Church Life in Cuba: An MC Canada Learning Tour

Learning Tours are becoming an increasingly popular way for Canadian Mennonites to connect with the ministries the Mennonite Church Canada Witness does on behalf of its area conferences and congregations.

According to Al Rempel, director of resource development for MC Canada, "To date, we have conducted and/or facilitated excursions to Colombia, Israel, and Cuba to meet with ministry workers and get a sense of the work and the impact these ministries are having. As the tours become more popular, they get sold out more quickly. The Cuba tour filled up fast."

The participants of the recent Cuba Learning Tour experienced Cuba in a way that no other tourist would, meeting with local Christians in homes, joining them for worship, and enjoying the hospitality of fellow Christians with few resources in out-of-the-way places. Few will forget the passionate singing and prayer, the Bible study, and in particular the keen interest shown by Cuban church leaders in Anabaptist theology, Rempel says.

The tour was guided by Jack and Irene Suderman, in collaboration with Cuban church leaders Andres Olivares and Madelin Ramos.

Upon their return, some of the Canadian participants struggled to rationalize the low standard of living (when compared to Canada) with Cuba's 98 percent literacy rate, free public health care system, and free university education. Other surprises for Cuba Learning Tour participants included a new awareness that the ministry in Cuba is just one small slice of what Mennonite Church Canada Witness is doing on behalf of Canadian area conferences and congregations in 39 countries around the world.

Trudy Federau shared that her faith in God, and the church as God's instrument, have been restored. Beth Ann Lichti spoke of her prior cynicism about the need for international mission, and how her own thinking had been transformed. Anne Harms noted how the experience has helped her make the leap from the mission work of the former Commission on Overseas Mission (COM) to MC Canada Witness.

Guide Jack Suderman told participants that last year the ministry in Cuba cost $6,000. "The dollar to peso exchange rate in Cuba means that we can do a lot with a little," he said. "The high impact is very evident in not only the growth of the Evangelical Missionary church here, but also in the call for leadership training, an indicator that these folks are committed to leading and growing the church from within their own ranks." Limited Anabaptist training material in the Spanish language makes it difficult for local leaders to teach themselves.

With MC Canada Witness help, a little church is starting its own revolution of Christian restoration, looking at the Biblical message within the context of a 45-year-old political revolution, using new (to them) teaching methods, and reaching out to neighbours, families, and newcomers. May God bless Cuba, its people, and its church, all agreed.

The next Mennonite Church Canada learning Tour is being planned for the fall of 2005, departing for Asia. A limited number of openings are still available. Interested individuals should contact Al Rempel at arempel@mennonitechurch.ca.

-MC Canada release