LOS ANGELES (AP) 鈥� Rabbi Amy Bernstein says the wind-whipped fire in January 2025 that scorched much of the Pacific Palisades, destroying her home and damaging her synagogue, 鈥渂lew everything open鈥� for the community鈥檚 faith leaders.
鈥淚f our hearts must break, let them break open,鈥� said the rabbi, who leads Kehillat Israel where 300 families out of 900 lost their homes. 鈥淭his tragedy has really pushed us closer to one another. We’re working to change the things we need changed.鈥�
Faith leaders both in the Pacific Palisades and in Altadena and Pasadena 鈥� devastated by that tore across Southern California 鈥� have relied on interfaith and community partnerships to rally congregants who are picking up the pieces .
They鈥檝e had to learn on the fly about insurance coverage and local land use regulations while still trying to keep their scattered flock together and raising money for basic needs. Pastors in Altadena have had to fight to protect the rights of Black people who decades ago in that community despite redlining 鈥� but now risk losing their land to outside developers who sense an investment opportunity.
And throughout this span, faith leaders have had to cater to the emotional and spiritual needs of their communities and think about how they want to rebuild their sanctuaries that were lost or damaged in the fire. More than a dozen to the ground or were damaged.
Interfaith relationships have become stronger after the fires
This would have been difficult for faith leaders to handle but for the interfaith relationships that became closer and stronger after the fires, said the Rev. Grace Park, associate pastor at Pacific Palisades Presbyterian Church, which burned down.
Methodists, Presbyterians, Catholics, Jews and yogis have not just found common ground in human suffering and loss, but have learned how to lean on one another in a time of dire need, she said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a sense of mutual affection and respect, learning from each other and leaning on one another,鈥� Park said. 鈥淲e鈥檙e sharing the joys and the deep valleys of what it means to lead through a time of tragedy.鈥�
Brother Satyananda, a senior monk at the Self Realization Fellowship, lost his living quarters and belongings in the fire. Much of the campus, started by Paramahamsa Yogananda who brought ancient spiritual practices from India to the West, fortunately survived the fire.
Satyananda recalls one day when Bernstein picked up on his sadness and offered him 鈥渕otherly compassion.鈥�
鈥淲e share the same profession where we鈥檙e tuned to people in need,鈥� he said. 鈥淣ow, our relationship has changed because we鈥檙e tuning into each other. There鈥檚 a greater level of trust.鈥�
Pastor BJ King, who leads LoveLand LifeCenter, worked with the late Rev. Cecil B. Murray to heal communities and build interfaith coalitions after the .
鈥淏ack then, there was a choice whether or not to get involved,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut with these fires, there is no choice. It has affected everybody.鈥�
Pastors have had to acquire new skills
King鈥檚 congregation has switched to online services after their leased church building in Altadena suffered smoke damage. Twelve families lost their homes. In addition to helping meet people鈥檚 basic needs, King has created a program organizing gatherings to connect therapists with those in need of mental health.
鈥淢any people didn鈥檛 even know they needed that,鈥� he said.
One of the most powerful roles faith leaders have played after the fire is to 鈥渃ontinue to talk with power, people in charge,鈥� said Pastor Jonathan DeCuir, who leads Victory Bible Church in Pasadena. He and others in the region have continued to meet with local officials and even conferred with Gov. Gavin 海角社区appom to keep things moving for their communities.
DeCuir chairs the board of a nonprofit called Legacy Land Project, which provides financial aid, legal support and guidance on building contractors, as well as medical care to those affected by the fires.
The disaster has brought a level of camaraderie that DeCuir says he has never seen among the region’s clergy.
鈥淒enominational lines have been crossed,鈥� he said. 鈥淓ven if we have different theological stances or approaches to ministry, we are all now looking at how to care for our people and community. If we don鈥檛 come together, Altadena will never ever be the same. The people won’t be there anymore. That, to me, is terrifying.鈥�
While a church is more than a building, physical churches do appear as 鈥渂eacons of hope鈥� in traumatized communities, said Pastor Mayra Macedo-Nolan, executive director of Clergy Community Coalition in Pasadena. Her group has lobbied for houses of worship to be prioritized on the same footing as businesses in the rebuilding plan.
鈥淲hen people start seeing churches rebuilding in Altadena, they鈥檙e going to feel like it鈥檚 going to be OK because the churches are coming back,鈥� she said.
Reimagining a purposeful future
On April 26, the Altadena Fountain of Life Church broke ground to build a new sanctuary after their house of worship, which had stood for over three decades, was destroyed in the fire. Pastor Jonathan Lewis, who ministers to about 75, hopes the church will be ready in time for Easter next year.
鈥淚t鈥檒l be a Resurrection Sunday for our church, too,鈥� he said.
Alexis Duncan, who grew up in Altadena attending that church, came to the groundbreaking with her 6-year-old daughter. She lost both her home and her church building.
鈥淚t means everything to me that they鈥檙e rebuilding because I want the church to be there for my daughter as she grows up,鈥� she said. 鈥淭his new beginning gives me and my family hope and the encouragement to come back.鈥�
Some churches like Altadena Community Church, a United Church of Christ congregation, are pausing to rethink their future purpose. The Rev. Michael Lewis, who took over in February after the previous pastor retired, said the congregation is looking into several possibilities for the one-acre lot, including affordable housing.
鈥淲e know that a church is not intended to be a landlord and the pastor is no property manager,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut, we鈥檙e also thinking about who is able to return to Altadena? How will this rich, economically diverse community that was scattered by the fire come back?鈥�
The church has been around since the 1940s. A haven for actors, poets and musicians, the former sanctuary also served as a vibrant performance space. Lewis said they hope to incorporate a performance stage into the new facility.
鈥淚t鈥檒l look different from what we had before,鈥� he said. 鈥淥nce we figure out how to build community, we can decide what physical structures will help us support that community.鈥�
As for Kehillat Israel, on May 15, members will carry their Torah scrolls back to their sanctuary, marking one of the first returns by a house of worship to the Palisades since the disaster.
Judaism has had 鈥渁 long history of starting over,鈥� Bernstein said.
鈥淚t鈥檚 encoded in our cultural approach to the world, that there are things that can always be taken away from you,鈥� she said. 鈥淏ut what you become can never get taken away.鈥�
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