Title: ELCA Presiding Bishop Visits Flood Victims ELCA NEWS SERVICE - NEWSBRIEF June 2, 1997 ANDERSON VISITS FLOOD VICTIMS "We will be with you. Whether it takes a year or longer, your church will stay with you," the Rev. H. George Anderson, presiding bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America, told flood victims in Minnesota and North Dakota. Anderson traveled to Minnesota and North Dakota May 20-22 to meet with flood victims and pastors as cleanup and recovery efforts continue in the flooded areas of the Red River Valley. People told stories of coming back to their "smelly and mud-filled" homes after a six-week evacuation period. Flood waters destroyed the foundation of houses and buildings, leaving most of them condemned, they told Anderson. Worship services are being held in wet and muddy facilities. Pastors told the bishop of their difficulty in preaching on Sundays and of an increased number of funerals, according to the Rev. Gilbert B. Furst, associate director for the ELCA's domestic disaster response. Furst accompanied Anderson on his pastoral visits to Grand Forks, Fargo, Devil's Lake and Mayville, N.D., Breckenridge and Ada, Minn. "As the stories were told, one after another of hardship and heartache, there was a balance of hope and recovery," Furst said. At each stop, Anderson told care-givers to take care of themselves. "God created the world in six days and then took a day off. That should be good enough for you too," Anderson reminded them. "Long after FEMA, the Red Cross and the Salvation Army are gone, your church will still be here," said Furst. "The body of Christ is rolling up its sleeves for the long haul," he said. For information contact: Ann Hafften, Director (773) 380-2958 or [log in to unmask] http://www.elca.org/co/news/current.html