Churches address disaster relief, spiritual questions after tsunami

While local churches are urging members to contribute to relief efforts after Sunday's earthquake and tsunami in Southeast Asia, pastors also hope to help people make spiritual sense of such an immense tragedy.

The Rev. Bill Baumgarten said a bulletin insert will provide congregation members at Christ Church Episcopal with the information they need to give to Episcopal Relief and Development efforts in the stricken countries.

But he has also put aside the planned text on Sunday to address any spiritual questions that might arise.

"How do you talk about such a chaotic natural force and still believe in a loving god?" he said. "I'll be trying to encourage faith, and also give people an opportunity to vent their doubt, which is legitimate."

The Rev. John Weaver of the Whitefish Assembly of God said his church also is emphasizing that its members be generous toward the tsunami victims.

"Prayer is the best thing we can do because God can do so much more than us," he said. "But he also asks us to take care of the needy. Faith without works is dead, and to do what God asks we should be helping one another, helping those in need."

This Sunday and next, the Whitefish Assembly will collect donations for the larger Assemblies of God effort, which includes sending health-care teams, food and water to the affected areas. Weaver emphasized every dollar of all designated offerings will go directly to relief work.

People may question why tragedies of this magnitude happen, Weaver said.

"We know that because there is sin in the world there will also be things that are unfair that will happen even to good people," he said. "Even in the Bible devastating things happened to good people. It's human nature to question why, but it's important to ask God, 'What would you have us learn, how can we respond and take care of the needs of others?'"

The Rev. Lindean Barnett, assistant pastor at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in Kalispell, is leading the children's lesson during this Sunday's worship service. She expects many of the church's youth will be aware of the disaster.

"I'll be acknowledging that it is scary and unpredictable, but that we should share what we have, maybe giving some allowance money, or when we say grace remember those who don't have enough," she said.

Barnett said adults may want to be generous but be frustrated by not knowing how to best respond. Bethlehem Lutheran initially will present the option of donating through Action by Churches Together International. As cleanup and rebuilding continue, she said there may be additional projects for the congregation to support.

Baumgarten said the Episcopal Relief organization specifies the value of each dollar given. For $35, a person can supply food, clean water and medical supplies for one person. A family of four is covered for $60.

"At this point, it's just about survival," Baumgarten said.

Though acknowledging the scope of the humanitarian tragedy, Baumgarten said the real disaster would be if there were no God beyond the chaos. He said the world was put together in a way that allows for natural disaster, but this doesn't preclude the existence of a loving God.

"I don't think there is a logical answer," he said. "Christianity and all religions rely on faith, where you don't have intellectual or scientific certitude. There's a lot of irrationality. It's what one theologian calls 'the ragged ends of creation.'"

Reporter Heidi Gaiser may be reached at 758-4431 or by e-mail at hgaiser@dailyinterlake.com