Taiwan Church News
3812 Edition
March 17~23, 2025
Weekly Topical
PCT Works with Forward Volunteers to Forge Rock-Solid Shelter for Emergency Response
Reported by Chiu Kuo-rong from Taipei
To strengthen the capability of Taiwan churches to respond in events of emergency, a basic training camp entitled as “Forward Volunteers” was held at Education Ministry Committee of Chi-Hsin presbytery in the morning on March 15. Many pastors and co-workers of local churches were invited to participate.
The training camp is hosted by the citizens defense expert – Forward Alliance. Training courses, which include building disaster awareness, explaining safety contents and staunching the bleedings, are to strengthen the immediate response capability in an emergency. Those who complete the training courses can get a first-aid certificate of “STOP THE BLEED”.
Rev Liang Wei-jen, director of Education Ministry Committee of Chi-Hsin presbytery, said that many people often mistaken that citizens defense only belongs to military professionals or young men. “However, modern society faces not only risks of warfare, but also big scales disasters such as earthquakes, wild fires, typhoons, floods, landslides and etc,” she noted.
“This citizen defense training is not only suitable for citizens to deal with natural disasters and then offer first-aid rescue, but also a powerful tool to support pastoral ministries of local churches. For example, if there are emergencies within the church, like the elderly accidentally falls or slips when they climb up the stairs, then brothers and sisters can provide better disposals before the ambulance arrives if skills of staunching the bleeding and first-aid techniques are well learned,” she stressed to the audience.
She also reminded that amid Taipei city, New Taipei City and other metropolitan areas in Taiwan, most people live in high buildings, and everyone should have the capabilities to cope with urban fire accidents or earthquakes. “So, it’s absolutely positive for pastors, co-workers, church officials and staffs to take up relevant training courses to enhance the safety of congregation,” she said.
She also encouraged young people to earn a first-aid certificate, like “ STOP THE BLEED” , as an additional talent in careers, whether they serve in the military or engage in different business.
Indicating a stereo-typed myth within the church, that Christian education should only focus on the Bible and theology, she reminds the audience that the church should never abandon its social responsibility as a charity platfor
m of resources, which calls it to work with professional institutes to offer people indispensable trainings for physical and mental development, including practical techniques such as emergency response and first-aid relief.
“When the disaster comes, the church always becomes a rehab center or a critical station of materials distribution, so it can’t idly wait till an unexpected disaster occurs or the social order collapses down,” she said.
In the future, she hoped first-aid relief and emergency response could be promoted by Education Ministry Committee of Chi-Hsin presbytery, so that local churches and its affiliated institutes can work with professional institutions, like Forward Alliance, to hold various training camps according to different local contexts and demands.
Churches in urban areas could focus on escaping from high-rise buildings, she remarked, while churches in rural areas, near the coasts or amid the
mountainous, could pay attention to floods and mudslides. “Vision of emergency response training is to facilitate every local church become a rock-solid shelter for its own community,” she concluded.
The training camp of emergency response also echoes the campaigning ideal of “Whole-Of-Society Defense Resilience Committee”(WSDRC), initiated by both president Lai Ching-te and vice president Hsiao Bi-khim as conveners at Presidential Office. Rev Chen Hsin-liang, general secretary of the PCT, as a committee member of WSDRC, is also strongly committed to uphold Taiwan society’s trainings and capabilities amid emergency response.
Based on the PCT’s firm commitment to Taiwan, and to prepare for kinds of disasters and emergencies lying ahead, Rev Liang called Taiwan churches to actively participate in kinds of emergency training camps for personal safety, church ministry and community welfares.
Translated by Peter Wolfe
