The crisis in Haiti in recent days has really weighed heavily on my heart; such devastation to an already incredibly impoverished area of the world. Our prayers must continue to be with them. Every believer should have a role in the help of the Haitians because every believer should be in prayer for them. If you would like to send money towards Haitian relief, here are a few places to consider:
- World Relief – Attn: Donor Service, 7 E Baltimore Street, Baltimore, MD 21202 www.worldrelief.org
- Samaritan’s Purse - P.O. Box 3000, Boone, NC 28607 www.samaritanspurse.org
- World Vision – P.O. Box 9716, Dept. W, Federal Way, WA 98063-9716 www.worldvision.org
As we pray for Haiti I think it also very important that we not try to analyze this crisis and pretend we have answers to the great whys of the event. Below are just some things I feel followers of Jesus need to know before they throw stones.
The history of Haiti is one of great oppression. The original inhabitants of the island of Hispaniola, of which Haiti and the Dominican Republic evolved, were the Taino indians. Because of disease from the Spanish settlers that came to Hispaniola in the 16th century, the Taino indians were pretty much wiped out.
The decimation of the native population led to the importation of 790,000 African slaves. Tiny Hispaniola accounted for one-third of the entire African slave trade between 1783 and 1791. When these African slaves would die because of the brutal living conditions and harsh labor requirements, more slaves were shipped in. This caused an overpopulation of slaves. And, the majority of those slaves were African born which explains the strong presence of African customs right up through today.
During the colonial period, a complicated form of racism created a complicated social ladder. At the bottom were African slaves. Right above them was a group of people known as gens de colour (people of color), the offspring of French colonists and slaves. Gens de colour were free under law, and could have land and earn money. Some even became slaveholders. However, they could not marry whites, mingle socially with them, and were prevented from wearing European clothing and holding certain jobs.
The voodoo ceremony which is believed to have launched the Haitian revolution in 1791 is an accepted (though not universally) piece of history. The context of this however is very important. This is the place where Pat Robertson has been making his remarks as of lately.
For centuries the slaves and gens de colour of Hispaniola had been brutally oppressed by Roman Catholicism. Since many of them were African natives, they began to return to their African customs. Voodoo restored confidence in the African slaves by connecting them with their heritage. Disclaimer: I am not saying that I approve of voodoo. But voodoo is a religious ceremony with deep roots in African customs with which the slaves would have been familiar. Today, Haiti claims to be about 80% Roman Catholic and about 10% Protestant. Voodoo is still present and active there.
This Haitian revolution, possibly sparked by the rise of voodoo ceremonies, was a struggle against the French for independence that lasted for 13 years. This war rose to an incredible level of cruelty. One writer listed some of the brutal acts inflicted upon Haitian rebels and their response as follows:
“The French tried to terrorize Haiti into surrendering – I’m talking about burning alive, boiling in molasses, burying in piles of insects – but the Haitians repaid each act of brutality, blood for blood.”
France refused to recognize Haiti’s independence until 1825. At that time, the Haitians had to pay 90 million francs to the French government for “lost property.” The lost property were those slaves, either dead or fighting for independence, that the French government would lose.
The Haitians paid the fine to end embargos placed on them by countries friendly to the French. One of those countries was the United States. The U.S. could not support the independence of Haiti, a country of slaves, lest they give their own slaves ideas. The U.S. would not recognize Haiti’s independence until 1862. Haiti was forced to take out high interest loans which took them another 122 years to pay off.
In writing all this, I’m not shifting blame to anyone. I just want the Body to be informed before it listens to the comments of people like Pat Robertson. I do not feel Robertson’s comments were meant to be mean. They just showed incredibly poor timing.
What I do want us to see is that tragedy is complicated. We ask why but the why question is more of a road than it is a destination. The larger why eludes us as we are strung along, point by point, through a myriad of smaller whys.
Evil is always nice to point out in others. It’s difficult when many, including our own history, share it. Right now, let’s stop pointing out whose sins caused what and begin to fall to our knees and cry out to God for His grace, mercy and hope to flood the people of Haiti.
Thanks for reading and as you pray, please consider giving to one of the organizations listed above in this blog.
