GULFPORT, MS — When Rabbi Joshua Hoffman talks about traveling to the Mississippi Gulf Coast to help Hurricane Katrina survivors rebuild their lives he talks about taking responsibility.

The rabbi at Valley Beth Shalom — a 1,700-member synagogue in Encino, CA — recently worked with the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.)’s Presbytery of Mississippi to bring a volunteer work team from the Los Angeles area to the storm-battered region to assist with the post-Katrina recovery effort.

“When you look into another person’s eyes you take responsibility for them and their humanity,” said Hoffman, whose comments were inspired by the writings of revered 20th century Jewish French philosopher Emmanuel Levinas.

“Based on that premise, when we look at the people who have suffered this catastrophe and we make a connection with them we become responsible for them,” Hoffman continued. “It’s that simple.”

Rabbi Joshua Hoffman of Valley Beth Shalom synagogue in Encino, CA, left, shares fellowship with the Rev. Manuel King Jr., associate minister at New Philadelphia African Methodist Episcopal Church in Rancho Dominguez, CA.

As part of an emerging partnership, the Jewish group teamed with members of New Philadelphia African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Rancho Dominguez, CA. The two L.A.-area congregations started sharing religious services and meals shortly after Hoffman met the pastor of the AME church during a previous mission trip to the Gulf Coast last April.

Continuing to work across interfaith lines, the two groups from California descended on the Gulfport area for six days in late October repairing storm-battered roofs, retiling floors, conducting house assessments, and making other general repairs to homes in the area, including nearby Biloxi and Bay St. Louis.

In all, 38 Jewish and AME volunteers participated in the trip, coordinated in cooperation with the presbytery’s Disaster Recovery Office and Westminster Presbyterian Church in Gulfport, which has been organizing relief projects since the hurricane tore through Mississippi’s Gulf Coast on Aug. 29, 2005, obliterating nearly every structure up to half a mile inland.

“It’s been a great learning experience for Presbyterian groups that are here from other states as well as folks from our church who are really embracing it,” Martha-Lee Bohn, disaster recovery site manager at Westminster, said of working with the Jewish and AME volunteers.

The West Coast work crew also served hot meals to hundreds of hurricane survivors and relief workers at God’s Katrina Kitchen in Gulfport and cleared debris from around the area.

Barbara Johnson, a member of New Philadelphia African Methodist Episcopal Church, is flanked by Valley Beth Shalom member Maxine Tobey, left, and Karen Eng, right, who was traveling with the Jewish group from Encino, CA.

Lisa Wilen, a longtime member of Valley Beth Shalom, spent three days working on rooftops and helped serve breakfast and prepare lunch and dinner at Katrina’s Kitchen.

“It’s been phenomenal,” Wilen said. “It touches your soul. It really does. I do a lot of volunteer work. I’ve never done anything like this in my life.”

The two groups provided a caring ear to hurricane survivors, who found solace in discussing their stories of despair and loss in wake of the massive storm. They grabbed a brush to touch up faded paint at Westminster church and helped prepare the grounds for future work teams.

They strengthened their fledgling partnership, which the Jewish and AME volunteers agreed is an example of how people, regardless of background, can bring about positive change when working together for a common cause.

“Regardless of how one may think of another, regardless of religion, race or creed, we all came together with one purpose and that purpose was to help,” said the Rev. Manuel King Jr., associate minister at New Philadelphia church, a predominately African-American congregation. “We helped and they helped us by giving us the love that they had and we’ve given them the love that we had.”

Sheridan Saltus, a seminarian and staff member at the AME church, which has 1,500 active members, said working with other faith groups such as the Jewish community is important for developing unity.

“When groups come together, that penetrates the bubble of mistrust,” she said. “That’s when projects, such as the recovery after the hurricane, are able to be completed.”

There was no doubt in Hoffman’s mind that hours of clambering over damaged rooftops, clearing away rubble, and serving meals together definitely served to dispel any misconceptions the volunteers may have had about each other.

“Whatever stereotypes we entered into the relationship with, which are natural, were quickly dispelled,” the rabbi said. “Once you start working, once everybody starts talking about how tired they are, how hard it is, and even more importantly, how positive this is, then we can really start to tear down the stereotypes and realize that we are brothers and sisters. We have a common need. We are humanity and we’re one big family.”

During the trip, Hoffman said the Jewish and AME volunteers interacted with many others from around the country from a range of religious backgrounds.

“When we were on the roofs, when we were working on projects with other people, not only did we have great religious conversations but we also realized that we have such a common bond,” Hoffman said. “We have so many similarities. When we can focus on the similarities we really are able to build something very powerful, very meaningful.”

Martha-Lee Bohn, disaster recovery site manager at Westminster Presbyterian Church in Gulfport, MS, left, enjoys a kosher meal with the Rev. Manuel King Jr., and Sheridan Saltus, both staffers at New Philadelphia African Methodist Episcopal Church in Rancho Dominguez, CA.

The two groups capped off the visit with a kosher meal together at a local motel where they celebrated their work together in south Mississippi. They also gave thanks for the developing interfaith relationship between the synagogue and the AME congregation as they broke bread together following a blessing in Hebrew by Hoffman.

“Every time you say a blessing, even over something like starting a meal, we acknowledge that we have the power to reach out into the world to bring wholeness and health and healing to even the darkest places that have seen the worst catastrophe,” he said. “It’s through all of this work that we have really seen that come to light.”

The visit by the Los Angeles group was not the first time Westminster Presbyterian Church had hosted Jewish relief workers.

A combined 600 Jewish student volunteers from a variety of campus Hillel organizations stayed at the Gulfport church over a four-week period as part of a roofing “blitz” that kicked off in December 2005.

“Even the kitchen was kosher,” Bohn said. “The rabbis came in and blessed the kitchen. They cleaned things out. They started fresh. For three weeks our church members did not use the kitchen at all. The Jewish groups had full reign in the kitchen. They had a rabbi and their own cook.”