New College Bird is a
175-year-old Methodist academic institution that was severely damaged during
the 2010 earthquake in Haiti. It has been rebuilt and today, September 9, 2014,
it is being rededicated. The Rev. James Gulley, an UMCOR and Global Ministries
consultant, offers a prayer of praise and thanksgiving.
O Lord, our
Lord, how excellent is your name in all the earth!
Today we
remember with thanks those who came to Haiti in your mission and shared the
vision of education for a newly liberated people!
When African
people were captured, sold and enslaved in Hispaniola for 300 years, you, O
Lord, suffered with them.
When your
African people rose up and cast off the shackles of their enslavement, you, O
Lord, empowered them to cry out: "Enough!"
When your
African people struggled to understand each other, you gave them the Creole
language.
When your
Haitian people strove for knowledge, you provided the first missionary
teachers, Catts and Brown.
When your
people needed schools, you sent them Rev. Mark Bird and other teachers to found
the first Methodist College.
For more
than 175 years, (New) College Bird has been a beacon of light, providing
education to thousands.
Withstanding
the constant onslaught of seasonal storms,
(New)
College Bird has risen twice from the ashes of two destructive fires,
and now
rises again from an earthquake which shattered its structures
but did not
snuff out the desire for learning.
Once again
you have enlivened the spirit, imagination and determination of your Methodist
people in Haiti and their partners to rebuild.
As New
College Bird is rededicated once again,
may your
Spirit of Truth continue to bring light and hope
to students,
teachers, administrators and all
who work to
bring knowledge, skill and wisdom to those who must build Haiti anew.
As you
continue to walk with your people in Haiti, together we proclaim:
“O Lord, our
Lord, how excellent is your name in all the earth!”
James L. Gulley
September 10, 2014
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