John H. Taylor, the bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Los Angeles, mourned “losses too great to bear” as wildfires in Greater Los Angeles ravaged scores of churches and homes of parishioners among the more than 2,000 buildings destroyed in a historic blaze that has left at least five people dead and sent thousands more fleeing to safety.
“We have absorbed losses too great to bear. The list of names of members of our churches in the San Gabriel Valley and in the Pacific Palisades area who have lost their home could exceed 40 or 50 by the time all of the news is in,” Taylor revealed in a video statement on Facebook.
“You’ve heard no doubt of the loss of the historic Saint Mark’s Church in Altadena. The devastating losses of Saint Matthews Church and school in Pacific Palisades. The loss of two rectories. … I am sorry to have to say there will be more reports such as this and most of all our system demands your prayers,” he added.
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On Wednesday night, the Rev. Carri Patterson Grindon, the rector of Saint Mark’s, invited her community to pray via Zoom as they face the “hardest of days for our church.”
“This has been a painful and unimaginably difficult day for our whole community. So many of you have lost your homes. We all have lost our cherished church building. So much remains uncertain, but in the next days, we will create ways to come together for support, to worship, to grieve, and to comfort one another,” Grindon wrote on the church’s Facebook page.
Tens of thousands of residents were placed under mandatory evacuation orders as the fires burned more than 27,000 acres, The New York Times reported. Fires in the Palisades and Eaton are reportedly the two most destructive fires ever to hit Los Angeles with at least 2,000 buildings destroyed.
In a statement on Truth Social Wednesday night, President-elect Donald Trump called for Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom to resign over the handling of the fires, which has brought loss to residents rich and poor.
“One of the best and most beautiful parts of the United States of America is burning down to the ground. It’s ashes, and Gavin Newscum should resign. This is all his fault!!!” Trump wrote.
Actor James Woods wept as he talked about the impact of the fire in an interview with CNN: “One day you’re swimming in the pool and the next day it’s all gone.”
On Wednesday evening a new fire had engulfed part of the Hollywood Hills and more than 80,000 people were ordered to evacuate.
Minutes before midnight the evacuation order was lifted, according to a release from the Los Angeles Fire Department.
“The majority of the Evacuation Zone for the Sunset Fire is LIFTED with the EXCEPTION of the area North of Franklin Ave from Camino Palmero St (East border) to N Sierra Bonita Ave. (West border). This area remains CLOSED until tomorrow morning due to continued LAFD operations ensuring no flare ups in the vegetation surrounding these streets,” the release said. “Residents are asked to be cautious when returning to their homes because firefighters are continuing to work in their neighborhoods.”
When the fires erupted on Tuesday, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, who was part of a delegation sent by President Joe Biden to Ghana for the inauguration of that country’s new president, did not return to the country until Wednesday and she has been facing criticism for it.
“It was an utter breakdown in leadership, and it starts with the mayor’s office,” Michael Gonzales, 47, who lost his home in the Pacific Palisades, a wealthy neighborhood that overlooks the Pacific Ocean, told the NY Times.
Many Los Angeles residents have said they didn’t receive sufficient warning about the fires and Bass should have been stateside before the disaster hit.
Bass argued, however, that this wasn’t the time to be divided and noted that she worked to ensure she returned to the city as quickly as she could.
“I took the fastest route back, which included being on a military plane,” she said.
In his update on the fire on Wednesday, Taylor offered prayers for the first responders in the disaster and took time to count the blessings of his denomination.
“It’s a considerable blessing that as of now no word has reached us of any member of our Episcopal community being injured or hurt. There’s other signs of life, hope and redemption as well,” he said.
“Last night, 180 people found shelter in All Saints Church. Perhaps 80 percent of them had never been to the church before,” he said, noting that they were now “new friends.”
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