New Orleans religious groups struggle amid downturn

By Becky Bohrer - Associated Press
Friday, May 02, 2008 - Web Link
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May 2, 2008

Bishop J. Douglas Wiley has just a tent for a church and a fraction of his congregants, more than 2 1/2 years after Hurricane Katrina.

But, he says, God's been good, and his parishioners, faithful.

He's praying the Almighty will remember the sacrifices of his mostly black flock and look kindly if the national economic downturn gets worse.

"The old saying goes, 'When the United States catches a cold, the black community catches pneumonia,'" said Wiley, whose Life Center Cathedral meets in a large tent in the shadow of his fenced-off, wind-damaged sanctuary. "But traditionally, the church has found a way, through God, ... through difficult times."

Economists say the billions of dollars pouring into the hurricane recovery could ease the slowdown here. With some neighborhoods left in ruins by the Aug. 29, 2005, storm, construction jobs should be plentiful. Tax collections from purchases of building materials and furniture should keep coming. In March, city sales tax collections, which have fluctuated since the storm, hit $11.3 million; that compares with the $12.7 million collected the month before the storm.

Still, the specter of tough times is very worrisome in an area with an economy that's still recovering from such massive devastation _ and churches feel particularly vulnerable.

Some charitable and faith-based groups fear that local residents, worried about their job security and faced with higher prices for gas and food, may scale back their level of giving.