By Sarah Reinsel
In late April and early May, unprecedented floods destroyed buildings and displaced thousands of people in the Rio Grande do Sul region in Brazil.
Rio Grande do Sul is the center of Lutheranism in Brazil, and God’s people in the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Brazil (IELB), a partner church of The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS), have suffered greatly.
Many people lost their homes, their cars and all of their possessions in the floods. Fourteen churches have been badly damaged; four of these churches were completely submerged. Five Lutheran schools and nine pastors’ homes were damaged. Eight members of the Lutheran community there have died.
Floods also severely damaged Editora Concórdia, the IELB’s publishing house in Porto Alegre, and destroyed hundreds of thousands of dollars of the publishing house’s stock.
By God’s grace, the IELB was prepared to respond with mercy work and pastoral care as soon as the floods began receding.
Congregations, leaders and pastors of the IELB “became reference points for helping victims,” said the Rev. Airton Schroeder, IELB vice-president. “People were taken to shelter in church buildings. … Church kitchens have become places for food preparation.”
“Churches in all cities became donation reception centers,” continued Schroeder. “In some places, due to lack of space, donations were placed inside the sanctuary and services took place in the middle of the donations.”
After devastating flooding in 2023, the IELB established its own disaster response team. Then, just a week before the 2024 flooding, LCMS Disaster Response partnered with the IELB to host their first ever disaster response conference at Concordia Seminary in Sao Leopoldo, Brazil. The training and presentations provided at this conference equipped the IELB to act immediately when the flooding started.
“[The IELB has] two people in each of the 59 districts, usually laypeople, [who are] leaders for matters of mercy and for seeking funds for missionary and mercy projects,” said Schroeder. Many of these leaders had just participated in the disaster response conference. Schroeder said what they learned gave them direction and confidence as they responded to the disaster, which happened just a week later.
Due to this LCMS Disaster Response training, the IELB has also become one of the most trusted organizations in Brazil when it comes to disaster response. Schroeder said that IELB pastors spoke about their mercy work on radio programs and other media interviews, which led to people and organizations outside the IELB contributing approximately $460,000 to flood relief efforts.
In July, the Rev. Dr. Ross Johnson, director of LCMS Disaster Response, will travel to Brazil to do damage assessment and develop further plans to support the IELB in its mercy work and rebuilding efforts.
“We are grateful to God because in the midst of such great disasters, as a church we can point to the cross of Christ. … At the same time, we can offer shelter, food, clothing, water and, now that [victims] are returning home, [help] with financial resources to rebuild and repair homes,” said Schroeder. “The church was acting before the disaster. She worked hard during the disaster, and the church will continue to work supporting people as they walk this earth, pointing to Christ who saves.”
Read an earlier story about the flooding in Brazil.
Posted June 25, 2024
