DISASTER UPDATE: An LCMS Disaster Response team will depart for the Philippines on Tuesday morning at the request of LCMS president, Rev. Dr. Matthew C. Harrison and Lutheran Church of the Philippines president, Rev. James Cerdenola, who shared the following: To all my brothers and sisters in the Lord. As we all know by now, our dear Philippines suffered so much devastation as super typhoon Yolanda roared across central Philippines last friday. We have three congregations in the areas that were worst hit. They are served by two of our Pastors, Rev. Nick Ranara in Tacloban and Rev. Xavier James Palattao in Mahayag, Albuera, Leyte. With power and telephone networks down, many of the worst hit areas remain cut off from communication making it difficult to precisely determine the damage Yolanda has wrought. Last night I received a text from Pastor Xavier James who reported that almost all houses in his area including, that of our members, were totally destroyed or damaged by Yolandas winds. The church building and the parsonage were not spared. I also hope to hear from our brother, pastor Nick about their situation. Many lives were lost and many are homeless and have lost their livelihoods. Brethren, this is the time for all of us to help each other. I ask you to join me in praying for all the helpless victims of Yolanda and also to extend help in many ways as you are able. God bless you. To learn more and make a gift: lcms.org/disaster
Posted on: Mon, 11 Nov 2013 13:24:48 +0000