Rebuilding Churches on the Gulf Coast

August 2006

August 29, 2005, I found myself flying from Montego Bay, Jamaica, West Indies, through Miami International Airport homeward to San Francisco with a group of 18 youth and adults from the California-Nevada Annual Conference. Our flight was scheduled for two days earlier, but Katrina left Miami in relative shambles and the airport was closed for two days. So, my mission group -- which had spent two weeks rebuilding a parsonage, painting a sanctuary, and running four Vacation Bible Schools -- spent two addtional days in Jamaica. We thought we were being inconvenienced.

Little did we know that, as we were airborne from Miami to San Francisco, Katrina was wreaking havoc on the Gulf Coast.

Rebuilding along the Gulf Coast is slow and tedious. Volunteer teams from all over the United States make their way to the stricken areas to remove debris, strip damaged homes of rotting and molding furnishings -- do whatever they can on whatever scale they can. Our own United Methodist Committee on Relief (UMCOR) has been a major player in direct aid, as well as supervision and training of much of the relief.

UMCOR offers humanitarian relief regardless of religious affiliation. Unfortunately, the UMCOR charter means that it can't set aside funds for the rebuilding of United Methodist churches in the region, or to fund the salaries of pastors whose congregations can no longer support them.

Our Council of Bishops, spearheaded by Bishop William Oden, is asking all local congregations to take a special offering for church rebuilding and pastor salaries [Bishops' Appeal No. 1-800-1, managed by the General Council on Finance and Administration]. Please give generously on August 27 to the Bishops' Appeal to assist our sister churches along the Gulf Coast taste the hope of rebuilding the physical plants that house the Body of Christ.

-- The Rev. Shirley Macemon, New Vision UMC, Millbrae California
Sunday worship: 9:30 a.m., 450 Chadbourne Avenue