Only one church in this Washington city responded to official calls to help the homeless

Three months ago, the city of Tacoma, Washington issued an official call for churches to help the city's increasing homeless population. Since then, only one has responded.

As Tacoma's KOMO News reports, Bethlehem Baptist Church's pastor, Dr. Eric Jackson, credited fear as one of the main reasons churches in the area haven't adequately responded to the city's homelessness crisis.

"Fear can be a major driver to doing or not doing a certain thing, even when it's a good thing," Jackson told KOMO.

After Tacoma City Council "loosened ordinances to encourage religious organizations and nonprofits to consider opening homeless shelters," Jackson, whose church had hosted shelter before, immediately jumped on board.

Bethlehem Baptist Church will host 15 families (approximately 75 people) in the church's gymnasium, which is slated to be open to them starting in January.