Rev. Jean Paul recently announced the planting of the first Reformed church on the island of La Gonave, the largest island off the western coast of Haiti. The Souls Winning Ministries leadership team recently ordained and installed Rev. Joseph Cenet to serve as the founding pastor of this new congregation, which is located on the island’s eastern coast in the largest city, where the ferry boats convey travelers to and from La Gonave to the main island. An elderly believer has donated a building and land in the city for the church to use for meetings. However, this is a temporary solution, as the building was hastily and poorly constructed. It will be necessary to tear down the existing structure for safety reasons and begin constructing a new facility. Reformation Hope and Souls Winning hope to build a facility in La Gonave along the lines of the design for the intended church-school-parsonage building for the church plant in Jacmel. We welcome any donations or giving matching challenges to begin the raising of support for building the La Gonave church and school.
The city that serves as the landing for the ferry service to the island is Anse-à-Galets. This is the city in which Pastor Cenet is now leading a Reformed Haitian church. The current meeting place, provided by an elderly Haitian believer, is located within the city limits and along the main road that serves the entire island. It is a very advantageous location, the only drawback being the poorly-constructed building, which will need to be torn down and replaced as soon as possible. As far as we know, Pastor Cenet is the first indigenous Reformed seminary graduate to move to La Gonave in order to shepherd a Presbyterian church. Reformed missionaries from the Orthodox Presbyterian Church, as well as Rev. Jean Paul from the Presbyterian Church in America, have been faithfully visiting and discipling pastors and believers on the island. But with a thriving church now established in Anse-à-Galets, the work of the Reformed mission there should multiply greatly. We give thanks to God for our Bible college and for recent graduates like Cenet.