wfn.org | [PCUSANEWS] A message about Hurricane Katrina from top leaders of

[PCUSA NEWS <PCUSA.NEWS@ECUNET.ORG>]

Note #8883 from PCUSA NEWS to PRESBYNEWS:

05459
Sept. 2, 2005
'God is present 
in the midst of pain and panic'

A message about Hurricane Katrina from top leaders of PC(USA)

September 1, 2005
To Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) congregations

Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,

	What, then, are we to do in the face of such a monumental,
heart-wrenching catastrophe? 
	The following is an excerpt from an email message from the Reverend
Jean Marie Peacock, Vice-Moderator of the 216th General Assembly (2004):
 
We are safe and arrived today [8/31] at the home of my parents where we will
be living until we can return to New Orleans. From newscasts it appears that
it could be weeks or months before we can return. We have seen overhead shots
of our neighborhood where the water is at the rooftops, and we suspect that
is true of our home and that we have lost everything. The congregation that I
serve [as associate pastor] is in the Lakeview area, one of the first to be
inundated with water after the levee broke. We suspect that many from our
congregation, who live in the neighborhood, have lost everything and that the
church is filled with water.

	Jean Marie's and her husband Peter's ordeal is but one of countless
stories emerging from the unimaginable devastation of Hurricane Katrina. Even
four days after the storm, we still have yet to know just how many lives,
homes, and livelihoods have been lost in New Orleans and along the Gulf
Coast. It sounds as if the situation may become increasingly dire as the
threat of major diseases rises due to a shortage of clean water and
sanitation. The poor and disenfranchised have been hit especially hard
because of their lack of resources to go anywhere else. One news commentator
describes it as "disaster on top of disaster on top of disaster."

	Many Presbyterian congregations in the region took a direct hit from
Katrina. Because of the nature of this disaster and the difficulty reaching
affected communities, it will be some time before we know the exact number of
churches that have either been damaged seriously or destroyed completely.
Presbyterian Disaster Assistance (PDA) teams are in the field and will send
back reports as soon as they can. At this point we are aware that thirty-six
churches in New Orleans alone are underwater.

	It certainly appears that the predictions of Hurricane Katrina going
down in the history books as one of the greatest natural disasters to hit the
United States are coming true.

	As you might expect, Presbyterians across the country are already
hard at work in a variety of ways to help meet very basic needs. On the
national level, PDA immediately directed $500,000 to the relief effort. In
addition, they have issued an emergency appeal, setting before Presbyterians
a goal of $10 million.
How can you help? First, please go to the PDA Web site at www.pcusa.org/pda.
There you will find several items: daily situation reports, directions for
making a financial contribution, answers to frequently asked questions,
information about volunteering to help, and much more. If you cannot find
what you need online, then call PresbyTel toll-free at (800) 872-3283 for
assistance. Please be patient when you call due to the volume of calls we are
receiving at present.

	The emergency relief work today will give way to the long-term
rebuilding efforts in the months and, no doubt, years to come. Presbyterians
will be there, offering concrete help and restoring hope to those who, at
present, cannot possibly imagine coming out on the other side of Katrina. We
cannot answer why such tragedies happen. What we can do is speak with the
sure and certain conviction deep in our souls that God is present in the
midst of the pain and panic, and that God will continue to be present each
and every hour. God's faithfulness will endure.

	The Psalmist wrote, "Our soul is waiting for God, our help and our
shield" (33:20, Psalms Anew). And, when Jesus was with the disciples during
the time leading up to his crucifixion and resurrection, he told them, 
"Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the
world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be
afraid" (John 14:27). It is this abiding peace of Christ, which passes all
human understanding, to which we cling during times like these.

	Jean Marie had more to say in her message:
There is much uncertainty in our lives right now, as for so many. The loss of
life all along the Gulf Coast breaks our hearts. In the midst of this
catastrophe, we feel your support and prayers and the strength of God's
presence with us.

 We ask you to join us in prayer for those who have lost loved ones and much
more; for those who are still stranded in devastated areas; for Jean Marie
and Peter and all the members of our Presbyterian family who have been
directly affected; for relief workers; for the many, many women, men, and
children who are nameless to us, but deeply precious in the eyes of our
gracious God, whose lives have been changed forever.

	Thank you for what you have done, are doing, and will do to help in
the aftermath of Katrina. Most of all, thank you for the ongoing, faithful
work and witness to the gospel you make each and every day in the name of
Jesus Christ.

In Christ's abiding peace,
 
Rick Ufford-Chase, Moderator of the 216th General Assembly
Cliff Kirkpatrick, Stated Clerk of the General Assembly
John Detterick, Executive Director of the General Assembly Council

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