Haiti: Helping

without Hurting
Webinar Series
Session 1:
Poverty and the
Church
February 17, 2010
The Chalmers Center for
Economic Development
at Covenant College
 The Haitian Context Pre-
Earthquake
• Extreme Levels of Absolute Poverty:
– 75% lived on less than $2/day
– Over 50% lived on less than $1/day

• Extreme Levels of Inequality:

– 4% of population owned 66% of wealth
– Second highest income disparity in the
world
 The Haitian Context Pre-
Earthquake
• Half of population has no access to
potable water
• Over 50% of population is illiterate
• Highest HIV/AIDS rate in world outside
sub-saharan Africa
• 1/3 of women have been violently
sexually abused
• High rates of child abuse and
trafficking
 How We Define the Cause of
Poverty Determines the
Solutions We Propose
The Cause of Proposed Solution
Poverty
Lack of Knowledge Education
Oppression by Work for Social
Powerful People Justice
Personal Sins of the Evangelism and
Poor Discipleship of the
Poor
Lack of Material Provide Greater
Things Access to Material
Things
 God

Economic System
Political System

Social System
Self Rest of
Others Creation

Religious System
 God Poverty of Spiritual
Intimacy

Economic System
Political System

Social System
Rest of
Self Creation
Others
Poverty of Poverty of Stewardship
Being Poverty of Community

Religious System
 What is Poverty?
“Poverty is a result of
relationships that do not work,
that are not just, that are not for
life, that are not harmonious or
enjoyable.”

Bryant Myers in Walking with the Poor, p.

86.
If poverty is rooted in broken
relationships, who are the
Poor?
• We are!

• Until we embrace this, our attempts to

help the people in Haiti may do more
harm than good.
 God Poverty of Spiritual
Intimacy

Economic System
Political System

Social System
Rest of
Self Creation
Others
Poverty of Poverty of Stewardship
Being Poverty of Community
god-complexes

Feelings of
Inferiority/Shame Religious System
 Poverty Alleviation
Poverty Alleviation is the Ministry
of Reconciliation:
moving people—including
ourselves-- closer to glorifying God
by living in right relationship with
God, self, others, and the rest of
creation.
 Poverty Alleviation
• Note that “the good life” is not just
having more material things.

• The goal is NOT to turn Port-au-Prince

into Atlanta

• The goal is for Port-au-Prince and

Atlanta to look more like the New
Jerusalem
The Relationships are Broken
Due To:
• Individual Sin:
– Sinful hearts
– Often includes a faulty worldview concerning
God, self, others, and the rest of creation
– The voodoo worldview is a factor in the Haitian
Context

• Broken Systems
– local, national, and international levels
– The poor typically have little control over these
 God Poverty of Spiritual
Intimacy

Economic System
Political System

Social System
Rest of
Self Creation
Others
Poverty of Poverty of Stewardship
Being Poverty of Community

Religious System
Broken Systems Affecting
Haiti’s Poor
• International Factors:
– Colonization by Spanish and French
– Slavery
– U.S. embargo for 60 years after Haiti achieved
independence in 1804
– $22 Billion (constant 2007 dollars) in reparation payments
to France
– U.S. occupation 1915-1934
– U.S. propped up Baby Doc, a ruthless dictator, during the
Cold War
Broken Systems Affecting
Haiti’s Poor
• International Factors:
– Large amounts of aid from U.S. government and
multilateral organizations
– $1 billion annually in remittances
– “Republic of NGOs”
– Large numbers of missionaries, especially short-termers
– Perhaps all of these outside resources have
undermined Haitian initiative at local and national
levels
 Broken Systems Affecting
Haiti’s
National Factors
Poor
•
– Government ranked as one of the top 2 most corrupt
governments in the world

– Constant Instability: only 9 of 54 presidents have served a

complete term

– Predatory governments which oppress poor in order to

advance their own power and wealth

– Categorized as a “fragile” state by the international donor

community, meaning that it cannot or will not provide core
functions to the majority of its people. Other countries in this
category include Somalia, Sudan, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe.
 Individual Sin
+
Broken Systems
=
Broken Relationships for the Poor in
Haiti
 God Poverty of Spiritual
Intimacy

Economic System
Political System

Social System
Rest of
Self Creation
Others
Poverty of Poverty of Stewardship
Being Poverty of Community

Religious System
Broken Relationship with God
in Haiti
• God the Supreme Creator is distant and
unapproachable

• Capricious spirits rule the material world

and must be appeased
 Broken Relationship with
Creation in Haiti
• The spirits determine the level of fertility
and harvest

• The creation is not responsive to

individual action, so exercising
stewardship and dominion is not
considered fruitful
 Broken Relationship with
Others in Haiti
• Blood and religion determine
acceptance
• Class and color determine status
• People outside are viewed as
competitors for influence and goods
• Alignment with power is essential for
survival
Broken Relationship with Self
in Haiti
• Feelings of inferiority and shame
• Dependent on group identity for honor
and dignity
• Fear of being outside of group
• Moral decisions are group and spirit
directed, undermining one’s sense of
personal, moral responsibility
If poverty is rooted in broken
relationships, who are the
Poor?
• We are!

• Until we embrace this, our attempts to

help the people in Haiti may do more
harm than good.
 God Poverty of Spiritual
Intimacy

Economic System
Political System

Social System
Rest of
Self Creation
Others
Poverty of Poverty of Stewardship
Being Poverty of Community
god-complexes

Feelings of
Inferiority/Shame Religious System
 We all need a reconciler!

For God was pleased to have all his

fullness dwell in him (Jesus), and
through him to reconcile to himself
all things, whether things on earth or
things in heaven, by making peace
through his blood, shed on the cross.
Colossians 1:19-20
The Church is the body, bride,
and fullness of Jesus Christ

It has been given the “Ministry

of Reconciliation”
 Local and Universal
Church
• Need to focus on increasing the
“testimony” of the local church in
Haiti

• Avoiding Paternalism

• Avoiding Dependency
Connection of the Church

with Community Work

• Church-Encouraged

• Church-Supported

• Church-Based
 Cultural Issues
• Individualism vs. Collectivism

• Universalism vs. Particularism

– Galatians 6:10: “Do good to al men but especially
to those of the household of faith

• Low Power Distance vs. High Power Distance

You can download a copy of today’s
webinar within two days at

www.whenhelpinghurts.org
 The next Webinar in this series is
“Haiti: Doing Asset-based Relief, Rehabilitation”,
February 24, 2010
1:00-2:00 EST
For more information go to
www.whenhelpinghurts.org
 We need your financial support!

For information on how to give, please go to

www.chalmers.org