www.peaceandhopeinternational.org

When Matthew Soerens and Diana Wood created a

gift registry for their upcoming June wedding, they chose an unusual route in the multi-billion dollar

industry: a no gift option. On their wedding website the couple encouraged guests to donate money to

ministries, including PHI, instead of buying them a traditional wedding gift.

“One of our values as a couple is to live simply, so we

didn't want to register for a lot of gifts beyond those that we really need,” explained Soerens. “We thought

that our registry might be an opportunity to bless a few of the organizations and ministries that have

blessed one or both of us.”

The couple chose PHI because of its role in

their own love story. Although casual

acquaintances while attending the same college, Soerens and Wood reconnected in

May 2009 at the wedding of Anna Porter, a mutual friend, in South America. At the

time, Porter and spouse Jaime Mok both worked for Paz y Esperanza in Lima, Peru.

“If Paz y Esperanza didn't exist, Anna would

probably not have been in Peru and we would have had no reason to spend so much

 

3400 Park Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55407

Praise the Lord for: § PHI’s first anniversary in the USA § Protecting staff and clients § Successful prosecution of clients § Providing resources and

volunteers

Pray for: § Protection for staff and clients § Success in prosecuting cases § Encouragement, healing and

resources for clients and their families

§ Redemption for perpetrators § Encouragement and strength for

those providing services § Spiritual growth for staff and

volunteers § Discernment and obedience as

Peace and Hope moves forward § Provision to sustain and grow the

work in the US and Latin America § Growth in individual, foundation,

and other giving § Documentation and replication of

our work

time together,” said Soerens. “We might still

just be casual friends, so we're very grateful.”

Sparks flew when Wood and Soerens spent hours together in the Miami airport en route

to the wedding in Peru and while navigating their way through Lima. Later, Wood moved

into the same apartment complex as Soerens where they lived with other Christians in an

intentional community.

“Having each lived in different parts of Latin America for short periods of time, we're

aware of the devastation to which unjust structures have contributed,” said Wood.

“We're both grateful for the good, gospel-driven work that Paz y Esperanza does.”

 

Spring 2011

About Peace and Hope

Peace and Hope International (PHI) is a registered 501(c) (3) non-

profit organization in the USA that oversees Paz y Esperanza's

international programs. Paz y Esperanza is comprised of

independent organizations in Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia, the UK and USA

that function under one mission and mutually support each other. PHI’s

work includes public relations, education and training,

international and local advocacy, organizational capacity building,

and promoting North-South exchanges.

Founded in South America, Paz y Esperanza (Peace and Hope) is a

pioneering Christian organization that seeks justice on all levels of

society. Paz y Esperanza’s work focuses on holistically caring for

victims of injustice (through legal, social, psychological and pastoral

services) and transforming unjust social structures to prevent further

abuses. Paz y Esperanza’s social

transformation work includes mobilizing churches to be justice-

seekers, advocating systemic change in partnership with local

stakeholders, and educating

communities on peace building.

 

On the evening of April 12, a group of 25

Christian men in Minneapolis, Minnesota lingered after a workshop to pray, sing, and

discuss ways to fight domestic violence in their churches and communities.

“We need a positive change,” one man wrote on his domestic violence workshop evaluation.

“I hope to God that this is the beginning of many

gatherings,” wrote another.

The workshop, co-sponsored by Peace and Hope

International (PHI) and Park Avenue United Methodist Church Latino Ministry, addressed

domestic violence issues from a Christian perspective. Special guest Dr. José M. Vinces,

Executive Director of Paz y Esperanza (Peace and Hope) in Guayaquil, Ecuador, led the

workshop in Spanish with simultaneous English translation.

The two-hour workshop addressed what

domestic violence looks like, what the Bible says about the topic, and what the church can do in

response.  Of the men who attended, a majority were church leaders or pastors from local

Hispanic churches. Many participants  

requested further training on the subject and

all those who completed evaluations following the training agreed that the church should be

involved with this issue.  

“It is very important for men to talk about domestic violence,” said Jesús Purisaca,

Assistant to the Pastor of Park Avenue Latino Ministry. “It is a topic that is often ignored

and can cause great pain within our churches.”

According to the Domestic Violence Resource

Center, women of all races are equally vulnerable to domestic violence by an intimate partner.

National US statistics indicate that 25 percent of women experience domestic violence in their

lifetime and 75 percent of all people know someone personally who is or has been a victim

of domestic violence.

“I was very impressed with this group of men,”

said Dr. Vinces. “They were so open and expressed a true desire to combat domestic

violence in their churches.”

Dr. Vinces has extensive experience equipping evangelical and protestant pastors, lay leaders,

and groups of men and women to fight against sexual and domestic violence, both in and outside

of the church. Paz y Esperanza has developed materials on domestic violence prevention

through years of conducting trainings in Latin

America on the issue. PHI plans to adapt those materials and offer more education to meet the

interest in the United States.

“I was excited to see the positive response from local Latino churches,” said Colleen Beebe

Purisaca, Co-International Director of PHI. “I believe God cares deeply about this topic.”

SHINING THE LIGHT Peace and Hope

Matthew Soerens and Diana Wood

INTERNATIONAL

 

Issue 01

Contact Us 3400 Park Avenue South Minneapolis, MN 55407 612-825-6864, ext. 564 www.peaceandhopeinternational.org

 

A  volunteer  distributing  informational  packets  at  the  workshop  

 Prayer Requests

 

   .    

Peace and Hope www.peaceandhopeinternational.org

Beebe Purisaca

what God considers important and describe what God would like us to wake up to. Both passages talk about love. God’s message is to “live a life of love,” to “love one another,” “to love our neighbors as ourselves.” These related passages also talk a lot about light and how we must “live as Children of Light.” We must expose the deeds of darkness with the light, which makes everything visible. We must put on “the armor of light,” in other words, clothe ourselves in Jesus Christ, the light. The fruit of being clothed in Christ is “goodness, righteousness and justice, and truth.”

In Ephesians 5, Paul writes, “Wake up, O sleeper, rise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.” Similarly, in Romans 13, Paul writes, “The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber.”

These texts and those surrounding them tell us  

So, what matters? It matters how we think about God. It matters how we treat ourselves and others. It matters how we operate in our families, communities, churches, work places, societies, and world. It matters that we are truth seekers and tellers. It matters that we seek righteousness and justice.

We are all created in God’s image and designed to live abundantly and with dignity. Sadly, we live in a world where most do not realize their full potential, especially those with little power or influence.

God calls us to a holistic awakening. We need to wake up spiritually – we need God and to acknowledge God. We need to wake up intellectually by understanding and becoming aware of what is going on around us. We need to wake up emotionally by caring about others and engaging in relationships. And, we need to wake up physically – we need to literally get out of bed—and take action to change what is wrong with ourselves and the world.

We need to wake up and heed God’s call to do what matters. May the stories you read and people you meet through this newsletter be sources of inspiration as you discern how God is calling you to respond.

Small and fragile, Maria walked with difficulty into

the Paz y Esperanza office because of the beating she

had received. Her whole body showed marks--bruises

from the door and the pieces of plaster that fell on

her when her husband threw her against the wall of

the small room where they lived. Quietly she sat

down, ashamed, not wanting to speak. Her scared

eyes were swollen from crying and fled my gaze.

Maria and her three brothers grew up watching

constant fights between their parents—punches,

screams, insults, and threats—which led to

temporary separations from them until eventually

 

Is It My Fault? A Story of Abuse and Redemption from Bolivia

they permanently separated from their parents when

she was 17 years old.  

I was scared and could feel when the violence began

to escalate. It began with yelling and insults. They

both came home drunk. When they separated I felt

like it was my fault, that I was responsible for my

parents’ fighting. I repeated to myself. . . It’s my

fault.

When she was 19 years old, Maria met her husband

Germán, a man who pledged to love and support her.

Together they had two sons, Giovanni, 11, and

Miguel Angel, 6. Now 31, Maria remembers every

scream, threat, and insult he made between the

punches. He told her that it was her fault that he got

so mad. He told her it was what she did that made

him upset. The punches and the shouting took away

the love that she felt for him.  

After having spent almost three weeks temporarily  

sheltered by different church families, the

pastor of the congregation brought Maria to us

at Paz y Esperanza . Six months have passed

since we first met her and we have come

alongside her during this difficult process:

leaving the home where she lived with her

attacker, pressing charges with the police,

receiving psychological and legal counseling,

and getting help from the pastor and a couple

who are leaders in the church. Now she lives

alone with her two boys in a rented room. She

works cleaning houses and selling in the

market on the weekends in order to cover the

family’s living expenses.

Today, Maria, the small, fragile woman who felt

guilty of her own disgrace is growing every day

in strength, self-confidence, and love for the

Lord Jesus Christ, in order to build a better life.

by Eva Esther Morales, Director of Paz y Esperanza – Bolivia  

Maria  and  her  sons  Miguel  Angel  and  Giovanni  

By Colleen Beebe Purisaca, Co-International Director Integral Mission: The Whole Wheat Gospel

Paz y Esperanza believes that all Christians are called by God to be active seekers and doers of justice. As an organization, we do this by working for the transformation of the whole person (meeting spiritual, economic, legal, psychological, and social needs) and by addressing injustice wherever it is found in society. We call this integral mission.

 

Integral mission comes from the Spanish “misión integral”, a term coined by Latin American theologians. In Spanish, “integral” means wholeness. The concept of integral mission is similar to “pan integral” (whole-wheat bread); the key is not that different pieces have been mixed together, but that nothing has been taken out. In the same way, integral mission is not just combining social action with evangelism, but challenging Christians to bear witness to the Gospel and its transformational power in every aspect of life. Paz y Esperanza challenges the Church to embrace the whole-wheat gospel and live out its integral mission by actively seeking God’s justice.

 

This is What Justice Looks Like                  

Snapshots of Our Work around the World:

San Juan de Lurigancho, Peru – Paz y Esperanza is training legal and psychological professionals who work in local guidance centers and serve women victimized by physical, psychological and sexual violence. Paz y Esperanza’s training will include how to identify domestic violence cases and when to refer them to the authorities for treatment.

The guidance centers in San Juan de Lurigancho, an outlying impoverished region of Lima, were established at the initiative RED PRODEM, a local women’s rights collaborative. The centers provide legal and psychological services and empower women through human rights education. In addition, women will be able to obtain identity cards and birth certificates through the guidance centers so they can access the legal system.

Huánuco, Peru – Paz y Esperanza kicked off the Integral Mission Facilitator Program for the second consecutive year in April 2011. The program trains and equips churches to address the needs of their communities through participatory workshops and group Bible studies. Participants are encouraged to engage with the needs in their districts and practically contribute to solutions.

San Martín, Peru – On April 15, Paz y Esperanza hosted the Third Meeting of Rural Women in San Martín, a region with a large indigenous population. Participants received training on best practices for reporting acts of violence. The group also discussed ways to strengthen their network and provide opportunities for victims of violence to connect with each other. In addition, attendees addressed issues specific to the indigenous community, including their right as a people to be consulted on matters that affect their development.

Guayaquil, Ecuador – In April, Paz y Esperanza launched a new seven-month pilot project, “Women Without Violence, Women in Development,” that will train 50 women on their physical, psychological, and sexual rights. Women from Flor de Bastión, an impoverished area of Guayaquil, will train at the School of Community Developers on the Rights of Women. The support committee for the project incorporates local stakeholders.

This will be the first training of this nature conducted in the outlying regions of Guayaquil. The project’s organizers note that this unique effort will give people an opportunity to get to know a God who is concerned about women who have suffered from violence.

 Santa Cruz, Bolivia – Paz y Esperanza is conducting research and writing on integral mission, social justice and human rights. The study is aimed to build capacity for the Bolivian Evangelical Church, which lacks resources of this nature. Both church leaders and Paz y Esperanza will benefit from this research, which will help them be more strategic and effective in addressing injustice. In other news, the office in Santa Cruz relocated within the city. The new office opened the first week of April.

United Kingdom – In December 2010, the first Paz y Esperanza office in the United Kingdom was launched by four longtime supporters of the organization. In 2011, the office plans to focus on two themes: family violence - which is both a problem in the United Kingdom and Latin America - and justice for people affected by political violence.

 

Please Pray For This Work!

Passionate for Justice Apasionados por la Justicia INTERNATIONAL

 

Ways to Respond SUPPORT

We believe in the transformational power of prayer. Sign up to receive prayer requests and/or start your own prayer group. Use the riches that God has given you to promote justice through financial and in-kind donations. Donations are tax-deductible.

ACT Join one of our campaigns to promote justice on behalf of those who are oppressed. Connect us with your local church or group. We seek to build bridges between churches and Paz y Esperanza offices. Contact us to schedule a presentation. We provide education on topics related to our work and Biblical Justice.

SERVE We have opportunities for people to volunteer locally through our office in the USA. We also offer both short and long-term volunteer opportunities to serve internationally through our offices in South America.