Residents, who survived Super Typhoon Haiyan, receive holy communion during Sunday mass inside the Redemptorist Church in Tacloban city, central Philippiness November 17, 2013. Survivors of Typhoon Haiyan flocked to ruined churches on Sunday, kneeling in prayer under torn roofs as the Philippines faced an enormous rebuilding task from the storm that killed at least 3,681 people and displaced 4 million. The Philippines is facing up to an enormous rebuilding task from Typhoon Haiyan, with many isolated communities yet to receive significant aid despite a massive international relief effort.(MNS photo)
MANILA (Mabuhay) – After sending 3,000 rosaries, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) through the Episcopal Commission for the Biblical Apostolate (ECBA) will be sending 1,000 copies of Tagalog Bibles to the survivors of typhoon “Yolanda” that ravaged the Central Philippines.
Dr. Natividad Pagadut, ECBA executive secretary, said they hope to help those affected in the different dioceses in the Visayas to stand-up again and strengthen their faith by giving them the Bibles.
“The distribution of the Bible will hopefully help them to stand up again, to strengthen their faith, and to improve as persons. So it is best to couple it with formation, counseling and to guide them on what to read in the Bible during this time. With this, they will be consoled, challenged, they will gain hope to move on, and get up from this terrible experience,” she said in an article posted on the CBCP news website.
Pagadut believed that the giving out of the Bibles should be combined with formation of the people in order for them to know how to use and what to read in the Holy Book in times of calamities.
She also suggested to the people to read the Psalms especially the Lamentation Psalms where it expressed the sadness and disappointments of the people to God.
“It is not wrong to express sadness, disappointments, etc. to God. We should not forget our faith and still cling to Him. And take note that there is hope,” the ECBA official added.
Likewise, the group gave 100 copies of children’s Bible to help them get up from the devastating experience.
Pagadut noted that people should do away with the notion of looking at calamities as punishment from God.
“Sometimes, people think that this is a punishment from God, a wake-up call or something…We should outgrow that, especially if you will say that to people who were stricken with calamity. So we have to graduate from that and say that it is a natural calamity,” she said
The ECBA official added, “We just have to cling to God because the more we give up, the more we suffer. For the Filipino people, our faith helps us to cling on to God and to stand up again and go on.” (MNS)