Worship at Lima Mennonite Church in Ohio has become an intercultural experience of love and joy with the addition of Haitian immigrants who have become part of the community.

During the sermon response time on Pentecost Sunday in May, Amos Marcelin, a young Haitian man, shared his message of hope based on the Pentecost story. He sang a song in Creole and English about healing of the world and then translated the rest of the service for the Haitian participants. It was a reminder that God’s vision of community is vaster than we imagine.

Amos has been an enormous asset to this growing worshiping community at Lima Mennonite. He has served as an interpreter on Sunday mornings and interprets in many public settings in support of the Haitian community.

He grew up in the Haitian countryside near the ocean where his father was the leader and preacher of a Baptist church, as well as a fisherman. He lost his father when he was 11 and experienced a series of harsh challenges, including being a “boat person” as a child. Rescued at sea, he was sent to Guantanamo Bay, where he spent 11 months before being sent back to Haiti. His mother died three years later.

Later he heard a call from God to care for orphans in Haiti, as well as those who are disabled, abandoned and poor. Amos has started an organization called Good Heart Ministry to fulfill this call.

On the first Sunday after Lima Mennonite began to meet in person again after the COVID pandemic, they said a prayer together asking where they were being called to serve in what felt like a very different time.

Our Lord Creator, the presence and message of your Spirit are filled with goodness. As often as we notice them, may the spirit of our being be ready to absorb them. What you bring to us sustains us for the living of each day, to make your love visible in the world. We ask to be ready to notice and take in your goodness to share. Amen.

This started the congregation on a journey of watching, listening, living and dreaming that has culminated in a growing connection to the Haitian community in Lima — people who have fled violence and instability in their home country and come to Ohio seeking sustainable living conditions.

Sandra Liechty, a member of Lima Mennonite, began offering free tutoring in English to four Haitian men and a married couple seeking to learn English at the public library. She asked if Lima Mennonite would host the class at the church during the Sunday school hour. The congregation agreed this would be a fitting ministry.

It didn’t take long for word to get out to the Haitian community, and more students of all ages arrived. Mary Hostetler of Lima Mennonite started providing a light breakfast for the group, which included parents with children. Participants were invited to stay after class for the worship service, and some did, though the language difference was a challenge.

“Our Haitian friends who come to worship with us are people of faith,” said Pastor Jeff Boehr. “From the beginning, there was a sense that we were sharing the presence of God among us, even though our words were a mystery to each other.

“On one Sunday morning as we were singing a hymn, I could hear the voice of one of the Haitian women singing out in Creole. It was a familiar hymn to her, and she shared her heart with us all through the music of her voice.”

Haitian immigrants in the area come from both Catholic and Protestant traditions; others have no religious affiliation. Many churches in Lima are opening their doors to Haitian immigrants, but with separate worship times. At Lima Mennonite, though, members have enjoyed sharing their worship time with the newcomers.

As the congregation hears the stories their new friends bring, they expect their stories will move and shape the congregation’s path of faith.

Jeff Boehr is pastor of Lima Mennonite Church. Sarah Werner is communications coordinator for Central District Conference and the author of Rooted Faith: Practices for Living Well on a Fragile Planet (Herald, 2023).