Taken from: Decision Magazine

A Place of Hurt, A Place of Hope
The Church for a Hurting World


by Amanda Knoke


September, 2002

While ministering to workers at Ground Zero, Richard Del Rio, pastor at an inner-city church in East Village, recalls seeing a man with numbers tattooed on his arms. When questioned, the man said that he had his social-security number tattooed on every limb so that he could be identified should the need arise. That’s how fearful some people are, Pastor Del Rio says.

More than 250 pastors have formed the Northeast Clergy Group. The vision of clergy leaders Rick Del Rio and Marcos Rivera is to transform their communities by adding "a dimension to the preaching that is relevant to a hurting world," says Pastor Del Rio.

Pastor Del Rio believes that the scope of pain and danger of post-traumatic stress go far beyond the wounds of the rescue workers and victims’ families. "Thousands of times over, pain is multiplied in those who saw, or are close with people who lost family," he said.

Fred Baye, now a field representative for the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association, recently spent a year working in Oklahoma City after the 1995 bombing. He saw the increase in divorce rates and suicides. "We want to help prevent that in New York," says Mr. Baye. He is partnering with Pastor Del Rio and other clergy leaders to provide training for the clergy to deal with post-traumatic stress.

Now people may seem OK, says Pastor Del Rio, "but two to five years down the road, we’ll be dealing with a lot of fall-out."

Amid the lingering pain, grief, tears and uneraseable images, Christians in New York -- and in all places of suffering -- are being crowned with love and compassion. Like the doves above Ground Zero, peace is beginning to drift -- slowly -- across New York City as God continues to redeem lives from the pit.(3)