No ‘tengo esperanza ‘, ‘I don’t have hope’ responded a 77 year-old Salvadoran woman to a question of about her hopes for the future of El Salvador.  An ex-advocate and activist, Berta started a women’s organization in hopes for change after the Civil War here in El Salvador – but it no longer exists. She shares similar hopeless sentiments with others in El Salvador, sentiments that are products of broken lives, broken hearts, and broken people.  Berta has lived through losing three close family members including her husband, her daughter and her son who all died fighting against injustice. She shared her story to an assembly of students and volunteers here at Centro de Inercambio and Solidaridad (CIS). Her speech was contrasting highlight of the 20^th anniversary of the signing of the Peace Accords, which took place in January 16, 1992, marking the end of 12 years of armed conflict.

Natalie facilitates a discussion on El Salvador's Violent History with her Social Justice and English class at CIS

On a national level, another event taking place in memory of the signing of the Peace Accords 20th anniversary was an apology given by Mauricio Funes, the President of El Salvador, on behalf of the Nation for the massacre of Mozote (a municipality of the department of Morazon), which occurred in 1981.  An  apology didn’t seem to suffice for many brutally killed, including 140 children.  The Civil War may have ended, but the people of El Salvador, Mozote, and individuals like Berta, are still hurting. They are still looking for peace.

Twenty years removed from the signing of the Peace Accords, a younger generation and I, discuss the idea of peace in the English and Social justice class I facilitate at CIS.  Many of the youth here lack understanding of their history even though it is recent in El Salvador’s past. The Massacre of Mozote has only just begun to be publicized this year. This generation, though sheltered from the past, recognizes an unrest that remains in El Salvador due to human rights abuses, inequalities, economic instability, gangs, and the highest violence rate in all of Central America. Not much seems to have changed in regards to peace for this country.  ‘The Peace Accords are just some good ideas on paper, we continue to fight many injustices here in El Salvador, we are still at war’, declared a student who shared a similar disposition with Berta.
After 5 months here I have also felt an overwhelming sense of hopelessness at times, and  have struggled with the idea of peace as a reality in El Salvador. In moments of complete doubt and  attitudes of indifference or apathy,  I remind myself, I know it’s possible.  I hold fast to the biblical education I have received. Jesus offers an alternative to this hopelessness, not only for his historical moment but for all historical moments, like this one today for El Salvador. Jesus was someone that lived out peaceful solutions of non-violence, equity and right relationships. I recognize there are many obstacles, and that peace is not a one time event, rather a process, a process we all must be involved in and strive for.
The students are right, peace cannot be achieved by putting hope in a list of reform policies on a piece of paper. Peace can be achieved through people. We ended our class brainstorming ideas of how to make reparation and peace practical in our lives through generosity and right relationships. They expressed hopes they had for their children, families, communities, and their country. I hoped with them.  I hoped Berta will live to see a better El Salvador. I hope our discussion will be seeds for change. And, I hope, my words don’t just remain as hopes on paper as well. I hope.

Written by: Natalie Musche

I’m constantly amazed by the opportunities the Lord continues to give us as we make ourselves available to Him.  This past January, Rafael Reyes and I had the opportunity to partner with the Christian and Missionary Alliance in the facilitation of their multi-national ENvision conference in El Salvador.  Around 150 students between the ages of 18 and 30 attended the week-long conference.  We were thrilled when we were asked to lead worship for the event because we knew it would allow us to meet students from all over Latin America.  I’d like to share a few aspects of our trip that impacted us.

Britt and Rafael with participants of the Envision Conference

One of the more exciting aspects of the week was working with other musicians.  We teamed up with three musicians from El Salvador to form a worship band for the conference.  This made for a really unique worship experience as we led songs in both Spanish and English every session.  It was amazing to observe everyone singing (or at least attempting!) in both languages.  Needless to say, our worship times were filled with humor, tears and many powerful moments with the Lord.  Despite all of our limitations with language, the power of music and friendship brought us together to demonstrate the unity we share in Christ.

Early in the week Rafael and I saw a need for the students to have a designated time everyday to share and debrief what they were learning and experiencing.  After speaking to the conference leaders we were given a time and space after every evening session to meet with a small group of students.  This quickly became the highlight of our week as we invested ourselves into this group of about 12 every night, sometimes until one o’clock in the morning!  We talked about the Bible, mission work, family and our hopes for the world.  We were all invigorated and challenged by our time together.

Besides working with the conference, we were able to reconnect with several of our friends in Sitio Nuevo, a small rural town outside San Salvador.  After spending a morning walking the neighborhood and checking on the land our movement recently began developing, we treated several of our friends to lunch and ice cream in Suchitoto, a nearby town.  Everyone was really happy to see us and looking forward to this summer when we will be returning to work in the community!

Written by: Britt Edwards

The summer of 2011 brought on many new challenges and experiences for our Latin America team as we lived and served in El Salvador.  Serving in this context requires a level of flexibility and ingenuity that we are joyfully embracing.  This video highlights one of the ways we are using our education to empower students at a school near our property in El Salvador.

Empowering through Education from Transit Labs on Vimeo.