To raise New Orleans, lift churches, pastors urge

The testifiers highlighted, for instance, the particular challenges such emergencies present for those with limited resources, and for citizens who are disabled or immobile in their homes for medical reasons, says the Rev. Dr. Susan Smith, of Columbus, Ohio, the commission chair. "Preparedness plans have to be more detailed than in the past," she says. The need for mental-health support was also apparent, as suicides continue among those affected, she adds.

Commission findings and recommendations will be published early next month. The report will address four issue areas: disaster and relief, the restoration process, public policy, and African-American church and community preparedness. It will call for a federal Katrina assistance fund; a bipartisan commission to monitor the recovery, including contracts; and participation of church and community-based groups in preparedness decisionmaking at every level.

"FEMA and Red Cross testimony affirmed that they were very weak in certain areas, such as cultural competence," says Dr. Iva Carruthers, general secretary of the Proctor conference. The conference aims to provide training for black churches in emergency preparedness.

This Sunday, Aug. 27, there will be special commemorative worship services at Riverside Church in New York City and other sites across the country.

Webster, meanwhile, meets in monthly seminars with other New Orleans pastors struggling to maintain contact with dispersed congregations while rebuilding. (Someone donated a website so his members could keep in touch. He and his family are still in California, which puts him on the "red eye" flight frequently.)

CSC aims to strengthen the health and unity of pastors and congregations as they return to the city and rebuild bricks and mortar as well as the spiritual life of the congregations. CSC hopes to enable them to be agents for change.

"We need to bring neighborhoods back, not just one church here and there," Webster says. "We can do that if we get these 36 churches up."

To accomplish this, CSC is seeking 10 churches from across the US to partner with each local congregation for three years (360 partner churches in all), to help with spiritual, financial, and technical assistance. The National Council of Churches has agreed to act as the group's fiduciary agent; and several denominations and ecumenical groups (including Mennonites, Church of the Brethren, the Baptist Peace Fellowship) have signed on.

The situation remains daunting. But as a pioneer of the civil rights movement, Vivian knows how to persevere and what spiritual resources to draw on. His new dream, he says, is that success in New Orleans "will serve as a model for other parts of the Gulf Coast."

• To contact CSC, call: (504) 915-4987.

Page: 1 | 2