he dust and smoke have cleared in New York City. You can stand on an observation platform and get a clear view of the hole in the heart of Manhattan. Even now, as the World Trade Center catastrophe recedes into last year's news, you can stand in a crowd of New Yorkers visiting the site and share their sense of grief and loss.

Seventh-day Adventists in the Greater New York area have grieved their own losses, but they have also reached out to assist and comfort individuals in their communities. Churches have been open for prayer and counsel, and congregations have offered tangible help to many who have been directly affected by the disaster.

Don Schneider, North American Division (NAD) president, expressed the sentiments of many with his passionate call for an immediate concerted response. Adventists throughout North America eagerly responded.

But precisely what can the church and its members do?

With a population of about 8 million, the city is a cultural melting pot. It has the largest concentration of Chinese people in the Western Hemisphere. One New Yorker out of four is Hispanic. One in ten is a recent immigrant, and many of them do not speak English. One in four is Jewish, and 43 percent call themselves Catholic.

Beyond the language and cultural barriers is the enormous challenge of the raw numbers. Imagine 65,500 people packed into one square mile. Then imagine 22 more square miles just like the first. That's the island of Manhattan, the heart of New York City, in addition to an extended metropolitan area with a population of more than 20 million.

Then there's the very atmosphere of the place. In spite of landmark churches, renowned seminaries, and millions of at least nominally religious people, the city has a distinctly secular soul and a flagrantly materialistic heart. It's the hub of world commerce and an international capital of the entertainment industry.

How do you reach a city like this? What should be the "shape" of the church's response to the events of September 11? And how should this division-wide initiative correlate with the plans and programs of the Greater New York Conference and the Northeastern Conference, the two organizations responsible for the ongoing work in New York City?

Jim Gilley, general vice president of the NAD, directed the effort to study these issues. Gilley and Gordon Henderson, the division's on-scene coordinator, worked with the local conferences and the Atlantic Union to outline a plan of action. The New York initiative focuses mainly on Manhattan, where the impact of the terrorist attack is most evident. The goal is to plant several new congregations and strengthen existing ones.

The methodology is diverse, reflecting the varied nature of the population. It includes publicity, on-the-street witnessing, literature distribution by hand and through the mail, personal visitation in homes and places of business, occasional "bridge" events such as concerts and seminars, and public evangelism.

Spearheading the effort is the Center for Youth Evangelism's We Care program. Hundreds of Adventist youth are going to New York for a week of training and street ministry directed by Brian Yeager and the eXtreme Team. The We Care project will continue through early May.

Teams of Bible workers from the Black Hills Mission College of Evangelism, sponsored by Advent-ist-Laymen's Services and Industries, are focusing on person-to-person outreach in Manhattan. Other Bible worker teams are already at work, with more to come.

Taewook Yang and Jae Hwan Shin, seminary students from Korea, are taking time off from their academic pursuits to plant a new Korean congregation in midtown Manhattan.

The Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary, with financial support from the Central California Conference, has posted Don and Ruth James to New York to lead out in cell-church ministry.

Other unions and conferences expect to put their plans into action over the next several weeks. There will be additional Bible worker teams, volunteers to help with health and lifestyle programs, evangelists and church planting experts, and targeted funding for various projects.

God Loves New York is an idea that took shape under the leadership of Jim Hoehn, Kansas-Nebraska Conference president, to reassure New Yorkers that God loves them and that He is especially near in times of trouble.

God Loves New York will be publicized through the mass distribution of buttons bearing the campaign's logo, phone number, and Web site (www.godlovesnewyork.com). Matching labels will be affixed to thousands of pieces of free literature. The buttons will be mounted on tear-off cards advertising special events, Bible courses, etc.

The Web site affirms that "God is a personal Being who is deeply interested in the lives of all New Yorkers. He sees beyond the tragedy and triumphs of their earthly existence to the prospect of an eternal future in a world forever free from sorrow, pain, and death."

God Loves New York will connect with other aspects of the New York initiative, providing a common identity and promoting evangelistic meetings, lifestyle seminars, and other special events. In addition, it will generate new Bible study leads and introduce New Yorkers to Adventist churches and services.

Adventist administrators all over North America recognize that plans and personnel and financial aid can have long-term positive effects in New York only as they are integrated into local programs. They know that the real experts on the work in that great city are already there, pastoring churches and coordinating Adventist outreach in the local conferences.

The members and church leaders in New York City have a long-term, personal commitment to soul winning and church growth. With emergency resources from sister organizations throughout the NAD-and under the blessing and direction of Heaven-their hands will be strengthened to accomplish their mission.

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Jim Wood is pastor of Hutchinson, McPherson, and Salina, Kansas, churches and coordinator of the God Loves New York program