April 20, 2007
Dear sisters and brothers in Christ,
Pastor Joanna Stallings, campus pastor at Virginia Tech University,
received a very special telephone call from Slidell, Louisiana this
week. In response to the tragedy on the campus Monday morning, the
family who had been the recipient of aid from Virginia Tech students
participating in the LDR “What a Relief!” spring break effort this March
called to ask one question: “How can we help you?” Even in the midst
of their own journey towards recovery, it seemed natural to reach out to
those that were in need.
On Tuesday, LDR coordinator Jan Tobias and Bishop James Mauney, of the
ELCA Virginia Synod, spent the day in Blacksburg, speaking with
students, faculty, and others. After watching the university
convocation on Tuesday afternoon, the conversation about how we will
respond began.
For Tobias, who served as campus pastor at Virginia Tech for ten years
and whose youngest daughter is a Virginia Tech alumna, this tragedy hits
particularly close to home. He reports that the idea of the Virginia
Tech community being a very close-knit one may seem cliché but is very
realistic. Our response will include outreach and spiritual and
emotional care for the campus community, the town of Blacksburg, and the
surrounding area. It will also include spiritual and emotional care for
those beyond the borders of Virginia.
At the request of Bishop Mauney, LDR will be hosting a series of
consultations in early May with Lutheran clergy and congregational
leaders in the Blacksburg area to talk about their congregational needs
and to equip them for the important task of counseling those affected by
traumatic grief. In addition, LDR has been invited to be present at the
upcoming ELCA Virginia Synod Assembly in June.
A litany has been prepared for congregations to use in praying for and
remembering those who are affected by this terrible event, including not
only those who lost family members or friends but all of us in our grief
from this violence. To download the litany, please visit
www.elca.org/disaster and see the section titled “For Congregations.”
Into your hands, Holy Father, we commend all those affected by this
tragedy – the students, faculty, and staff at Virginia Tech; the family
and friends of those who were killed; the residents of Blacksburg,
Virginia; local clergy and congregational leaders; all of us who have
watched this event unfold this week. And because Jesus commanded us to
love even those who would do us harm, we commend to you those for whom,
in our anger and grief, we cannot yet pray.
In service,
Heather L. Feltman
Executive Director, Lutheran Disaster Response
Director, ELCA Domestic Disaster Response
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