While residents in the Philippines struggle to get back to normality in the aftermath of Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan), church congregations in the area are continuing to have regular worship.
Typhoon Yolanda roared through the Central Philippines in November, killing almost 4,000 people. That number is expected to rise as recovery efforts continue.
Congregations are meeting in construction sites and shells of former churches as they wait for repairs of typhoon damage. The worship offers survivors a glimpse of hope amid the devastation.
‘Hold on to your faith, be strong, and Tacloban will rise again’, the Rev. Isagani Petilos told his congregation on Sunday.
In a prayer in a Filipino senate session, Filipino Senate Minority Leader Juan Ponce Enrile prayed for strength. ‘Strengthen our faith that we may overcome and be born again into a new world wiser and more human to the needs of others’, he said.
Also, the Foreign Aid Transparency Hub (FAiTH) launched. The hub is meant to detail information on help and donations for better transparency. The total foreign aid pledge in FAiTH is about $271 million.
