wfn.org | Lutherans Respond to Attacks with Organized Relief, Resources

[News News <NEWS@ELCA.ORG>]

ELCA NEWS SERVICE

September 13, 2001

LUTHERANS RESPOND TO ATTACKS WITH ORGANIZED RELIEF, RESOURCES
01-231-JB

     CHICAGO (ELCA) -- A variety of resources, intended to help members
and church leaders respond to the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the
United States, have been posted on the Web site of the Evangelical
Lutheran Church in America (ELCA).  The resources are being made
available through Lutheran Disaster Response (LDR), a ministry of the
ELCA and Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod (LCMS).
     Most of the resources can be located through the ELCA's home page
at http://www.elca.org on the Web. The materials include information on
talking with children about disasters; worship resources; a place to
share stories, grief and prayer, available through Ecunet, an ecumenical
online conferencing system; messages from the Rev. H. George Anderson,
ELCA presiding bishop; information about how to contribute financial
gifts for disaster relief; and ordering information for disaster
response bulletin inserts, brochures and envelopes.
     The Rev. Gilbert B. Furst, LDR director, said financial gifts are
needed, but not material donations.  Financial gifts to LDR will be used
to help people directly affected by the attacks.  In addition, Furst
said LDR has determined that:
     + no volunteers are needed to help with cleanup at any site that
was impacted by the terrorist attacks Sept. 11.
     + only "LDR-certified and properly credentialed" counselors will
be sent to New York and Washington, D.C.  LDR plans to coordinate this
effort with Church World Service (CWS), a ministry of the National
Council of Churches in Christ in the U.S.A.
     + Lutheran social ministry organizations in New York and
Washington, D.C., will coordinate local disaster relief efforts.  LDR
will work directly with the ELCA synod bishops in those areas.
     + two resources to help in counseling children, developed after
the Oklahoma City bombing, will be made available to synods in the areas
where the attacks occurred.
     In addition, Furst said he is encouraging pastors in the New York
and Washington, D.C. areas to give people a chance to discuss their
experiences this week during Christian education classes or worship
services this Sunday.

WORSHIP, PRAYER RESOURCES AVAILABLE
     The ELCA has received numerous requests for worship and prayer
resources for congregation members in the wake of terrorist attacks,
said the Rev. Michael Burk, director for worship, ELCA Division for
Congregational Ministries.  Many such resources are available through
the ELCA's Web site and are posted on the home page, he said.   Links to
resources available through the ELCA's full communion partners will also
be provided, Burk said.
     "The materials will provide some direction to help people shape
their response and reflection," he said.
     In addition, President Bush asked that Sept. 14 be a national day
of prayer and remembrance.  Bush plans to attend a prayer service in
Washington, D.C., and asked U.S. citizens to attend services at
churches, synagogues and mosques "to pray for our nation, to pray for
the families of those who were victimized by this act of terrorism,"
said Ari Fleischer, Bush's spokesperson.

LUTHERAN SOCIAL MINISTRIES AT WORK
     Lutheran social ministry organizations are responding with
disaster relief efforts in many places, said Jill A. Schumann,
president, Lutheran Services in America (LSA), St. Paul, Minn., in a
widely circulated e-mail message to colleagues Sept. 13.
     LSA is an alliance of the ELCA, LCMS and their nearly 300 social
ministry organizations, providing $6.9 billion in services in nearly
3,000 communities each year.
     In New York, Lutheran Social Services of Metropolitan New York is
coordinating local relief efforts, despite moving from its building
which was damaged in the attack, Schumann said.   Lutheran pastors are
providing support to staff at Lutheran Medical Center where attack
victims are being treated.
     "Lutheran Social Ministries of New Jersey has staff trained in
critical-incident counseling, and that staff is working with the
district and synod to offer services to congregations and others, most
immediately in Hudson County, N.J.," she said.  "Lutheran Social
Services of the National Capital Area is coordinating with area leaders
to identify needs and to plan for next steps."
     In Shanksville, Pa., the site where a hijacked plane crashed while
it was apparently headed for a target in the Washington, D.C., area, CWS
was to hold a meeting to assess local needs, she said.
  Schumann encouraged LSA colleagues "to attend to the needs of
staff members, those you serve and others in the community."  She also
encouraged LSA organizations to reach out to synods and congregations to
coordinate efforts.
  "Lutherans are known for walking with those affected by disaster
over the long haul," she said.  "Continue to pray and to trust in God's
presence with all of us in these difficult days."

For information contact:
John Brooks, Director (773) 380-2958 or NEWS@ELCA.ORG
http://listserv.elca.org/archives/elcanews.html