Katrina sent thirty-seven feet of water into Pass Christian, Mississippi, flooding Trinity Church to its dark-wood upside-down boat-shaped roof. Just as Noah’s Ark survived the flood, and Peter’s boat was saved when Jesus stilled the sea, so too, only the ceiling of the nave (from the Latin navis, ship) escaped total destruction.

Today, Trinity has walls, temporary windows, and has resumed its work as a house of worship. The Presiding Bishop and Robert Fitzpatrick, Bishop-Elect of Hawaii, stand from left to right in the bottom photo.

–Photos by Richard Shori