Church, groups thankful for ‘parade of compassion’ for victims

CEBUANOS and the rest of central Philippines overcame the double whammy inflicted by an earthquake and supertyphoon “Yolanda” with the outpouring of support from around the country and the rest of the world.

Fr. Emy Maningo of the Redemptorist Church in Cebu gave this message in a concelebrated Mass sponsored by the Cebu Archdiocese and civil society groups at the Cebu Metropolitan Cathedral yesterday afternoon.

“We hope for the victims that God may continue to strengthen them. And it is also for us to be strengthened and to keep striving to rebuild and help out brothers and sisters,” he said.

Maningo said while the earthquake and the typhoon resulted in great loss of life and massive destruction, it also sparked a sense of generosity and compassion from Filipinos and other countries.

Fr. Maningo said the Redemptorist group in Davao City is organizing a mission to areas in Samar which have yet to receive assistance this week.

“I’ve been a missioner in Samar for nine years and I know that there are places there that would take days to reach,” he said.

Aside from physical rehabilitation, Fr. Maningo said the victims need to undergo counseling and spiritual direction.

The Movement for a Livable Cebu, which is organizing an inter-faith prayer service at the social hall of Cebu City Hall at 5 p.m. today, said the 140-km traffic jam to Cebu’s typhoon-stricken areas is proof of the generosity of support.

“That was awesome. It is a parade of compassion never before experienced in the history of our country or probably the whole world,” said group convenor Marc Canton.

Canton said the Mass offered both victims and donors a chance to thank God and reflect on the urgency of working together to rebuild and rehabilitate the devastated areas at the soonest possible time. Correspondent Jose Santino S. Bunachita