Autoegocrat and others examining Romans 13 in response to this story might want to read David Barton’s review of the alternative theological interpretation of that passage, an understanding of the scripture as shared by the American Revolutionaries:

[U]nder the Framers’ understanding of Romans 13, the American Revolution was not an act of anarchy and rebellion; rather it was an act of resistance to a government which violated the Biblical purposes for which God had ordained civil government.

As for the other questions at hand:

Q. Do I have an objection to clergy members helping the government maintain order and assuage the public in the aftermath of a “nuclear, biological or chemical attack on U.S. soil,” or following a natural disaster?

A. I do not.

Q. On the other hand, would I allow a pastor or priest to confiscate my firearms or strip away any other measure of self-defense, as apparently happened during the state of emergency in the city of New Orleans following Hurricane Katrina?

A. No, I would not (that is, if I were armed in the first place), for some of the same reasons our founders maintained their own armament, and in light of that very same interpretation of scripture.