His Grace Archbishop Malcolm in an appeal for the Haiti victims said " It is with sadness we hear about the death of the Archbishop of Port-au-Prince in Haiti His Excellency Mons. Joseph Serje-Miot, a number of priests and seminarians and thousands of civilians in the disastrous earthquake that hit that country on 12th January. Let us pray for them and I suggest that we solicit contributions from our parishioners in order to show our closeness to the survivors, most of whom, by the way, are Christians. Send these contributions in cash and kind to Seth Sarana so that they can be directed to Caritas Haiti."

Destroyed Cathedral

Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Papal Nuncio to Haiti wrote this report hours after the quake struck on 13 January.

‘I have just returned this morning. I found priests and nuns in the streets, without homes. The Rector of the seminary survived, as did the Dean of Studies, but the seminarians are under the rubble. Everywhere, you can hear cries from under the rubble. The CIFOR - Institute of Studies for the Men and Women Religious - has collapsed with the students inside, participating in a conference. The nunciature building has withstood the earthquake, without any injuries, but we are all amazed! So many things are broken, including the Tabernacle, but we are more fortunate than others. Many family members of the staff were killed, their homes destroyed. Everyone is calling for help. We will have problems of water and food before long. We cannot enter or stay inside the house much, as the earth continues to shake, so we are camped in the garden.’

‘Port-au-Prince is completely devastated. The Cathedral, the Archbishop's Residence, all the great churches, all the seminaries are reduced to rubble. The pastor of the Cathedral, who survived the earthquake, told me that the Archbishop of Port-au-Prince perished under the rubble, along with hundreds of seminarians and priests who are under the rubble.’

As I write, the Vicar General, Fr Charles Benoit is still missing and nothing has been heard from Missio’s Haitian National Director, Fr Clarck de la Cruz.

Part of the heartbreaking reality of the Haiti earthquake is that many of those who would have offered their support to the shattered lives of the people of the island are themselves victims, an uncounted number also listed amongst the fatalities.

The overwhelming tragedy wrought by the few brief seconds of the earthquake’s duration is poignantly summarised by a photo taken in the rubble of the cathedral in Port-au-Prince: Jesus hangs on the Cross in the midst of his people.

One of the poorest countries on earth, Haiti’s people have experienced a seemingly endless cycle of poverty, political upheavals, crime and natural disasters since it became the world's first black-led republic and the first independent Caribbean State in the early 19th century.

Haiti, last year alone received more than £286,000 in support from Missio, supporting the work of the Church in basic and preventative healthcare, education, pastoral care and building projects, including reconstruction of the Port-au-Prince Archbishop’s offices after massive flooding in May 2009.

‘Last year floods hit; now the earthquake has shocked us with the extent of its devastation,’ said Martin Teulan, Missio’s National Director in Australia. ‘We are saddened by the news of Archbishop Serge-Miot and how many lives have been lost. When the Victorian bushfires devastated people’s lives here a year ago, the greatest response we received for prayer came from the people of Haiti and the Caribbean – people who understand what it means to have little. Their prayers strengthened us. Our prayers will be greatly appreciated and encourage them.’

Another aspect of Haiti’s tragedy was expressed by Isabel Perez, an Ecuadorian who works for Missio in England and Wales and who worked in neighbouring Dominican Republic. ‘We helped many Haitians to set up small projects and schools, assisting them with many other concerns. I’ve been trying since yesterday to contact people to see how they are, but it is so hard. All forms of communication are down. I have heard nothing. All I can do is to watch television and read the news reports... and pray. Just now, all we have is prayer.’

Light shines in darkness, and darkness could not overpower it. (John 1:5)

At this time of darkness for the people of Haiti,
we remember all those who have died in the earthquake,
and the thousands who are injured, homeless or afraid.
God, in your love and compassion,
you are with us always.

You understand the devastation of bereavement,
may your spirit comfort those who mourn.
God, in your love and compassion,
you are with us always.

You are a light that shines in the darkest times,
guide, support and strengthen all those in need.
God, in your love and compassion,
you are with us always.

We ask this in the name of Christ your son,
who became flesh and lived among us.

Amen.

Source: CAFOD

We are in great distress. We have no water reserves and gas stations are closed. There is no electricity. Here in Port-au-Prince things are difficult. We are in need of everything and will continue like this for some considerable time," declared Archbishop Bernardito Auza, Apostolic Nuncio to Haiti. The Pope's special envoy to the devastated country has taken responsibility for coordinating the Catholic Church's response to the disaster after the death in the earthquake of the Archbishop of Port-au-Prince, Archbishop Miot.

"Even the Vicar General of Port-au-Prince, Bishop Charles Benoit, and Chancellor Fr Cherie are still under the rubble. The Archbishop lived within a four-story building that also accommodated the offices of the Archdiocese, but it is now reduced to a pile of concrete," the Nuncio continued. "We have yet to verify the number of priests and religious men and women who have died, as there are still some to be recovered from under the rubble"

Amazingly, Archbishop Auza's house is one of those which is still standing and so Haitian bishops have been able to come together to coordinate the worldwide efforts of Catholics to help the people of Haiti in this enormous tragedy.

In his initial assessment tour, Archbishop Auza visited the Major Seminary, reduced to a heap of concrete, except for one building. Most of the priests and students were able to escape, although three or four seminarians are still missing, and nine have been confirmed dead. "I also visited the religious houses and centres, to observe the situation and to express the concern of the Holy Father. All are grateful and call for help for their members who are still buried in the rubble. We are trying to gather together the religious and priests."

The Archbishop's tour of Church resources has been an essential part of his assessment of the personnel available to offer help and support to the millions made destitute by the earthquake. Tragically, many of those who would have given themselves to help the people of Haiti are themselves amongst the dead and injured.

Part of the Archbishop's new and sad responsibility is to maintain communication with Cor Unum and with Missio, keeping both organisations fully-informed of the needs on the ground.

MISSIO ASSURES HELP HAITI VICTIMS

Missio, the Catholic Church's official body for the support of the Church in the developing countries, was already present in Haiti for many years before the earthquake struck the country that has known a seemingly endless cycle of poverty, civil unrest and natural disasters. In 2009 Missio gave more than £286,000 in support, assisting the work of the Church in basic and preventative healthcare, education, pastoral care and building projects, including major reconstruction in Port-au-Prince after massive flooding in May 2009. Already, since the earthquake, Missio has sent £160,000 to Archbishop Auza to help the people who are worst affected by the tragedy.

Missio-USA has launched the Haitian Solidarity Fund, a special fund for long-term assistance for the Church in Haiti, to continue responding to the needs of the country in the wake of this natural disaster.

Missio-England and Wales will send donations from this country directly to Archbishop Auza. Across the world, its 120 national offices are doing likewise.

Mgr John Dale, for Missio in England and Wales, said: "Missio has always supported the Church in Haiti, helping it to grow and develop in its own distinctive way. Missio is not an emergency aid organisation, but just as we have been present for the Haitians in the past, we need to remain there for their future as they try to reconstruct their homes and lives."

The Jesuit Refugee Services (JRS) are also busily coordinating their efforts and resources; James Stapleton is their Communications Coordinator. Speaking from Rome on behalf of JRS, he explained: "We are similar to Missio insofar as we are there for the long-haul and not just for the crisis. We'll be there for years after the emergency services and the UNHCR have left. Our role is to respond quickly to the emergency, and to help people rebuild hope after the immediate emergency is over. 'We've only about 20-25 Jesuits in Haiti," James explained, "and so far, we've not been able to establish direct contact with them. There are Jesuits in the neighbouring Dominican Republic so we can communicate with them. However, because the earthquake broke most lines of communication, we're also working through other contacts in Latin America. We're fortunate because we can call on the massive experience of the Jesuit Social Apostolate, which has its headquarters in Rome. We can effectively coordinate our actions."

The Salesians, an order of priests, brothers and Sisters with world-renowned experience in teaching and working with poor and
under-privileged young people, have been severely affected by the earthquake. Their collapsed National School of Arts and Trades at Port-au-Prince still buries more than 200 students and Salesians.

Previously, they had offered services of all kinds for 25,000 of Haiti’s poorest children. Now they face the heart-rending realisation that "all children in Port-au-Prince are street children."
 
The Camillians, a 450 year-old order of priests and brothers dedicated to the care of the sick and dying, have a children's hospital in Port-au-Prince. It was seriously damaged by the earthquake. The doctors and Sisters who normally cater for up to 100 patients now have over 400 injured and traumatized children to care for and the number is growing.

"Haiti was a poor country even before the earthquake. Now we are desperate." Fr Lovera, the Director of the hospital explains: 'Everything is destroyed, flattened to the ground. It is not known how many survivors there are... There is no food, there is no water and it is really a tragedy."
 
Mgr John Dale spoke for Missio worldwide: "Missio will stand alongside the Church in Haiti as it attempts to restore some sense of normality to shattered lives. We will be there as the Religious Orders, who were already ministering to the poor, struggle to attend to the needs of millions with greatly-reduced resources. We will be there for as long as the people of Haiti need us and for however many years it takes."  ( Independent Catholic News )

Although getting basic supplies such as food and water to the hundreds of thousands left homeless by Haiti's Jan. 12 earthquake has been a Herculean task, aid workers were finding ways around traffic blockades, crowds of people and the country's lack of infrastructure.

Baltimore-based Catholic Relief Services, which is coordinating the church's relief and recovery efforts in Haiti, was able to get a jump-start on distributing aid because it already had warehouses filled with supplies in Haiti set up after the 2008 hurricanes in the region.

After it distributed plastic sheeting, water storage containers, mosquito nets, and hygiene kits from the Port-au-Prince warehouse Jan 14, the agency began distributing supplies from one of its other warehouses in Les Cayes, about 90 miles from Port-au-Prince.

CRS volunteers and staff in the Dominican Republic were purchasing and assembling boxes of food, including sardines and peanut butter, to deliver to Port-au-Prince. The ultimate goal was to have enough boxes of prepared food to feed 50,000.

Bill Canny, CRS' director of emergency operations, spoke to Catholic News Service while traveling from the Dominican Republic to Haiti. He said some of the relief efforts were still a work in progress, for instance, distribution of food from the U.S. government that arrived in Port-au-Prince via ship Jan. 15.

"We're waiting to see how that develops," he said.

The agency was sending additional supplies from the Dominican Republic: water storage containers and water purification tablets for 2,000 families; and plastic sheeting, water storage containers, mosquito nets and hygiene kits to serve an additional 500 families.

"We're moving additional emergency staff in as quickly as possible," Canny said. "We know it's chaos in Port-au-Prince and help is needed immediately."

Donal Reilly, CRS' regional technical adviser for emergencies, said that the food shipment would begin to fulfill the most pressing needs of Haitians, whose recovery is hampered by their poverty.

Amid the work of distributing basic supplies, CRS also has experts on the ground to determine how to respond to water and sanitation conditions, shelter and medical needs.

Karel Zelenka, CRS' country representative in Haiti, said in a report on the CRS Web site that staff arriving in Haiti will join the CRS staff sleeping outside, in tents or cars, as aftershocks continue in Port-au-Prince. CRS' Haiti headquarters building was damaged but did not collapse.

"Our main office building shows many cracks and people just sort of run in, pick up things that they need, and we do everything outside," Zelenka said. "We have a table set up outside, we pulled out electric cables, we bring computers there and so cannot ask our staff to go in until we have some assurance it is structurally sound."

CRS, the U.S. bishops' international relief and development agency, pledged an initial $5 million for earthquake relief. The agency has been working in Haiti for 55 years. Prior to the earthquake, more than 300 staffers were already in Haiti and more than 100 were based in Port-au-Prince.

CRS President Ken Hackett told CNN Jan. 13 said that the fact that Haiti is a predominantly Catholic country affects the agency's work there.

"It gives us a network of effective partners in the Catholic Church in their schools and their mission and their hospitals and their health centers, so that network in Port-au-Prince is what will be activated first," he said.

Other Catholic relief agencies have also been getting basic supplies ready to ship or have begun distributing them.

Cross International Catholic Outreach, a Catholic aid agency based in Pompano Beach, Fla., distributed food Jan. 13 from 10 trailers containing turkey, soup, canned food, protein drinks and nutritional food packets.

The agency also was assessing earthquake damage in Leogane, a rural area west of Port-au-Prince, that runs along a fault line. Mike Henry, the agency's project officer, was working out of his car in Port-au-Prince.

Food For The Poor, an international Christian relief organization based in Coconut Creek, Fla., has prepared nearly 100 containers of medical supplies, rice and canned food to be distributed in Haiti, where it has a long history of work.

"Our hearts are broken watching this news about the country that we care so much about and have worked in for so long," said Robin Mahfood, the organization's president, in a statement.

On Jan. 15, U.S. military helicopters were ferrying water and other humanitarian relief supplies from an American aircraft carrier to crowds in Port-au-Prince. Volunteers and government workers were occupied with the task of burying the country's dead, which the Red Cross estimated at 45,000-50,000.( By Carol Zimmermann - Catholic News Service )