Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Concepcion (Agenzia Fides) –The Archbishop of Concepción, His Exc. Mgr. Fernando Chomalí, has launched an appeal to the Chilean people so that they do not forget the poverty of those who still live in villages set up due to the emergency caused by the earthquake and tsunami on 27 February 2010. The Archbishop invited the community to participate in the winter campaign, promoted throughout the month of July, especially to help those affected by the earthquake and now suffer from the cold wave that has hit the country.
In fact, Chile, as the whole area of South America, is suffering a bitter cold wave. Temperatures in the metropolitan region of Santiago, Chile, have fallen to 8.5 degrees below zero, the lowest level so far this year. The local meteorologists reported that the freezing temperatures, which have already caused the deaths of several homeless people in the capital, are caused by the passage of a polar wind accompanied by dry air.
"I was shocked to see the villages, the conditions in which many people still live - said Msgr. Chomalí -. We want to help with a campaign that is targeted primarily to Catholics but to all people of good will, to collect non-perishable food, so that these people can at least eat in the best possible way". In addition, the Archbishop said that this is an act of justice towards people who have lost all the fruits of their work in the earthquake.
The note sent to Fides reports that, after a tour in the region, among the emergency villages set up in Biobío, the Archbishop was shocked to see how people live in humidity, poverty and vulnerability. Mgr. Chomalí said that the community cannot act as if this reality does not exist, because the raison d'être of the Church is precisely to serve. (EC) (Agenzia Fides 06/07/2011)
