Typhoon hits Taiwanese Lutheran school March 9, 2026

On July 6, 2025, Typhoon Dulas hit the eastern coast of Taiwan with 75 mph winds, dumping 18 inches of rain that triggered landslides, washed out bridges and ruined fields. The massive storm also caused significant damage at Concordia Middle School, a Christian private school founded by LCMS missionaries in 1967.

Calls for help went out to Rev. Dr. Ross Johnson, director of LCMS Disaster Response, who immediately began putting together plans to assist not only in rebuilding the broken areas of campus, but also in sharing the Gospel with Concordia’s 2,500+ Chinese-speaking students. LHF immediately came to mind.

“What makes LCMS Disaster Response different as an organization is that we like to connect the Word of God and the peace of God in the wake of a disaster, in some capacity bringing God’s Word,” explained Rev. Johnson. “The greatest disaster is to die outside of the one true Christian faith. If we can use this disaster to proclaim Christ, we want to do that.”

While $30,000 in grants helped to start repairing torn-off roofs and removing uprooted trees, Rev. Johnson turned his attention to finding ways to share the Good News with the school’s largely Buddhist population.

“Only a small amount of the students are Christian,” Rev. Johnson said. “We know that this is an opportunity to use this very significant, very shocking storm to tell the students and their families that there is a loving God who cares about them. When I asked our teachers (about a half-dozen LCMS missionaries) how we could bring God’s Word of peace and comfort, they said that they need resources. Now, I personally don’t have a lot of Mandarin resources or even ways of getting English resources to the middle of Taiwan ― but that’s when I had the idea of contacting LHF and seeing what they have available.”

LHF was happy to help.

Rev. Johnson and the Concordia teachers decided they needed Bible books for the youngest children, but also materials for teaching the English language. Catechetical helps in Mandarin and some in English would also be helpful.

In all, LHF ended up shipping more than 4,000 books to Concordia Middle School, including Luther’s Small Catechism, A Child’s Garden of Bible Stories, Lutheranism 101, God’s Word for You and the “Jesus Never Fails” devotion booklet.

“It’s been a perfect partnership!” enthused Rev. Johnson. “We’re sending not only Christian materials, but resources that deliver a proper distinction of Law and Gospel that will lead the kids to the cross ― distinctively Lutheran teachings. I have great confidence knowing that the materials LHF has translated are already going to be confessional in their theological presentation, well-balanced. When we put books like that in their hands, the Holy Spirit changes people lives. It seems like a small thing, but it can make an impact on global Christianity.”

Why Luther’s Small Catechism?

While some churches are drifting away from teaching Luther’s Small Catechism, LCMS missionaries around the world ― including Taiwan ― are finding that this nearly 500-year-old booklet is a powerful tool for teaching the Lutheran faith.

“I find that the catechism is extremely valuable because it’s the clearest articulation of the Christian faith,” reflected Rev. Johnson. “It teaches the Six Chief Parts concisely and in a memorable, balanced way. Not only do we want the students to know Scripture, but how do we summarize what we believe? How do we summarize the 66 books of the Bible in a concise way? The Apostles’ Creed helps us to do that. Then how do we explain the Creed? That’s where the catechism comes in.”

Importantly for the Christian minority in a country like Taiwan, the catechism “connects us to 500 years of Lutheran ancestry. It connects the Church in the U.S., Taiwan, Germany, Brazil, anywhere we go: we’re speaking and articulating the same language of faith.”

Connecting to something solid

In a world with all kinds of bad theology that confuses people and leads them astray, it can be hard to know what is the will of God.

“Especially after storms and tragedies, there are all kinds of crazy doctrines,” Rev. Johnson shared. “People ask: Is there a God? Why did this happen? We see a huge rise of Pentecostal teachings and theology of glory. The Small Catechism fights off false teachings and helps us stay central to the faith that here is a God who does love us and cares about us, even when we don’t understand what’s going on. He’s our God who died on the cross for us and comes to us every single Sunday to give us His body and blood in the Sacrament, washing our sins away.

“When we memorize those words, the Word becomes a part of who we are,” he concluded. “So when the trials of life come, we’re not just drifting. We’re connected to something solid ― God’s Word.”