From KATU 2 News - Portland, Oregon

NEW ORLEANS - Christopher McLaren knew the wicked winds of Katrina would wreak havoc on St. George’s Episcopal Church but he never guessed it could take the very spirit of his congregation and scatter it like ashes in a hurricane.

McLaren, 38, was raised in Southern Oregon and transplanted to New Orleans in 2000 to head the church of 450 as his first job after ordination.

Seminary training could have never prepared him for the obliterating event that scattered his family and flock with the gale force winds.

“It’s devastating, and it’s disorienting,” says McLaren who was just getting to see his New Orleans home for the first time today, accompanied by a crew from KATU news.

McLaren thinks that at one point his home was filled with ten feet of water.

McLaren has just put his wife Maren and his three children on a plane bound for his wife’s home in Vermont, but he’s staying behind to see what can be done to save personal effects from his home and rebuild the congregation.

What is perhaps just as confounding is that up to half of St. George’s congregation may be facing the same predicament as the minister, and the other half is scattering to find shelter and jobs elsewhere.

Church members stay in touch through a Yahoo internet list but McLaren worries that it may not be enough to keep them connected.

“I’m a little upset here with the notion that I should just close the doors and walk away,” says McLaren, who’s church has been standing since 1899. “The city needs St. George’s, it’s love and it’s outreach right now. We need to be the hands and feet of Jesus to the rest of the city.”

McLaren is well aware the Christian teaching that pastors should always be mindful of the welfare of others, but what of this teaching when the entire congregation faces such devastation?

“It’s hard to know what to do next,” says McLaren, “when we don’t know what the future holds or if we can even go back.”

What encourages the young Episcopal priest is the phone calls with offers help from friends, classmates and congregations from as far away as Ontario, Canada.

With help from another church, a handful of members gathered for worship last Sunday in Baton Rouge.

“At least we’re not alone," says McLaren, "but I would like to know how we are going to move forward and that’s such a question mark right now.”

The immediate future is assessing the damage to his home and his church.

He estimates that the winds of Katrina may have damaged the roof of the church, but repairs would be relatively easy. The stained glass from Munich remains intact.

The scattering of church members may be harder to assess. Even his wife Maren is concerned about moving back into a home where sewage and toxic waste may have serious future health risks.

“The city needs this congregation back, a place where people sense the love of God is present.” While McLaren is reluctant to ask for financial help he admits the next few months may present a huge challenge to members of the congregation.

Direct donations can be made to:

St. George’s Episcopal Church
C/o Father Christopher McLaren
321 Horseshoe Dr.
Crowley, Louisiana, 70526

Click here for KATU video news clip of this story