Gifts

A Letter from Vilmarie Cintrón-Olivieri and José Manuel Capella-Pratts, serving as regional liaisons in the Caribbean

Winter 2023

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For All Saints Day, a watercolor painting by Vilmarie.

Dear friends,

As I write these lines, I find myself commemorating “All Saints’ Day.” This day provides a special opportunity to remember those who have gone before us on the path of faith and are no longer among us in person: those whom the Letter to the Hebrews calls the “great cloud of witnesses.” Many of my thoughts today have been about my dad, just over a year after his departure (this month would have been his 83rd birthday). Although I am overcome with nostalgia, far from being swept away by grief, my heart is comforted by a deep sense of gratitude. I am happy to remember my dad as a gift from the Lord, not only for me, but also for many other people. A gift…

By the time this letter is distributed, it will be around the season that we associate with the act of giving. The consumerism that characterizes our society leads many people to become obsessed with purchasing items as gifts. However, the most valuable and meaningful gifts are not material gifts. There are gifts of much more value than the things that increase our credit card debt. Among them:

• Friendship and fellowship that is nurtured in relationships of mutuality with the family of faith locally and globally is a gift of singular value.

• The inspiration produced in us by the witness of the members of the Cuba Partners Network is a gift that cannot be quantified.

• The burning hearts of believers that keep on building a better world together, despite the ideological differences of our governments, is a gift whose fruit surpasses all barriers and limitations.

PC(USA) and IPRC guests at the Cuba Partners Network 2023 Gathering

• The faithfulness of mission co-workers who carry out their work breaking old paradigms of coloniality, striving together with sister churches and organizations to promote justice and peace, is a gift that cannot be bought in mega-stores.

• The love of those who support our ministry with their constant prayers of intercession is a gift that encourages us to continue along the journey.

Vilmarie and José Manuel presenting at the Cuba Partners Network 2023 Gathering

In the remaining weeks of the year, we invite you to set aside a time of reflection to consider the diversity of the gifts we all have received. And likewise, may the sense of gratitude drive us to give the gifts of inspiration, hope and love.

Together in God’s Mission,

José Manuel & Vilmarie