1623 Seventh Street
New Orleans, LA  70115
28 April 2006

The Editor
The Living Church
Milwaukee, WI 

Dear Sir:

The presence and ministry of Episcopal Relief and Development (ERD) in the Diocese of Louisiana has been and continues to be a blessing to the people of New Orleans and the surrounding areas devastated by Hurricane Katrina. The partnership between ERD and the Diocese of Louisiana enables a shared ministry grounded in a common mission.
To put it bluntly: the ministry of ERD is the ministry of the Church at her very best.

The relief work of ERD can be summarized as direct aid and care for the dispossessed, the poor and the needy. The outward and visible signs of such direct aid ministry in Louisiana have been made and continue to be made manifest in our distribution centers and our Compassion Centers. The partnership of the Diocese of Louisiana and ERD, through the funding of the diocese’s Office of Disaster Response, enables a much greater and more sustained effort than would alone be possible. It is important to note that many relief groups have departed New Orleans but the Episcopal Church remains present and the ministry of direct aid and relief continues day after day in multiple sites.

One such distribution site, which receives weekly supplies from the Diocese/ERD ministry, is the Episcopal Church of the Annunciation located in the badly flooded Broadmoor neighborhood of New Orleans. These supplies have come to Annunciation most every week since we were allowed legally to reoccupy New Orleans in October 2005. The value of these supplies nears $1,000.00 per week. Every bottle of bleach, bottle of water, every mop and broom and every personal hygiene kit that comes to Annunciation in this way is given away with no questions asked. I am humbled by the incredible ministry of the Church of the Annunciation and I am pleased that ERD has enabled the diocese to be a major supplier for the Annunciation ministry. I would also commend to you the work of the Church of the Annunciation and her Rector, the Rev. Jerry Kramer, which is truly a prophetic ministry of servanthood.

Two major development initiatives are underway in Louisiana. The first is the Jericho Road Episcopal Housing Initiative, which speaks to one of the most pressing needs in New Orleans. The issue of homes, not housing, but homes for the working poor of the city is most pressing. Thanks to the creative and imaginative presence of ERD there has been launched in New Orleans this Jericho Road Episcopal Housing Initiative. We are even now securing property and will very soon be constructing houses. Thanks also to the work of ERD we are engaged in a major work of citizen engagement as we seek to give voice to all in New Orleans and the diaspora. Lest some miss the point, these efforts are not just about housing or citizen participation but speak to the serious issues of racism, economic justice, and social exclusion. These ministries are about the poor and dispossessed of our city. These ministries would not be possible without the presence, support, and creative imagination of Episcopal Relief and Development. 

Episcopal Relief and Development has committed $5.5 million for 2006 to the diocese’s Office of Disaster Response. This ministry is engaged in direct aid, case management, compassion centers, feeding the hungry, medical care, and the above-mentioned housing and engagement work. The presence and ministries of Dr. Courtney Cowart and The Venerable Dennis McManis would not be possible without ERD. The soon to be realized dream of an urban ministry center in New Orleans would not be possible without ERD. 

On a personal level, the presence and imaginative support of Dr. Robert Radtke, President of ERD, and Ms. Abagail Nelson, Vice-President of ERD, has been a blessing and inspiration for me. These Christian people have been with me since the day of the flood. They stepped way outside their comfort zone and have stood with me in hard times and have rejoiced with me in good times. 

Every dollar you and I have sent to ERD has been put to responsible and good use. True, it is not within the well-established brief of ERD to rebuild church buildings but they are about building new cities. ERD is not about helping with insurance deductibles but their ministry of development is about helping build a just society. ERD is not going to help Bishop Gray of Mississippi and me with ongoing clergy salaries though ERD did assist with initial emergency grants for clergy families. The Dioceses of Louisiana and Mississippi have launched a campaign entitled DARKNESS INTO DAY to assist with needs and opportunities that ERD cannot address because of their charter.

I will support DARKNESS INTO DAY and I invite you to do the same. I continue to support ERD and shall do so as long as I enabled by God to do so. I urge you to do the same. Support of DARKNESS INTO DAY and support of ERD is not an either/or question for me. I support both; together they enable the fullness of the response of the Church.

I thank God for Episcopal Relief and Development and I thank you for your support of ERD. I invite you to come and see what your Church is doing in Louisiana and in Mississippi. I think you will be astounded and pleased.

The Rt. Rev. Charles Jenkins
Bishop of Louisiana