“MISSIONARY VS MARTYR” or “MISSIONARY AND MARTYR?”

Just now I am reading a very old book by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, “The Cost of Discipleship” – first published in 1937. He makes this statement: “First they came for the Communists, but I was not a Communist so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Socialists and the Trade Unionists, but I was neither, so I did not speak out. Then they came for the Jews, but I was not a Jew so I did not speak out. And when they came for me, there was no one left to speak out for me.” It made me think about the situation of working as a missionary in a country where there are serious issues of civil rights. What are the “right positions” for the missionaries to take? Do we just keep our heads down and “not speak out?” and say, “I am here to do missionary work, and not to be political?” Is it “political” to point out severe civil rights abuses? On the one hand, IF we just keep quiet and say nothing about the atrocities, are we not being “silent approvers?” Are we, in fact, condoning what is happening? On the other hand, if we speak out, we then might well endanger ourselves and those we work with, even to the point of being imprisoned or worse. Most likely the least that would happen is that we would be quietly (or not so quietly) deported from the country and never allowed to return – and how does that benefit the people we are trying to help? I have never had a desire to be a martyr (I intensely dislike pain!), but it is an interesting dilemma. Perhaps the best solution is to be as Christ-like as possible, and show true love and compassion for ALL whom we come in contact with (even those responsible for the atrocities), and at the same time express our dismay and disapproval of the acts themselves, without naming names or pointing fingers.

There are many examples of missionaries working in countries where they became martyrs because of “speaking out” and trying to stand up for the civil rights of the very poor. Some of these examples are not that long ago in Central America—especially in Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Honduras.

Mission Doctors has always taken the position that they would NOT send doctors and their families into “dangerous” situations, and that is for sure the correct position. Still, over the years, those missionary doctors have found themselves in situations where abuses have occurred, and so the question still remains, “what to do?” I don’t have the answers; only the question. Maybe others will want to respond with their opinions?

Nearly Halloween here in the US. One wonders just how much is spent on Halloween, and how much that might help the “really poor” in the world? Difficult question, but after the past eight years among the poor of Zimbabwe, it is also difficult to not think those sort of questions.

The “Government of National Unity” (GNU) in Zimbabwe is in another crisis. First, “GNU” is an oxymoron if ever there was one. I guess it is a government of sort; it is “national”, but there is certainly NO unity. ZANU-PF seems to think that whatever little they do meets “all the requirements” on their part, and if only the MDC would get the world to stop the sanctions, then everything would be just fine. No mention of the on-going arrests of MDC members, of ridiculous charges against Roy Bennet, of the ZANU-youth terrorizing people, of continuing takeovers of what few white farms are left, of an agriculture policy that still will not feed the nation (let alone export products as was true just ten years ago), of now being “one of the worst” countries in the world as far as governance goes. Anyone wanting to read topical articles about Zimbabwe (MORE than you want to read, but just skim), go to: www.zimbabwesituation.com

But, in spite of all the above, I remain optimistic about St. Theresa Hospital, and the work they are doing. They continue to do all of the work we were involved in, and are moving forward. The AIDS treatment is going very well. There now are 435 clients alive and well 2 years after beginning treatment, and 849 alive and well after one year of treatment. One hundred and twenty two of these are children under the age of 14. ALL of those people would be dead by now if treatment had not been available, and there would be many more orphans. It does show a very bright glimmer of hope for the people. We are hopeful that the program can expand to the point where all of the people who should be on treatment will receive it.

I am busy writing our annual Newsletter. I am hoping to have it ready and sent just before Thanksgiving –means I really have to get busy! I will post a copy of it here when I am ready to mail them. Also, I hope to post an entry which will show just what the finances of the hospital are at this time.

God Bless,

Dick and Loretta

Re-entry continues...

We have now been back in the U.S. for a bit over two months. Four weeks were spent traveling, with the climax being our 50^th Anniversary Celebration in Shawano, Wisconsin on 25 July (even though the “real” anniversary date was 29 August). We had it at that time so that all the grandchildren could attend and not have to miss school.

Here is a picture of all 34 of us!

Many of your sent donations to MDA as a gift to us – perfect!

And “thanks so very much.”

Shortly after the celebration, Loretta developed quite severe back pain, and that necessitated several trips to Urgent Care, travelling back to stay with our son Tim near Tampa, FL, and then an MRI and then Physical Therapy. It is good that we were here in the U.S. to get the appropriate treatment and the P.T. Fortunately, she is now improving, so we are hoping that continued exercises will help to solve the problem.

I remain quite involved with St. Theresa Hospital. Ms. Hove, the Administrator, sends me monthly reports that include finances, diesel usage, Senior Staff Meetings, and “problems.” The current most pressing problem is that Dr. Murungu is leaving on October 1^st! I had been assured that he would be there for at least another year, but an opportunity came up for him to combine working on a Masters in Public Health along with a job at the AIDS&TB Unit in the Ministry of Health. I fully understand that he HAD to take that position, but it still leaves the hospital in a difficult situation. I am busy trying to find adequate donations to be able to fund the “top-up” required for a new doctor. Salaries in Zimbabwe are terribly low by our standards, but it still requires a lot of small donations to find the $12,000 per year per doctor that might be needed.

I continue to plan on returning for a month in March/ April 2010. Possibly one of our donors will travel with me, to see the results of his family’s donations. I am also trying to find “short-term” doctors to go for one to two months to help. They will be able to stay in our house, and I think, have a tremendous experience. IF anyone is interested, contact me at: zim.stoten@gmail.com More on that later!

“Re-entry” for me remains difficult. It is so difficult to be involved in “everything” concerning running a busy hospital and outpatient and AIDS treatment program, and now be involved in mowing the lawn, cleaning out the car, visiting kids and grandkids, etc. Still, this is where God wants us at this time, so I will gradually become more and more involved with “other projects” here. Tomorrow I am going to the first meeting of “This Man is You” at our Church. It goes from 5:30 to 7:00 AM for twelve consecutive Thursdays, with another session in the Spring. I will keep the Blog updated about this! It should help me to meet more people at the very large church that we now belong to, and find ways to answer God’s call right here.

Dick

Re-entry

Some more random thoughts on returning to the US, after nearly eight years in Zimbabwe...

• “Re-entry” is easy because SO MUCH IS AVAILABLE (gas, electricity, water, groceries, ATM’s,…)


• "Re-entry” is tough because SO MUCH IS AVAILABLE! How do we reconcile the differences?


• What do we do to keep the very poorest of the world in “high priority” in our day to day existence?


• And yet, how do we help the very poorest right here in our own country?

Giving a free handout to all who ask is not right, and yet doing nothing is not right either. “Easy Answers” certainly don’t come to me; I don’t envy those in government who are trying to make rational and good decisions. They certainly need our prayers and support, and our involvement..

It is easier to be involved in a large HIV/AIDS program at St. Theresa Hospital and see the results from month to month than it is to try to be involved in helping the homeless or the out of work in the USA.

And yet, someway we MUST be involved!

Recent Memories

Having just returned home, we wanted to share with you some of our recent memories from Zimbabwe…

Farewell parties.
Kind words.
Lots of hugs.
Many tears.
Sad to leave, but happy to be returning to family and friends.
Remember all the very good friends we have there.
Hope to return for short-term visits.
Worry about the political future of the country (PRAY).
Vow to continue to help raise money for the hospital.
Promise to “remain in touch” by frequent emails.

Article to share

I just wanted to share with everyone this recent article in the Economist about the state of Zimbabwe.

http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=13788284

For good...

The Stoughton’s are leaving St. Theresa Hospital and Zimbabwe “for good” on July 4th, 2009. It has been a difficult decision for us, as we continue to have lots of work to do here, and will be leaving so many very good friends. Still, we are both getting to the age where serious health problems are starting to arise, and it is necessary that we live in the US where we can get good medical care – whenever it is needed! It is somewhat ironic that we leave on July 4th, as in 1970 we arrived with our five children on July 4th also! Two more children were born here during the 70’s, and then we spent 26 years in Shawano, Wisconsin. So, I guess that we have “completed the circle.”

We plan on living some place in the Orlando – Tampa, Florida area. We have one son in Orlando, one just North of Orlando, and one near Tampa, so after we get back we will spend quite a bit of time deciding where the best place is for us. It definitely will be close to one of the families with small children, so that we are part of their lives in growing up. It is what we have missed most in being here for the past eight years.

The decision means that we are very busy getting ready to leave, and I am especially busy in trying to finish several projects that are “in process.” The main one at this time is the quite large project of erecting a steel structure for three 2,500 gallon plastic water tanks. We then will be able to use dam water for all of the irrigation on the hospital property, and will save on the clean borehole water. This is a picture of the men pulling one of the tanks to the top of the structure. It was quite exciting, as with the second tank, just as it got to this position, they lost control of it and it slid all the way back down the poles. Fortunately, everyone was able to get out of the way, and there was not any damage to any people or to the tank!

I am hoping that this project will be totally completed within the next two to three weeks, so that it will be functioning before we leave.

Plans for the future: I plan on continuing to do fund-raising for St. Theresa Hospital, as there is still great need for support, and maybe even more so when we are not here. One of the other Mission Hospitals just South of us has a large group of people in Switzerland who call themselves “Friends of Matibi Mission Hospital” and do great work in supporting that hospital. I am hopeful I can develop a “Friends of St. Theresa Hospital” group in the U.S. who will also help us in this regard. In addition, I am hoping to recruit doctors for short term work here, and I will be returning every year for one month to help out, to see how things are going, and to see how our donor funds are being used.

Anyone wishing to accompany me on one of my trips please let me know! Our email address remains: zim.stoten@gmail.com

God Bless, Dick and Loretta Stoughton

Easter Season

We have just returned from a short "get-away vacation" in South Africa. It was good for both of us, although the last two days were spent shopping for the hospital, and then returning through the border post at Beit Bridge. It is always such a stress for me, because one has to "bribe" your way through, and then you always worry about being stopped and in trouble because of the bribes. Still, it seems to be "a way of life now" and so one has to accept it. I also worry about carrying a lot of money, which is necessary to be able to have the funds to get the necessary supplies in Zimbabwe. One hears about being robbed while on the road, so I am always very thankful when we finally reach our home at the hospital.

Easter is such a time of HOPE for all of us, and especially all of us in Zimbabwe. The "Unity Government" has now been functional for about two months, and we do see gradual but certain progress. There are also many roadblocks being put up by "those in power," but the hope is that they will gradually lose their power and the people who really want to see progress will prevail. Our staff are fairly well satisfied with salaries of US $100 per month for each and every one of them, and then an additional amount which is dependent on their position. That amount ranges between US $30 for the lowest paid to about $550 for the doctors. It is at least a start, and the Finance Minister has vowed that the country would "live within its' means." They actually do not have much choice, since the Zimbabwe currency has now been declared "void for one year." Since the government cannot print currency, they have to live with what they obtain in taxes in US dollars or South African Rand, OR with what they get in donations. Supplies in stores are gradually increasing, and the prices are slowly decreasing since the first of January. The first time in ten years (or maybe forever) that there has been "negative inflation." I read that inflation for 2008 was 6.5 QuinDecillion NovembDecillion percent -- that is a 65 followed by 107 zeros! It is impossible to describe what that means in everyday living.

Returning to see patients on the Women's Ward is therapeutic for me! It gets me back to "reality." Only 20 women today, but they were all new to me, so it took quite a while. Lots of really sick women; still many with HIV related illnesses. I am hopeful that in the next two years, we will be able to start nearly ALL of the HIV people on Anti-Retroviral Treatment, who meet the criteria for treatment. This should greatly reduce the number of severely ill HIV patients in the hospital. It has already had a huge impact, in that the number of in-patients has decreased from an average of about 120 to 140 patients per day, to under 75 patients per day. One of the patients today had an x-ray which showed a partially collapsed lung and some fluid. She is HIV negative, and I had her in the hospital a bit over a month ago, with what appeared to be TB. However, now she is more ill, and has this very abnormal x-ray. I took her to the small operating room, and put a chest tube into her left chest, and got pus plus lots of air. I think she most likely now has a very chronic condition that is most likely NOT going to get better with the chest tube. I am hoping that some strong antibiotics will make a difference.

Hope, Faith, Prayers is what we all need, so please do keep all of us in Zimbabwe in your prayers.

God Bless.

Dr. Richard and Mrs. Loretta Stoughton are serving at St. Theresa's hospital in Zimbabwe. They first served in the country from 1970 - 1975 along with their seven children.

The family returned to Wisconsin until Dr. Stoughton retired from practice in Shawano WI in 2000. Returning to Zimbabwe Dr. Stoughton noted that there had been progress over his 25 year absence with deep wells, improved sanitation, and universal immunization for childhood illnesses. However, HIV/AIDS, opportunistic TB and problems related to the nutritional had all but wiped out the advances.

Work began to introduce antiretroviral drug treatment including procedure to reduce the transmission of HIV from mother to child.

Despite the challenges faced today, St. Theresa's Hospital continues to be an oasis of hope.
As the months pass, Dick and Loretta will be sharing their experinces with all of us.

To start, archive letters are available here, beginning with an invitation to other Catholic Doctors to consider this type of service in retirement.