The Devastating earthquake that hit Haiti in January brought suffering, destruction, and a feeling of hopelessness to a country already labeled as the poorest of the poor. The United Nations declared that it was the greatest disaster the organization had ever had to address, and reports confirm that this is the greatest human emergency in the history of the Americas. Most of the houses and major buildings in the capital, Port-au-Prince, were destroyed, and millions of individuals have been affected.

There is no question that rebuilding will be a long-term, multilateral project with committed countries and individuals responding to Haiti's cry for help. One media report compared this earthquake to China's earthquake in 2008. But unlike China, which had internal support and infrastructure to bring local aid and workers to the affected region, Haiti has no internal services to bring assistance. This makes the challenges to reconstruction even more enormous.

The people of Haiti are not alone, however. Prayer can reveal the possibilities for good and bring hope to this country. The evidence for good can already be witnessed in the immediate response of the United States, which is one of the closest nations able to send help. Other countries rendering assistance include France, England, Spain, the Netherlands, Belgium, and even the tiny nation of Iceland. The United Nations, which lost many of its personnel at its headquarters when the building collapsed in the earthquake, is also helping. Continuing prayer in support of this nation and those striving mightily to restore it is essential.

ALL HOPE IS NOT LOST

In the midst of devastation, it can feel like all hope is lost. But God's love is abundant always—and clearly evident in those who rush to respond to others in need and who make sacrifices to help people in trouble. It is a love that motivates heartfelt prayer, as well. Even though the initial rush to help is past, supplies, equipment, and services are still essential to restoring Haiti. And prayer can reach beneath these outward needs to spark hope, which rebuilds the individual hearts of people. God is a God of hope, as St. Paul told the Romans: "Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost" (Rom. 15:13).

The Holy Ghost is the divine Science Mary Baker Eddy discovered and described as the law of God, a law of harmony that can restore and renew people and nations. It rests on the spiritual fact that God is totally good, and that the man and woman He created are spiritual, and made in His likeness. When one places one's hope in God and makes a conscious effort to see a law of good, instead of devastation, in operation, it's possible to be more hopeful. It also energizes one's thoughts, work, and prayers.

This God of hope is present in Haiti, and can release people from the sights and sounds they may have witnessed. Prayer recognizes the reality of divine Love to shine through the mental shadows that depict these traumatic memories. As this cloud lifts, people will be better able to see ways to help themselves and others. Hope can also strengthen those who have come to help restore the country.

This hope isn't a "someday" kind of hope. It comes from God, and rests on a divine Principle, or law, that is always operating, even when we can't see specific evidence of its presence. In prayer we can declare the presence of this law as the governing agent in Haiti, rather than the rule of chaos and disorder.

HAITI IS NOT CURSED OR DOOMED

Perhaps an even larger issue than the earthquake is Haiti's position as one of the world's poorest countries, struggling with HIV/AIDS, illiteracy, and 70 percent unemployment. Even without natural disaster or war, it may be all too easy to associate it with lives of desperation. Some allegations outside the country have blamed Haitians for an affinity to witchcraft and asserted that this has brought them unceasing suffering. Others use the labels of racism and poverty to explain the fate of people they think of as illiterate and diseased.

Such statements would deny Haitians' goodness and spirituality. Our prayers can reverse this kind of thinking and bring to light qualities such as goodness, strength, courage, intelligence, among others. And there is some evidence of those qualities in the aftermath of the earthquake. On-the-ground media reports have lauded the efforts of local Haitians who have helped each other, sharing food, water, and shelter. Also, tent cities have grown up in affected areas, organized by local citizens with no assistance from relief workers.

These efforts are evidence of God's presence—of enduring good, inspiring and strengthening people. Each individual in Haiti has the right to express these and other qualities because no one can be separated from God's love. And this love hasn't just begun to pour in now that Haiti's condition is so severe; God has always loved His children from the very beginning, when He created them as perfect and good. Mary Baker Eddy reinforced the point that we are all living under God's control and care when she wrote in Science and Health, "Christ's Christianity is the chain of scientific being reappearing in all ages, ... and uniting all periods in the design of God" (p. 271). This idea that all people are under the design of God enables us to see that all are needed. Just as God never abandons His children, we can't abandon any of our brothers and sisters by thinking of them as ignorant, poverty-stricken, beyond hope. No one is beyond the hope that God gives.

NO LAWLESSNESS IN GOD'S KINGDOM

Poverty and hopelessness strike deep chords when citizens of a decimated city or nation are at risk. In the days after the earthquake, some reports indicated that looting and lawlessness increased in sections of Port-au-Prince. The city has seen this before, during government elections, other natural disasters, and civic unrest. This anger and volatility are the symptoms of fear.

But God's government, which is reflected in love and brotherhood, lives on, even amid piles of rubble. It is seen in citizens lending a hand to others, instead of wielding machetes. It is evident in volunteers who face danger to bring aid and comfort. The book of Jude tells us, "Keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life" (1:21). We need to look for (and find) evidences of God's mercy in these acts of kindness, and we need to insist that these are the reality for Haiti and its future. Under divine law, intelligent and honest government is the norm, and our prayers can insist that this is the only true government in Haiti or anywhere else.

We reinforce those prayers by recognizing that despite evidences of corruption or ineptitude, each individual has the capacity to express divine intelligence and genuine brotherly love. This change in thought—from thinking of people as hopelessly corrupt mortal beings who can separate themselves from God, to perceiving their true spiritual nature, is essential. As Mrs. Eddy put it in Science and Health, "Man is properly self-governed only when he is guided rightly and governed by his Maker, divine Truth and Love" (p. 106).

The changes going on in Haiti at this time are so massive that for a while it may be impossible to see how all things will come together in a way that will bless people over the long term. Our prayers for today and for the future will support Haitians' efforts to move forward, guided by the one God of hope and love.

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