05469
Sept. 9, 2005

PC(USA) receiving letters of consolation

Korean Presbyterian church
contributes $30,000 for Katrina relief

by Evan Silverstein

LOUISVILLE — Expressions of sympathy and support from partner churches, ecumenical agencies and institutions around the world have begun pouring in to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in the wake of catastrophic Hurricane Katrina.

     About 20 email messages expressing grief had been received by Friday from officials of denominations including the United Church of Christ in Japan, the Evangelical Church of Niger and the Church of Scotland.

     The letters express solidarity with the United States and the PC(USA) and shock over the destructive force of the powerful category-4 hurricane, which battered the Gulf Coast on Aug. 29.

     “I am deeply distressed by the devastation caused by the terrible Katrina,” wrote Maqsood Kamil, executive secretary of the Presbyterian Church of Pakistan. “My heart cries for all who have lost their loved ones and their valuables.”

     The Rev. Setri Nyomi, general secretary of the World Alliance of Reformed Churches, said in his message: “Our hearts go out especially to residents of New Orleans and other parts of Louisiana and southern Mississippi. We have very little doubt that many members of your congregations in these parts of the USA have been affected by the hurricane and its after-effects — the floods, etc. It is difficult to find the right words at times such as these.”

     The PC(USA) also received expressions of sympathy from the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand, the Presbyterian Church of Taiwan, the Synod of Evangelical Church of Iran, and the Armenian Evangelical Church of Iran.

     The Presbyterian Church of Korea (PCK) pledged $30,000 for the PC(USA) to use to help hurricane victims.

     The PCK “would like to stretch out our hands in providing relief and assistance efforts in order to help those victims immediately, and work in close cooperation with the Presbyterian Church (USA),” wrote the Rev. Seong Gi Cho, the PCK’s general secretary.

     Various ecumenical agencies, including the World Council of Church, also sent condolence messages to representatives of the PC(USA). Some church staff members also received personal email expressing sorrow over the tragedy from overseas ecumenical contacts.

     Katrina hit the Gulf Coast with 145-mph winds, causing widespread destruction, essentially wiping some cities and towns off the map, and killing hundreds, perhaps thousands, of people.

     Louisiana officials say more than 1 million people have been evacuated from that state alone; Mississippi authorities say the number of displaced there will reach several hundred thousand. The evacuees are being housed in shelters in 17 states and the nation’s capital.

     On Thursday, the official death toll stood at 294, but that number is expected to rise dramatically.

     The Coptic Evangelical Organization for Social Services (CEOSS), an Egyptian Christian development organization based in Cairo, said by email that photographs of the destruction wrought by Katrina are “absolutely unbelievable” and that the number of displaced people is  “beyond comprehension.”

     “It certainly drives home the point that man, despite all his power and technology and tools, is still very small against the awesome power of nature,” said Nabil S. Abadir, director general of CEOSS.

     Other ecumenical organizations or institutions that have sent messages of consolation include the Presbyterian Community of Congo, the National Synod of the Presbyterian Reformed Church in Cuba and the Church of South India.