What's been accomplished so far?

In our first six months:

• We saw more than a dozen groups start weekly or monthly Living Words gatherings in several different parts of the country. (We also occasionally hear of a new group being started by someone who was at a seminar or read a guide booklet and took the initiative to create their own group.)
• We developed ways of introducing this new method to Haitians of varying educational and denominational backgrounds without alienating them. The overwhelming majority has enthusiastically embraced this as a valuable new tool they hope to employ.
• We printed an eight-page Creole guide that explains lectio divina. Because some people do not have access to the Creole Bible, this booklet includes a dozen Creole Bible texts.
• We offered seminars for more than a hundred people and planned several seminars that we will lead in different cities in the coming months.

Recently:

• In April 2007, a dozen core leaders of Living Words, who come from several areas of the country, gathered for a day to focus on (a) the Theology Discussion Booklet and (b) the continued development of the program. They were then joined by forty more Living Words trainers from around the country for two days of prayer, singing, training, and planning.
• We printed 4,000 new Children's Bible Study Booklets.
• We completed a draft of the Theology Discussion Booklet that is now being piloted in several different parts of the country. We will go through several drafts (deciding which texts work best, ensuring the intro/explanations are very sharp, etc) and then do a first print run.
• We're continuing to develop the Living Words leadership team in Haiti, which will have more and more responsibility for the program's day-to-day operation.
• We plan to develop a Children Rights Bible Study in cooperation with the Campaign to End Child Servitude program.