In a news release from the World Council of Churches (WCC), the Rev. Dr. Olav Fykse Tveist, WCC General Secretary, lamented the tragic events that have unfolded in his homeland of Norway. He called on the international community and the church worldwide to pray for the people of Norway, especially for the families of the nearly hundred people killed in the set of tragic attacks in the Oslo area.

Though the ELCA is not planning a specific response to this human-made disaster, we continue to be in solidarity with our partner in Norway, the Church of Norway (Lutheran), and continue to lift up prayers on their behalf as well as the rest of the Norwegian people. Also, as a member of the WCC we pray with and for Rev. Dr. Tveist in this trying time.

Please take a moment to read the full release where you will also find a link to helpful prayers at the bottom of the page.

Refugees at Sousha refugee camp getting water.

“We’re paying, of course. And our friends and family back home.”

“How long will you continue?”

“For as long as the money lasts.”

This is an exceprt from a conversation with Aomed Aowel, an ordinary Tunisian who left his home in the capital city of Tunis to drive (if my estimates are correct) around 7 hours to bring food and water to refugees crossing the border from Libya. And as the days have progressed he, his friends and others Tunisians they have recruited, have been bringing supplies of food and water to help meet the basic needs of people coming into Sousha camp.

“We’re not heroes. We’re just helping our brothers.” This is the response he gives to what they are doing. Heroes or not they are helping to do God’s work and for that we give thanks.

To read more about Aomed’s story as well as the work being done by the ACT Alliance read their update Solidarity without borders.

————-
Gifts to ELCA International Disaster Response allow the church to respond globally in times of need. Donate now.

As the situation in Egypt begins to find some stability, members of the ELCA’s Global Mission office in conjunction with our companions have determined that things have calmed enough for missionary personnel to return to their work in Egypt. Over the next few weeks the six missionaries will return are:

• Rev. Peter Johnson, Erin Odgers, seminary intern Paul Schick and his wife, Stephanie, who will return to their work at St Andrew’s Lutheran Church of Cairo and with the St. Andrew’s Refugee Services (StARS).
• Rev. Dr. Mark and Linda Nygard, who will return to their work at the Evangelical Theological Seminary.

Please keep them and their families in your prayers as they begin to find how God will continue to use them in this new reality.

To learn more:

• ELCA News Release on their return
• information on the ELCA’s engagement in Egypt.

————-
Gifts to ELCA International Disaster Response allow the church to respond globally in times of need. Donate now.

ACT team setting up camps on Libya-Tunisia border. Photo: ACT/Church of Sweden/Sarah Harrison

A team comprised of staff from ACT member organisations Norwegian Church Aid, FinnChurchAid, the Lutheran World Federation and the Church of Sweden, has been working at full capacity on the Libyan-Tunisian border to assess and prepare for the possible humanitarian fallout of the situation in Libya. They are currently stationed at Sousha Refugee camp, located on the Tunisian side of the border. This camp has a current population of around 15,000 and is well maintained but the fear is that with unconfirmed reports of tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands living in camps on the Libyan side of the border camps like this could be overrun if a violence in Libya continues.

In preparation for the worst the staff and the camp are attempting to expand the camp’s facilities for the potential new refugees. The hope is that with these expanded resources the camp could hopefully take in up to 100,000 refugees.

As the situation and the violence continues to worsen the ACT team will continue to assess what type of response or appeal should to enacted to meet the needs of those in need. Please keep these people, their work and those who they work on behalf of in your prayers. May God’s charitable and ever-giving spirit be amongst them in their times of need.

Read the full report.

————-
Gifts to ELCA International Disaster Response allow the church to respond globally in times of need. Donate now.

On February 24 Dr. William F. Vendley, Secretary General for Religions for Peace*, released a statement calling for the violence in Libya to stop. The statement calls on the government of Libya to cease in attacking its own citizens and for the members of the Libyan army to disobey orders to attack their fellow country men and women with warplanes. Also called for members of the international community to take responsible and legal action to ensure the full rights and safety of the Libyan people.

Read the full statment.

* Tracing it’s roots back to 1961, Religions for Peace is the largest international coalition of representatives from the world’s great religions dedicated to promoting peace. It maintains the goal of respecting religious differences while celebrating our common humanity and is active on every continent and in some of the most troubled areas of the world, creating multi-religious partnerships to confront our most dire issues: stopping war, ending poverty, and protecting the earth.

————-
Gifts to ELCA International Disaster Response allow the church to respond globally in times of need. Donate now.

Tensions continue to rise in Egypt following the public cry for Egyptian President Mubarak to resign and the subsequent unrest as the pro-Mubarak supporters clash with protestors. In response the US State Department has called for all US personnel to evacuate the country.

Amidst our prayers for a just and peaceful resolution to this troubled time in the life of the Egyptian people, we raise a call of thanksgiving that all ten of the ELCA deployed staff working in Egypt have safely been evacuated. There two-day long journey took them from Egypt to Istanbul and finally to St. Paul, Minnestota, where they are thankful to be safe but eagerly await the opportunity to return to their work and the ministry partners they left behind.

To learn more about the missionaries and their situation, read the ELCA Missionary Blog Hand in Hand.