The CRC Synod was overtured by Classis B.C. North-West to instruct its “World Ministries—CRWRC to discontinue giving aid to CEPAD in Nicaragua.”

Grounds:

1. CEPAD appears to be a tool of the communist Sandinista government. 2. CRWRC has inadequate control over how the money given to CEPAD is spent. 3. CEPAD has not given accurate account of how money received from CRWRC has been of aid to farmers. 4. CEPAD already receives aid from at least twenty organizations including the World Council of Churches and the National Council of Churches ($4.5 million for 1987) (1987 Agenda, p. 458, Overture 44).

(These grounds were carefully and extensively documented).

When the Director of the Christian Reformed World Relief Committee defended CEPAD (The Evangelical Committee for Relief and Development), the Synod, rejecting the overture, continued the funding of CEPAD, allotting, (according to The Banner) “$75,000 to Nicaragua this year.”

What are the facts about CEPAD, criticized by the overture as a Communist tool, defended by the director of World Relief, and continuing to be supported by decision of our church synod?

A U.S. Department of State Publication 9467, issued December, 1986 on HUMAN RIGHTS in NICARAGUA under the SANDINISTAS, (246 pp.) , under Annex 9 (pp. 145–151), “The Situation in the Protestant Church,” sheds a considerable amount of light on this controversial agency. Kate Rafferty is a journalist and specialist in Latin American religious affairs, who has frequently travelled to Nicaragua since 1979 for the Open Door News Service. In the report of an extended interview by the Institute of Religion and Democracy, she explained that “CEPAD was set up as a relief and development group to receive overseas financial support for the work already begun by a group of pastors at the time of the earthquake in 1972. It was never intended to be an ecumenical council which would speak for the churches.” “Indeed, three years ago CEPAD sought to establish an organization of pastors, the National Council of Evangelical Pastors of Nicaragua (CNPEN), which would be more representative. However, one year later this group severed its connection with CEPAD because of the latter’s increasing involvement with the present government.”

“Although it is true that under Somoza CEPAD worked with the government, they didn’t feel compelled to make statements and publish educational materials lauding the regime, as they are now doing. CEPAD goes way beyond the relationship with the government necessary to carry out relief and development work. CEPAD diverts funds, which American Christians probably assume are used for humanitarian purposes, to political work for the regime. Several pastors I spoke with in Matagalpa province reported that CEPAD donated eleven four-wheel drive vehicles for use by the Sandinista police.” “CEPAD’s international affairs director, Sixto Ulloa, ran for election on the Sandinista ticket. What you can’t understand until you talk with evangelicals outside the CEPAD staff is how much CEPAD’s relationship with the Sandinistas has alienated most evangelicals.” “I heard of many cases in which CEPAD would not help pastors who were viewed as insufficiently supportive of the Sandinistas. During the election campaign CEPAD was particularly blatant in threatening to withhold benefits from those who might boycott the elections.” This and a subsequent article from The United Methodist Reporter on the arrest and harassment of church officials make clearly evident how CEPAD has become the willing ally and tool to promote the aims of the Communist government and suppress dissent.

Humberto Belli in his book BREAKING FAITH, published by the Puebla Institute in 1985, repeatedly . . . shows how CEPAD promotes a liberation theology that supports the Communist revolution. It, “in conjunction with two other revolutionary Christian organizations, published a popularly written book illustrated with cartoons in which Marx is praised and portrayed as a friend of Christians” and the Cuban revolution is made “a model for Latin America” (p. 160). CEPAD is shown to be promoting revolution by its pro-governmental literature, pastor training, influencing foreign visitors, and channeling  “at least some of its relief supplies through the Sandinista Defense Committees” (p. 178).

The fact that the World Council (WCC) through CEPAD promotes Communist revolution should surprise no one. It has long been channeling vast sums of money to support anti-Christian Communist guerillas in Africa. But how can any Bible-believing Christian support such anti-Christian activity?

PDJ