Disaster Relief for Pacific and Southeast Asia

Dear Readers,

As I attempt to gather my thoughts for this page, I’m moved by the gripping news coming from the Pacific and Southeast Asia: powerful tropical storms and devastating typhoons hitting the Philippines and Taiwan, tsunamis with 20-foot waves in Sumatra, 8-point earthquakes affecting Samoa and lives hanging precariously in the balance.

“It’s like at the times of Noah,” they wrote from our sister magazine in the Philippines. Our hearts go out to our friends in Samoa, the Philippines and Indonesia, and we would like to be there to help.
Thousands of people, our brothers and sisters, are in dire need of shelter, medicine, clothing, and a constructive wave of solidarity is spreading across the globe.

We firmly believe in the love of God and, in times like these, we see how his love is expressed by people of good will. Even out of these devastating circumstances good can come — greater generosity, a sense of being one family, brothers and sisters suffering and rejoicing together, greater awareness of the connectedness of everything in nature and a commitment to become better stewards.

This issue focuses on facing world crises and building a global community.
Our goal is to raise awareness and encourage a response to the needs of our local and global community.
May this issue be of inspiration to each of us in this time of global tragedy,

Clare Zanzucchi

The Focolare community in the Philippines suffered great losses. Through our communion of goods in the two weeks after the floods, more than 5,000 people received emergency care (including food, water, clothing, blankets, boots, housing and medical care) and many more are still in need.

To help, send contributions payable to New Humanity to: New Humanity, P. O. Box 11791, New Brunswick, NJ 08906. Specify for disaster relief.