am, our Dominican brothers
brought
us the gifts sent by the Americas Area Centre on behalf of the Bible
Society fellowship. While we were unloading the truck we had another
earthquake.
Our Dominican friends were amazed. It was then that I realised how much
trouble they had gone through to get here. After a long and difficult
and journey, they reached the border of Haiti at 7am and left soon
after delivering
the gifts.”
"The Bible Society of Brazil has promised to provide 4,000 Bibles (SEO34), which we are very thankful for. Considering the situation, we are going to distribute for free 4,000 Bibles that we already have in stock.
This first shipment of humanitarian aid from the United Bible Societies was loaded by staff of the Dominican Republic Bible Society (DRBS). Having overcome difficulties in crossing the border, they were met in Port-au-Prince by staff of the Haitian Bible Society (HBS), whose eyes brightened with joy when they saw what their brothers and sisters in the Bible Society fellowship had sent: rice, canned food and medicines, which were unloaded at the damaged Bible House building.
Dominican Bible Society staff load the van with food and medicines
Haitian Bible Society staff receive the food and medicines
“After the disaster we were in shock. Now that
we have settled down, somehow we are beginning to see the extent
to which the Haitian
Bible Society has been affected. More important than anything else, we've
lost many great friends, people who supported us over the years with
their encouragement, their hard-earned income and their prayers.
We've lost many of our old neighbours -- those young ladies, who
became our friends over the years, settling under the supposed protection
of our old headquarters in the downtown area to sell their trinkets.
They all died when the building gave way and collapsed.
Many members of our staff had their houses destroyed when the earthquake struck; the luckier ones had their houses only damaged; yet others have seen family members perish.
But one overriding fact is that God was with us and with our staff on that day, for on that day not one of them died. We are the lucky ones. We are the faces of testimonies to come, those heart-wrenching stories of men and women, young and old, struggling for two or three days to try and pull their loved ones out from under the rubble.
I'm sure you have heard many such stories or seen
them on TV. Over the last couple of weeks, these have been our stories.
We thank you all for joining in prayer.”
The old Bible House
The damaged new Bible House