Seminary student reflects on Haiti
Wednesday, March 17th, 2010
(Note to readers: Jared Witt was among the ELCA seminary students in Haiti for a January term course when an earthquake struck.)
“Why I Need Haiti”
By Jared Witt
Student, Trinity Lutheran Seminary
In seminary we use a lot of words — words about God. But it would be difficult for me to explain with mere words why I need Haiti in order to really know God.
It would be difficult to explain why I need to go to the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere to experience true wealth. It would be difficult to explain why I need Haitian Creole to help me understand the scriptures as well as any biblical language I might learn in school.
It would be difficult to explain why I need the gentle smile of an elderly woman on an overcrowded airstrip in Jacmel to show me how an empty tomb changes everything. I could never explain these things, but I can at least tell a story.
The following individuals are known murder victims with ELCA ties killed since Pretty Good Lutherans was started in September 2009: