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Becky Butt and Sandy Lo lead worship
at Grace Mennonite Church in Hong Kong. Photo by Andrew Wade. |
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May 5, 2003
-by Lynda Hollinger-Janzen with Dan Dyck
Mennonite Church Canada—SARS spreads fear. Although
other diseases kill more people daily on our planet, the unknowns fling
this mystery illness, known as Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome, into
the headlines.
Some agencies are repatriating their personnel. Mennonite Church Canada
and partner Mennonite Mission Network has 21 workers - 12 adults and nine
children - in the two regions hardest hit by SARS, mainland China and
Hong Kong. So far these workers are planning to stay.
The Hong Kong mission team partners with the Mennonite Churches in Hong
Kong. One outreach ministry is an after-school tutoring program called
Helping Hands Centre, which is a ministry of Agape Mennonite Church. Cindy
and Tim Buhler, of Abbotsford, British Columbia, and their two daughters
have been home-schooling with the help of a newly developed educational
web site since the government closed schools until April 28.
The need to be involved in the children's learning experience has reduced
the time available for ministry outside the home, and sometimes the family
feels cramped in its small city apartment. "You cannot just send
the children into the basement or outside to play," Tim Buhler said.
Although many public gatherings are canceled and thousands of people
confine themselves to their apartments, the Agape congregation decided
to go ahead with its worship services as an act of faith. As worshipers
enter the church building, they are required to wash their hands thoroughly
and don a mask for the service.
Agape canceled some of its activities for young children, but SARS has
actually presented an opportunity to expand its youth ministries. The
youth group that usually meets only on Saturday has been meeting three
times weekly. "Some of the group said they were bored being off school
and asked if they could have extra meetings," Buhler said.
Helping Hands Centre continues to offer its services to the children
of working parents. More than half of the 40 students still come to the
centre where masks are required apparel.
"For safety reasons, most of our team members choose to wear masks
while out on public transit and in crowded areas," Buhler said. "Is
wearing a mask being fearful? Wearing a mask may be more than what is
needed at this time, but for myself who is out more than my family, I
would not want to bring SARS home with me."
One Agape family self-quarantined themselves as their daughter's classmate
became ill with SARS. Other families are living in apartment complexes
where SARS has broken out.
"The biggest role the church can play at this time is to dispel
unnecessary fear," Buhler said. "Yes, there is a risk of catching
the disease and we need to protect ourselves, but we cannot live in fear,
as it is so easy to do at this time. I speak for myself. I go through
periods of fear for my family, but, as believers in Hong Kong, we trust
in the Lord for peace, safety and protection.
"Our message at this time must be the internal peace that comes
from knowing no matter what may come our way, we - as believers - are
found in Jesus. Hong Kong needs to hear so much this message of peace
and love.
"The Christian churches are calling for fasting and prayer for our
situation. Please continue to pray for safety for our churches and for
the people of Hong Kong. Pray that God may be glorified, even in this
time of crisis. Pray that many may come to faith in Jesus in this time
of trial," Buhler said.
Mennonite Church Canada Witness teachers with China Educational Exchange,
a partnership of several Mennonite agencies and Chinese educational institutions,
haven't experienced the shock waves that are rocking many parts of East
Asia.
"We're stuck out in the boonies in Sichuan here, and SARS hasn't
had much of an impact" said Todd Hanson. "Our younger daughter's
babysitter hadn't heard of it yet, but the grandmother of one of our older
daughter's friends had heard of it, but couldn't remember what it was
called." Jeanette and Todd Hanson with their two daughters are from
Saskatchewan.
On April 5, the American government announced that all 72 Peace Corps
teachers stationed in China, most of them in Sichuan, were required to
return to the United States. "This year there are no Peace Corps
teachers at our college, but some CEE teachers did have Peace Corps colleagues,"
Hanson said. "I imagine it must have felt a little disquieting to
say goodbye to a neighbor who is being medically evacuated by military
transport when you are staying right where you are."
CEE had a conference in Hong Kong during the spring festival period.
After the conference, the Hansons and several other teachers stayed for
a day or two at a guesthouse just across the street from the Metropole
Hotel, where several people contracted SARS. "We checked out of the
[guesthouse] a few days before the Chinese doctor who had SARS checked
in to the Metropole," Hanson said. "I hope that's as close as
we get to the disease."
CEE's program coordinator and Witness worker, Kathi Suderman, said, "We
have been monitoring the SARS situation. Putting into perspective that
the virus affects fewer people than regular pneumonia, that the rate of
death due to SARS is lower than the rate of death due to regular pneumonia,
and that cases have been found in both the USA and Canada, we have not
decided to ask CEE workers to return to North America, as some other organizations
have done.
"We are grateful that CEE workers are reacting in a calm manner.
We have sent out information on SARS to CEE workers and are encouraging
them to keep informed and to take safety precautions."
Kathi and Rod Suderman share administrative responsibilities for CEE
in China. The Sudermans, of Saskatchewan, have served in China with their
three children since 1998.
Chris and Lois Leuz, whose home congregation is Doylestown (Pa.) Mennonite
Church, teach at Chongqing Medical College. Chris, a doctor, reported
a recent conversation with a nurse. "She could not understand why
there is such a fuss about SARS in the West when she sees patients die
every day from regular pneumonia in our hospital, but not from SARS,"
Chris Leuz said.
"She also mentioned that when you consider more than a billion people
in China, not that many have gotten SARS. Actually in Chengdu, according
to the public health bureau, there have been no cases of SARS. So we say,
'What SARS scare?'
"Personally, I think that the real story is in Hong Kong. The missionaries
there are living with a threat of SARS and it does affect their lives
daily. They still continue to attend church and share with their church
members the risk that involves. They could all have decided to flee Hong
Kong, but they continue their witness there."
The Hong Kong Mennonite mission team, jointly supported by Mennonite
Church Canada Witness and Mennonite Mission Network includes the following
workers: Tim and Cindy Buhler from Northview Community Church, Abbotsford,
B.C., Andy and Susan Wade from Evergreen Mennonite Church, Bellevue, WA.,
and Shauna Klassen from Cornerstone Vineyard Community Fellowship, Winkler,
MB. The Hong Kong team also includes workers from Eastern Mennonite Mission,
and the Philippine, Indonesian and Honduran Mennonite Churches. Mennonite
Church Canada Witness has ministries in 42 countries.
Sidebar: SARS and Worship
Susan Wade, mission worker supported by MC Canada Witness, recently provided
an update on the impact of SARS on worship life in Hong Kong Mennonite
Churches. She writes:
"Our congregations still meet but with extra precautions. Agape
Church, which is in the area first hit by SARS, requires face masks; Grace
Church makes them optional but provides them for all as they walk in the
door and encourages everyone to wash their hands; Hope Church has decided
to leave it up to individuals completely.
“The youth are still attending youth groups; in fact, the youth
at Agape asked if they could meet a few extra times during the week because
they were bored at home. We did cancel Communion this month as we weren’t
quite sure how to do it safely. Our Messianic Passover service on Friday
was served by the three pastors wearing masks. Our Easter Sunday Love
Feast was prepared by church members at the church and served by the deacons
and pastors, rather than setting all of the food out potluck style and
letting everyone breathe on all of it! There’s an obvious positive
spirit — and the face masks and creativity required to manage this
seem to have even added some fun to our gatherings."
Sidebar: Elsewhere in Asia…
Witness workers Todd and Jeanette Hanson report “rumours”
of SARS where they minister in Nanchong. Through their college level English
instruction (Todd) and social welfare projects (Jeanette), they provide
a Christian presence and contact for students. Jeanette recently wrote:
“The college is in some limited lockdown. (Daughter) Claire lost
most of her classmates when it was decreed that only on-campus children
could attend. Even then the kids have their temperature taken morning
and afternoon. Our students are strongly discouraged/barred from leaving
campus. Everyone is forbidden to leave Nanchong. The week long May holiday
is reduced to one day and classes are scheduled for Saturday and Sunday
following so students don't sneak out for a long weekend. People are wearing
masks and not going into town much. Outside of the college it seems to
be life as usual although even at church on Sunday, numbers were way down.”
Curiously Macau seems to have escaped SARS thus far, report Witness workers
George and Tobia Vieth, with no confirmed reports form the media or doctors.
In a recent email, the Vieths wrote “… it is very peculiar
that all areas around Macau are affected by SARS, but Macau isn’t,
given the usually high amount of human traffic between Hong Kong and Macau
and between China and Macau. We are ever so thankful to God for this peculiar
grace.”
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