Read a June 26, 2006, analysis by The New York Times saying that scams and mismanagement related to Katrina relief could cost taxpayers $2 billion.

The Federal Bureau of Investigation posts a page of examples of Katrina fraud.

Read an November 2006 commentary from Rabbi Jeffrey Kurtz-Lendner of New Orleans, published in Smartphone & Pocket PC Magazine, about how wireless technology helped him keep in touch with his congregation in the weeks after Katrina.

Read an April 4, 2006, Beliefnet story from a Katrina survivor who writes that “the only thing that keeps me sane is knowing that God has a purpose for me.”

The Gulf Coast region includes many religious influences – among them, evangelical Protestantism and strong Catholicism, intertwined with a deeply Southern sense of family rootedness and place. Read a Sept. 18, 2005, story from The Boston Globe about the “distinctively Southern” nature of Katrina’s impact, and about how some people have responded in religious terms.

Guy L. Beck is an adjunct professor at Tulane University in the Asian studies and religion studies departments. He is the author of Sonic Theology: Hinduism and Sacred Sound.

Robert Hanser is the head of the criminal justice department and the assistant professor of criminal justice at the University of Louisiana at Monroe.

Tonja Myles is a former addict and founder of the Set Free Indeed Ministry and Clinic in Baton Rouge, La., a faith-based addiction clinic. Myles was recognized by former President Bush at the 2003 State of the Union address. She and her husband, Darren, founded Set Free Indeed 14 years ago. They offer one-on-one counseling for people […]

Shayne Lee is an assistant professor of sociology at Tulane University in New Orleans. He is the author of T.D. Jakes: America’s New Preacher (New York University Press, 2005).