After the September floods in the Czech Republic, there was a huge wave of solidarity, both financial and from volunteers. Churches are among those helping, but in some places they are also those who need help themselves.

“In this sad time, it gives me great joy that the church in our district is showing how God's love tastes”, says pastor Ondřej Kameník from the town of Jeseník.

Opava: Unexpected unity and cooperation

In the town of Opava, water flooded at least three places of worship - the Church of the Brethren (CB) Elim, the Pentecostal Apostolic Church Křesťanské centrum Opava (AC KC), and the Salvation Army.

“All Sunday we watched the water level slowly rise and move towards Elim. There were sandbags around the door and it looked like everything might turn out well. It didn't, the water level rose a foot higher than the highest predictions indicated. The water made nothing of sandbags and even broke the door”, recalls CB Elim preacher Tomáš Kolman.

“We ended up with water up to the doorknobs on the ground floor. For the next week, we took out the destroyed furniture and stored equipment and tore up the ruined gym floor and its wood panelling”, he adds.

Members of the congregation and other volunteers immediately put on their boots and got to work, but it will probably be a long time before the building can be used again.

For now, CB Elim meets for joint services with the Křesťanské centrum in the building of the city's Seventh-Day Adventist Church.

“The atmosphere was nice and friendly. Several churches in this city are holding worship services at the same time this afternoon. I think of this: 'Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brethren dwell together'", wrote Czech songwriter and worship leader Jiřina Gina Čunková on her Facebook page, referring to a verse from Psalm 133.

Pastor David Chlebus of AC KC Opava informed Život víry magazine that “from the beginning, we have tried to communicate with neighbours and friends from the settlement and look for where the needs are greatest and how we can respond to them”.

“As a result, we bought two professional dryers, which we will now offer for rent. It seems that the worst  is over, at this point. It will take long-term and persistent work now that will last for months and will no longer be the focus of the media and organised first aid”.

Jeseník: Being close to the people

In the town of Jeseník, churches are fully deployed and offering help after the floods.

After two or three weeks, normal life is returning to the streets and buildings. Shops are opening, children are returning to school (albeit somewhere in emergency mode), people are gradually returning to their homes from emergency housing.

“The churches have been involved in the recovery effort to the best of their ability and capacity. The Catholic Church involved its charitable organization Caritas with trained volunteers, and provided space around the church for distributing aid and targeted financial assistance”, undelines Ondřej Kameník, Pastor of the charismatic Křesťanské společenství (Christian Fellowship, KS) in Jeseník.

Furthermore, “the Evangelical Church of Czech Brethren (mainline Protestant) provided facilities for their charitable organization Diakonia team, who were very helpful here”. He points out that his congregation, “thanks to generous donations from other congregations, foundations and our non-believing friends, has purchased electric generators, industrial dryers and high-pressure washers, which we lend to households throughout the district”.

“We also help in cleaning and disinfecting flooded basements and apartments, distribute addressed financial aid from Diakonia of CB, provide our premises for accommodation of volunteers or as a temporary classroom for an elementary school”.

Helping the affected area can take various forms. For example, on Saturday, October 5th, a seminar was held at the premises of the KS Jeseník, where interested Christians learned how to talk to people in crisis situations or after experiencing trauma.

“This deployment is helping to restore people's trust in the church, at least in the individuals we have directly helped. But we have a difficult time ahead of us. The adrenaline will wear off, the volunteers will gradually begin to disappear, the movement of heavy equipment on the streets will subside, and the weight of the loss will weigh down on the people affected”, Ondřej Kameník wrote to Život víry asking for prayers for the church in Jeseník, which wishes to be close to the people and be a light to them.

Dan Drápal, columnist and senior emeritus of the KS denomination, summed it up succinctly in his recent article: “Every event reveals something. And I think that the enemy of God who steals and destroys (human lives and houses in floods) must be furious when he sees this self-sacrifice and various expressions of selfless love”.

“With every kind word, every act of sacrificial help, we sabotage his rule over this world ... What may seem like a loss to us can be an opportunity to reveal the character of Jesus. Yes, it is not the circumstances that matter, but our response to them”, he concluded.

The original version of this article was first published in the Život víry magazine (Life of Faith) in the Czech Republic. Translated and re-published with permission.