USCCB News Release—U.S. Bishops Mourn Devastation in Haiti, Urge Special

Collection January 16-17 to Support Efforts of USCCB, CRS

January 13, 2010

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

WASHINGTON—The Church mourns the terrible suffering of the people of Haiti, and parishes across the country are urged to take up a special collection the weekend of January 16-17 for the humanitarian efforts of the U.S. bishops and Catholic Relief Service (CRS) in Haiti, according to a January 13 letter to Catholic bishops of the United States from Cardinal Francis George of Chicago and Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York.

Cardinal George, President of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), and Archbishop Dolan, chair of CRS board, said the magnitude 7.0 earthquake that ravaged Haiti “destroyed countless homes, churches, seminaries, schools, and other buildings and has left millions without the most basic necessities of life. Our faith compels us to pray for and reach out to our brothers and sisters in their time of suffering.”

The full letter follows:

Your Eminence/Excellency:

Our Church mourns the terrible suffering of our brothers and sisters in Haiti. The 7.0 magnitude earthquake that ravaged Haiti on January 12, 2010 has already claimed thousands of lives including the Archbishop of Port-au-Prince. It has destroyed countless homes, churches, seminaries, schools, and other buildings and has left millions without the most basic necessities of life. Our faith compels us to pray for and reach out to our brothers and sisters in their time of suffering.

We invite you to encourage your pastors to take up a second collection for the people and Church of Haiti this weekend, January 16 and 17, 2010. These funds will be used to support the efforts of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and Catholic Relief Services, the official international humanitarian agency of the U.S. Catholic Church, as they respond to immediate emergency needs for such necessities as water, food, shelter and medical care, as well as to the long term need to rebuild after widespread destruction, and to the pastoral and reconstruction needs of the Church in Haiti.

Catholic Relief Services is already mounting a major emergency response to this severe disaster and has committed an initial $5 million to fund relief efforts which are likely to go on for some time. Your help and the help of the Catholic people of the United States are urgently needed.

Additional information on the U.S. Catholic community’s response to this emergency and how U.S. Catholics can help can be found at CRS.org and USCCB.org

Cardinal Francis George, O.M.I.
Archbishop of Chicago
President
 

Haiti

Situation: A 7.0 magnitude earthquake has ravaged the island nation of Haiti. The quake occurred 10 miles southwest of the Haitian capital of Port?au?Prince just before 5pm EST.

Port-au-Prince, with a population of over 2 million, has been devastated. CRS Country Representative Karel Zelenka reports that “Port-au-Prince was covered with a plume of dust from damaged buildings. We should be prepared for many thousands of dead and injured.”

Catholic Relief Services is responding to this disaster. We are committed to helping our brothers and sisters as they struggle to come to grips with this tragedy. CRS is mobilizing food and gearing up our emergency capacity, and deploying prepositioned emergency shelter and hygiene kits in Haiti, as well as bringing supplies in from the neighboring Dominican Republic.

For more than 60 years, we have been helping people as they struggle to survive natural disasters. CRS is committed to bringing our experience—and our compassion—to quickly and effectively respond to this string of emergencies. And we are just as committed to being there long after the headlines fade, helping communities build back in a way that ensures they are better equipped to handle future shocks.

But we cannot do this critical work without your help. The needs will be tremendous.

Please give generously to help the thousands of victims on the wake of this disaster and restore their hope as they dig out of the rubble to rebuild their communities—and their lives.

How to Help:

Donate via phone: 1?877?HELP?CRS

Donate online: www.crs.org

Write a check:

Memo portion of check: Haiti Earthquake