Walking Together: Healing and Hope for Colombian Refugees

This material was put together in the spirit of supporting the wonderful work of the many Canadian congregations and groups that sponsor Colombian refugees through Mennonite Central Committee Canada. Over the years Mennonite congregations in Canada have opened their doors and hearts to hundreds of Colombian refugees, following Jesus’ call in Matthew 25 to “welcome the stranger, feed the hungry and clothe the naked.”

Each Colombian refugee that has been or will be welcomed to Canada through an MCC sponsorship brings with them the heavy burden of the traumas that they survived during their flight to safety. When they arrive in Canada they are confronted with the shock of a new language and foreign culture. Knowing that they are wanted, loved and accepted by a faith community is a source of strength and a foundation that often makes all the difference in how the refugee family will adjust and move ahead with their life in Canada. The role that Canadian congregations and groups play in the lives of the refugee families they sponsor can not be underestimated.

The serious yet often hidden effects of refugee trauma can influence how refugees adapt and react to new situations as well as how they relate with their sponsors. Added to that is the confusion that can arise when people from two different cultures communicate and negotiate life together. All of these dynamics can add complexities and challenges to the sponsorship experience, both for the church and for the refugee.

This is by no means a “manual” for understanding Colombian refugees; such a manual would be as implausible as a manual written to explain all Canadians that travel abroad. Instead, this material was compiled with hopes that it could serve as a resource for churches that sponsor Colombian refugees, providing some insight to the factors leading to forced displacement, the traumas that Colombian refugee families may have experienced, some observations about differences between Colombian and Canadian culture as well as some ideas for walking together with refugee families in their path towards healing and hope.