American dioceses blown away by hurricane

Parishes in Louisiana and Mississippi face unprecedented levels of destruction after Hurricane Katrina, reports Freddy Gray
SEVERAL AMERICAN dioceses are facing extinction after Hurricane Katrina smashed into America last week.
The Church has suffered terribly from the disaster. Bishop William Skylstad, President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), told reporters that dioceses in Louisiana and Mississippi are facing unprecedented levels of destruction and might not have enough money to rebuild.
Louisana, the state worst ravaged by Hurricane Katrina, has a population which is more than 30 per cent Catholic Bishop Skylstad said that the parishes which have been affected are “the least able to cope” financially.
“Most of the dioceses are home mission dioceses [that rely on other dioceses for financial support], and which struggle to survive under the best of conditions,” he said.
The USCCB has tried to contact all prelates in the area to check that they are alive and to get assessments of damage to Church property.
Most bishops have been accounted for, but some are still out of reach. “We don’t even know if all of them are safe,” said Bishop Skylstad.
“All the bishops of the United States are concerned for the number of church personnel who are isolated, working under great adversity, and perhaps not even aware that the rest of the country is praying for them.” Archbishop Alfred Hughes of New Orleans had to evacuate his diocese and has been visiting shelters in Baton Rouge.
Bishop Thomas Rodi of Biloxi, Mississippi telephoned USCCB on his mobile phone from his office, where there was no water or electricity. He said that 20 per cent of the churches in his diocese and a third of the schools had been wiped out. He believes that every Church building under his control has been damaged.
The Church is leading an enormous charitable effort to help survivors. Almost every parish in America held special collections for the appeal last weekend. Bishop Skylstad announced that the National Collection for Hurricane Relief would oper ate in all 195 American dioceses. Donations have been pouring in from a large number of Catholic societies, institutions and individuals in response to the aid crisis.
Catholic Charities USA, the largest private network of social service organisations in the Americas, said on Monday that it had already received $3 million (£1.6 million) in donations.
“This is a great start, but we are expecting that figure to go through the roof,” said press officer Shelley Borysiewicz. “We got $30 million after 9/11 and we hope to raise a similar sum this time.” Catholics across the United States, and particularly in the affected areas of Louisiana, Mississippi and East Texas are responding to the emergency by giving money, putting up shelters, offering food and medicine, as well as schooling for refugee children.
In Baton Rouge, near New Orleans, Catholic Community Services is assessing the damage and helping emergency services deal with an enormous number of refugees. The 500,000 population of Baton Rouge has nearly doubled since the hurricane struck Louisiana last week In East Texas parishes have offered shelter to those fleeing the devastation. Fr Rawlin Enette of St Peter Claver, a parish in Houston, said that he had never seen such generosity. “Every time you look up, they’re bringing in more stuff, like food and clothing,” he said. “People from all walks of life have brought in countless numbers of things.” One of the refugees in St Peter Claver church was Maxine River, a parishioner at St Monica Parish in New Orleans, who was “pretty certain” that her home has been destroyed in the hurricane.
She said she was amazed by Texan hospitality: “I had a different perspective of Texas before we came here, but they have been amazing. I can’t believe it. You see the Holy Spirit working in everyone.” In the state of Arkansas, next to Texas, dozens of parishes are providing financial assistance to parishioners who offer their homes to refugees.
In several states Catholic schools are welcoming child refugees from the hurricane free of charge. Experts from Church agencies in Florida, a region which often suffers from hurricanes, are helping aid workers in Louisiana to cope with the present crisis.
Outside America, Pope Benedict XVI last weekend called on the Vatican’s charity, Cor Unum, to coordinate relief efforts for the victims of Hurricane Katrina. Speaking from his summer residence of Castel Gandolfo, outside Rome, the Pontiff offered his condolences to those suffering from the disaster.
“We have all been pained in the last few days by the disaster caused by the hurricane in the United States of America, particularly in New Orleans,” he said. “I have asked the president of Cor Unum [Archbishop Paul Josef Cordes] to give those affected [by the hurricane] evidence of my closeness to them.” Cor Unum is the Pope’s personal charity and helps organise Catholic relief efforts, but tends to operate separately from national bishops’ conferences and diocesan structures. As The Catholic Herald went to press, the death toll from Hurricane Katrina remained uncertain. Some sources estimated as many as 10,000 fatalities.
You can make a donation to the relief effort online at www.catholiccharitiesusa.org /news/katrina.cfm or by telephoning Catholic Charities USA on 001-800-919-9338