Episcopal Press and News
Texas Episcopalians Find Themselves at Center of Columbia Tragedy
Episcopal News Service. February 3, 2003 [2003-022]
Steven Lightfoot, Assistant Editor of the Texas Episcopalian, the newspaper of the Diocese of Texas
(ENS) The breakup of the Columbia orbiter over the vast north central area of the Diocese of Texas, which includes Houston's Johnson Space Center within its boundaries, has opened an intimate window to the tragedy for the diocesan community. Churches in the NASA area and in the path of the Columbia debris field came together in the aftermath of the recent national tragedy.
One of the Columbia astronauts' children attended second grade at St. Thomas the Apostle Episcopal School in Nassau Bay, south of Houston. "[Mission Specialist] Laurel Clark's eight-year-old son is a second grader at the school," said the Rev. John Musgrave, rector of the parish. "The congregation is deeply affected by the loss of his mother," he added.
Soon after the shuttle broke apart, diocesan employee Rebecca Sweitzer received a message from her sister-in-law, Marilyn Boone, in Jasper.
"I heard the shuttle when it broke up," Boone said. "It was a long, rolling, thunderous, roaring noise that went on and on." She added, "My friends in Nacogdoches tell me that it isn't ‘Do you have debris in your yard?' but ‘How much debris do you have in your yard?'"
Saturday morning, as debris from the spacecraft littered the highway and roadside, the Rev. Gary Hill, rector of Christ Church in Nacogdoches, was on his way to a vestry retreat. "I saw pieces of ‘stuff' on the road, but I did not know what they were until I arrived at the retreat," he said.
Hill reported that the vestry watched some of the broadcast news and then prayed for the astronauts and their families. "Our hearts were broken," he added.
Seeking solace
Christ Church in Nacogdoches reported an increase in Sunday's attendance, as did many other congregations.
The Rev. Hugh Bell, rector of St. Cyprian's in Lufkin, said that his Sunday service included a dedicated Eucharist for the astronauts and their families. The Collect for Burial was read from the Book of Common Prayer and the names of the astronauts were included in the Prayers of the People. Many congregations whose churches lie in the path of Columbia's debris field had similar Sunday services. Some read the passage from Isaiah 40 quoted by President George Bush in his initial address to the nation immediately following the tragedy.
"We had to go over the grounds to ensure that the school could open," Bell said, expressing the congregation's concern that hazardous debris could endanger students at St. Cyprian's Episcopal School, adjacent to the church.
Personal friends
South of the fallout, in Houston, the effects of the Columbia disaster were less immediately hazardous but equally overwhelming.
Musgrave said that his parish held a Saturday night prayer vigil the evening of the tragedy. More than 300 people attended. Numerous NASA employees and their families are parishioners at St. Thomas the Apostle, including many who knew the Columbia crew personally.
Holy Trinity in nearby Dickinson also held a memorial service Saturday night. "The Saturday night service helped parishioners and the greater community focus on the tragedy," the Rev. James Hamilton said. A local Indian family attended to honor Mission Specialist Kalpana Chawla and the Columbia crew. Employees from NASA also attended.
One of the parishioners at Holy Trinity was especially touched by the tragedy. She had driven the crew members' families to the airport for their trip to Florida and Columbia's landing. She was to pick them up on their return to Houston.
The daughter of another parishioner at Trinity is the head of the recovery effort for NASA, coordinating the various agencies efforts. "We are making pastoral calls to parishioners who are involved and trying to help them through this," Hamilton said.
'Embrace them now'
The Rev. Vincent Uher, retired priest, wrote a special verse to be added to the hymn "Eternal Father, strong to save," often known as the Navy Hymn. It is a favorite among parishioners across the diocese. Uher said that he used the passage in Isaiah that President Bush quoted and also the poem that President Reagan quoted after the Challenger disaster.
"O God who names the starry host
and by whose love not one is lost,
who stretched thy arms wide to the sky
from cross to heav'n so death would die
Oh care for those who traversed space,
Embrace them now who touch thy face."
"Our diocese joins with all Americans as we offer prayers of support for the families of the Columbia crew members," the Rt. Rev. Don Wimberly, bishop coadjutor of the Diocese of Texas, said. "The tragedy reminds us of the uncertainty and preciousness of life. It shows us that we need to be more intentional about living day to day and more loving to those close to us," he added.