Serving amid the chaos and anguish of the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks was more about ministers and congregations living into callings than it was about summoning great courage, said David Waugh, who was pastor of Metro Baptist Church in…
After Hurricane Ida, CBF churches urged to prepare to help when the time is right
Ministers and congregations eager to provide material assistance to Louisiana and Mississippi residents affected by Hurricane Ida are mostly going to have to wait before taking action, Cooperative Baptist Fellowship leaders and ministers said during an Aug. 30 Zoom call….
Physical recovery progressing a year after Harvey. Emotionally, not so much
On the outside, many of the Texas communities ravaged by Hurricane Harvey last year appear to making a comeback. But on the inside, some survivors say, the emotional rebuilding is only just beginning.
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‘Activist kind of church’ says disaster response in its DNA
By Chris Hughes HOUSTON – When the news of Hurricane Harvey’s devastation in Texas and Louisiana reached members of Second Baptist Church in Little Rock, Ark., they only had one question for Chris Ellis: “When are we going?” Within a…
Harvey leaves communities, churches with physical, emotional and financial challenges
A recent ABC News headline may have been a shocker to Americans who haven’t lived through a hurricane: “Hurricane Harvey recovery will be ‘multi-year project,’ Texas governor says.” That’s a fact many religious organizations know all too well. In fact, it’s their specialty.
Family comes through flood with damaged home, stronger faith
The Blanco River was only supposed to rise to 17 feet the night of May 23, 2015, but Theresa Graves felt uneasiness. She opted to stay awake while her family slept peacefully in their riverside house in Wimberley. Graves was…
Baptists respond to earthquake in Ecuador
Baptists in Europe and North America responded with relief efforts to Saturday’s earthquake in Ecuador, which killed more than 500 people and was described as the worst disaster the country has faced in 60 years. Rescue and relief professionals from…
Flooding draws minister back to hometown — with youth disaster workers
When Bobby Catt, minister of students at First Baptist Church in San Angelo, Texas, discovered a student mission trip opportunity in Wimberley in the Texas Hill Country, he knew he had to sign up his youth group right away. Catt…
Faith-based groups gearing up for Texas tornado response
By Jeff Brumley Damage assessments are only beginning to come in, but some disaster responders say rebuilding the Texas communities clobbered by tornadoes over the weekend will require relief work on par with the 2013 Oklahoma twisters. Among the worst…
How Hurricane Hugo broke the racial barrier
Twenty-five years ago on September 21, 1989 Hurricane Hugo made landfall in the Charleston, SC area and brought significant destruction in almost two dozen counties. At that time I was working for Baptists in South Carolina and supervised the department…
A call for Christian collaboration
As of Friday, November 8, 2013 various Christian disaster response organizations were rushing to prepare their response to the Typhoon Haiyan hitting the Philippines. In some cases they were moving forward alone feeling they could respond best by using their…
Moore, Okla. no exception: the second disaster always follows the first.
As if the various formal networks of government, religious, nonprofit, and private sector organizations, plus the thousands of informal networks of families, friends, and new instant friends, did not have enough to do in meeting the needs of people impacted…