Bishop Joseph Galante has announced that all parishes of the Diocese of Camden will take up a special collection during the weekend of January 16-17, 2010 to provide emergency relief to the regions affected by Tuesday’s earthquake, which has devastated the country of Haiti.
“The extent of physical damage, loss of life and human suffering are unprecedented. We pray for those whose lives have been lost and for all those who are grieving and suffering so greatly, including many in the Haitian communities here in South Jersey,” said Bishop Galante in his letter to parishioners of the diocese.
“Given the enormity of this tragedy, the scope of destruction and the need to speed emergency relief to those areas hardest hit by this disaster, I am asking all the parishes of the Diocese of Camden to take up a special Haiti Relief Collection this weekend of January 16-17, 2010. As evidence of our solidarity with our suffering sisters and brothers in Haiti, I encourage parishes to designate the Haiti Relief Collection as the first collection at Masses this weekend, while taking up the second collection for parish needs,” he said in a letter to parishioners.”
The collection monies will help support the efforts of Catholic Relief Services (CRS) which has initially committed $5,000,000 to provide immediate assistance to victims.
“The people of Haiti are our neighbors. They are our sisters and brothers. They need us now. Please pray for them and give as generously as you can in support of this urgent relief effort,” said Bishop Galante.
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The parishes of diocese are home to 500,000 Catholics in the six southern counties of South Jersey: Camden, Cape May, Gloucester, Salem, Atlantic, and Cumberland.
Catholic Relief Services of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops works in solidarity with the poor in more than 90 countries and territories. CRS acts with local communities and partners to respond to natural and humanitarian disasters and to address the root causes of poverty through long-term sustainable development projects. (see www.crs.org for more information)