Cardinal Luis Antonio Tagle, Archbishop of Manila, has called for a day of prayer and fasting this Saturday for the victims of the typhoon that struck the Philippines last week.
The cardinal sent a letter to the clergy and faithful of the Archdiocese, declaring November 16th a day of penance, recollection and fasting.
Calling it a “Day of Lament and Hope: Solidarity in Prayer”, Cardinal Tagle said it will be a day of communion and solidarity for those “who are suffering, grieving and confused because of the successive calamities that affected the country.”
Cardinal Tagle will lead a prayer service in the parish of San Fernando de Dialo in Manila on Saturday evening.
According to the Catholic Bishops Conference of the Philippines, the cardinal assured victims of the typhoon that they are not alone in their suffering and called for collections around the archdiocese to aid those in need.
“It is a time to console and embrace our neighbors. It is a time to show a love that is stronger than an earthquake or a typhoon. With this love, human lives would be restored and our nation rebuilt,” Cardinal Tagle said days after the natural disaster.
In an interview with Vatican Radio, the Archbishop of Manila said that while shocked by the images of the destruction typhoon Haiyman left, he said he was strengthened “from the love, the concern, the solidarity pouring in, not just from other parts of the Philippines but from all over world.”
“I’m deeply consoled when I see and hear testimonies of faith, especially from the victims who have lost loved ones. They turn to God, saying in God we have hope,” he said. (J.A.E.)
