On January 15, 2009,  US Airways Flight 1549 (popularly referred to as the Miracle on the Hudson) was a scheduled commercial passenger flight from New York City to Charlotte, North Carolina.  That flight was successfully ditched in the Hudson River adjacent to Manhattan six minutes after departing from LaGuardia Airport. The captain was Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger, 57, a former fighter pilot who had been an airline pilot since leaving the Air Force in 1980. He is also a safety expert and a glider pilot.

While on its initial climb out, the Airbus A320 struck a flock of Canada Geese which resulted in an immediate and nearly complete loss of thrust from both engines. When the aircrew determined that the aircraft would be unable to safely reach any airfield from its location just northeast of the George Washington Bridge, they turned it southbound and glided over the river into which they ditched the airliner near the USS Intrepid Museum in midtown Manhattan about three minutes later. Shortly before impact with the water the announcement would come over the intercom system “brace for impact”, to which they did.  As a result of someone who was in command with great training and as a result of a skilled and calm crew as well as obedient passengers, all 155 occupants safely evacuated the airliner, which was still virtually intact though partially submerged and slowly sinking. The occupants were quickly rescued by nearby watercraft.  It was the only major airline crash recorded in history without a fatality.

So, what does this have to do with today and what does it have to do with church safety and security?  I believe there is a tremendous correlation and as such, I am working on a separate article entitled: “Sound the Shofar: A Warning to Christians Around the World.".  But I do not want to give too much of that article away.

However, what I would challenge each of you to do today is spend a few moments and go to Google (or your favorite search engine for that matter) and type in the words “Malaysia Church Attacks”.  If you have not been keeping up with some of the world news than you have missed much of what is happening in Malaysia over the past two weeks.  While the mainstream media is not providing it much coverage (after all, we are dealing with attacks against Christian churches), you can find much written about these events through Christian media outlets.

So, why then “Brace For Impact”?  Because it is my prediction that we are beginning to see an uprising of attacks against Christian churches across the world and I believe it is even beginning to grow here in the United States.  During the past several weeks there have been warnings from police officials in northern Florida to central Alabama to most recently east Texas.  You can go to your same search engine and type in “Texas Church Fires” and see what is happening there. 

I believe the Church in general in America needs to “Brace For Impact” and we need to do so with the right leadership, as exampled by Captain Scully on flight 1549.  For those of you who do not know me, I am not by nature a pessimist.  While I have my faults, those who know me best would have no hesitation describing me as a pessimist.  But the truth be known, in this matter I wish to refer to myself as a REALIST.

To give you an idea of the frequency of incidents against churches, please go to our web site at http://www.churchriskmanagement.org and scroll down to the section called CHURCH SAFETY/SECURITY EVENTS & ISSUES IN THE NEWS and check out what is happening in the United States on a daily basis.

So, “Brace For Impact” and stay tuned for my next writing, “Sound the Shofar:  A Warning to Christians Around the World”.

God Bless.

Michael R. Boutot
Executive Director
Institute for Church Safety & Risk Management

Disclaimer. This post/blog does not constitute legal advice. You should consult a lawyer if you have any questions about any issues in this article that might impact your specific church. On-line legal information can become out-of-date and are subject to legal interpretation depending on particular facts and circumstances.  ICSARM maintains a list of qualified Christian attorneys across the United States and Canada.

Michael Boutot is the founder of the Institute for Church Safety & Risk Management, LLC (ICSARM), a church consulting group specializing in insurance evaluations, risk management assessments and litigation management. Michael can be reached at michael@churchriskmanagement.org or via phone at (662) 322-6713. To learn more about ICSARM, visit http://www.ChurchRiskManagement.org.