Chile Earthquake Relief
Please lift up prayers to our gracious and loving Lord for all Chileans and their families affected by the recent earthquake. Pray for the Anglican Church in Chile as they respond to the needs. Please pray for this effort by the church and that is detailed below. Additionally, SAMS will be sending immediate assistance to the Diocese of Chile for relief efforts.
If God is leading you to participate in the relief effort with SAMS, you may give through our World Relief Fund. You may give online to our “World Relief Fund - Chile.” Or if you give by check, please put in the memo section of your check: “World Relief – Chile.” Also I encourage you to pray for Bishop Tito Zavala and our missionaries Chris Feuillade (who will be returning soon to Santiago) and Russ, Heidi, Joyanne and Jocelyn Smith (who are all well in Santiago). May the peace and comfort of the Lord be with all who are walking through this tragedy.
The following are updates from Chile:
Newsletter from Alf Cooper (PDF)
Email from Heidi Smith on March 4:
…Russ is now home again, that he was on one of the first international flights allowed to arrive at the airport Wed. and that the people in Calera de Tango (whom I hadn´t heard from then) were without electricity and phone for several days but are fine and now have both again.
Translation of letter from pastor in Concepcion by Heidi Smith on March 4:
March 2
…The truth is that the 8.8 degrees of the earthquake shook our homes and churches such as has never before been seen. All of the things in our homes such as dishes, tv, pictures on the wall, furniture, etc. were destroyed. The truth is that very few things were saved. In spite of this, the mercy of our Lord is infinite. Very few homes of our brothers and sisters in the faith suffered damage and thanks to the Lord, up to now, we do not know of any of the brethren who have died....and there are close to 1000 people dead.
Our church building was damaged but did not fall. There is serious structural damage, especially considering that our building is more than 90 years old! We are trusting God that with time, we will be able to repair these damages and so be able to meet for worship as we do normally in our building.
With all this, we have seen the hand of God and His love in spite of facing difficult moments. These moments remind us more that ever that our God is faithful and powerful.
In Christ,
Sergio Sapunar
pastor, St. John´s Church
Concepción, Chile
Translated extract from a letter from Bishop Hector Zavala, Anglican Church in Chile, March 3:
To: Parishes and Mission groups of the Anglican Church in Chile
From: The Diocesan Bishop
Date: 1 March 2010
Beloved in Christ,
May the grace, mercy and love of Christ be with each one of you.
Apart from the VIII Region, the general situation of the church is good. There has been no loss of life, although there is some structural damage to buildings which will need to be repaired during the second stage of recovery.
The little information we have received on what is happening in Concepción, hampered by the breakdown in communications and the supply of electricity, is as follows:
· The city of Concepción is still isolated; electricity supply has not been established, and due to lack of transport no food, water or petrol is getting through.
· Around seventy families from our church have been affected. Our brethren are sleeping in tents in three different parts of the city: Manqimavida, San Pedro de la Paz and Las Lomas.
· As the families are grouped together they can share cooking pots and maximise the few provisions they have between them.
At an emergency meeting, the Diocese decided to take help to the area. We called upon our churches, both in Chile and abroad to help carry out the following plan:
1. It is very important for the church to unite and mobilise, to help, first of all, our brethren in the churches in Concepción, and then the other seriously affected towns in the VII Region.
2. We would like to support those affected in an integrated way (body, mind and spirit)
3. We are asking pastors and lay leaders to create and organise prayer networks in each church, so that ultimately the Lord may be glorified in this whole situation.
4. Churches in the metropolitan area of Santiago are asked to help with funds, non perishable goods, nappies [diapers], bottled water and blankets. Please get in touch with this office if you need help with transport.
5. God willing, on Tuesday 2 March I hope to take a truck of goods to Concepción. Another truck is due to leave for the coastal area of the VII Region at the same time.
6. On Wednesday 3 March a lorry will depart with goods for Concepción.
7. In Concepción itself we will need to evaluate the situation on the ground.
Finally, we remember the words of our Lord Jesus Christ “For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. The King will reply, 'I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers of mine, you did for me'.”
In the service of Christ
Rt Revd Hector Zavala
Diocesan Bishop
The following is the translation of a letter that Bishop Henry Scriven received from one of his friends living in Concepcion, one of the areas of Chile hit hardest by the earthquake.
Brothers and Sisters:
Our country is submerged in pain, death and hopelessness. The effects of the earthquake, combined with tsunamis, are indescribable. The images transmitted on television, while dramatic, do not reflect all of the pain and drama of all the victims of this great tragedy. The cities most affected are those of the 7th and 8th regions of the country. Many people there lost their lives, their homes, and their belongings. Others who survived were left, in many cases, with only the clothes on their backs. Today the government has recognized that there are more than 700 dead. There are no figures with regards to how many are injured or missing. With regard to homes, there are more than 500,000 completely destroyed and many others in a precarious condition and difficult for people to live in.
In the area of Concepción we do not have any direct information about our churches, pastors or the theological institute we have in Concepción. (Note: I have since found out that it was flattened.) We know that there is a lot of destruction, that there are families and churches that are suffering. The area of Concepción has also suffered tsunamis like in Talcahuano yesterday, when the sea came as far up as the centre of the city, leaving a trail of death, pain and suffering.
Despite the pain, we affirm our hope, and participate in the activities of tending to the reduction of pain and suffering, and accompanying our brothers, sisters, and the Chilean people in general because there are many spiritual needs even in the midst of so much material destruction.
Your prayers and solidarity help us a lot in these moments.
May our great God bless you.
Your brother in Christ,
Jose Luis
Update from Heidi Smith (missionary in Santiago) on March 1:
Yes, we are all fine. Missing Russ of course, and praying for his return SOON. He was supposed to fly out of Chicago tomorrow but no confirmation on that yet.
As you can imagine, it was a very scary experience. Joyanne was at a friend's and Jocelyn, mercifully, was sleeping with me that night. I say that because if she had been in her own room, I would not have been able to get to her, due to things that fell, blocking the door between her room and mine! As it was, I stood in my doorway and prayed that what felt like being on a roller coaster would stop soon, thanking Jesus for His protection. I was going to let Jocelyn sleep, but when I saw the wall moving and heard the ceiling creak, I decided to get her under the doorway with me. Pablo and Lisette, the Chilean couple who are with us, were there. She screamed the entire time. It didn't help that they opened the garage door and saw the car jumping up and down!! I did not see that, nor did I see the trees sway as if they were being uprooted. When it finally ended, I was shaky but not hysterical. I know it was God's peace that sustained me. It turned out that Jocelyn had been dreaming that her brother and sister were having a loud party with lots of dancing, of course that was the earthquake movement. Then someone at the party was screaming and she was telling them to be quiet because she was trying to sleep. That's when I woke her up. So, she really only experienced the very end of it. Then Pablo suggested we go to where Joyanne was to make sure she was okay. So we did, driving carefully down the no streetlight, no stoplight streets. We weren't the only ones out. It seemed everyone was going to check on relatives. Of course at that time, no one knew how bad it was.
We are still without electricity or phone, but we do have water. I am at school today helping with the cleanup efforts here, and using their computer.
Please pray Russ will be able to be with us soon. It was a mercy that a man from church saw on Facebook that Russ did not know about us and came himself to see us. He let me go to his house and use my Vonage device to call. I got to talk to Russ, my mom, my sisters and Joel and Joshua. That was wonderful, especially since CNN had been showing the absolute worst pictures of the destruction! Minutes after I finished using his computer, they lost electricity. God has been so faithful.
No news yet from Calera de Tango.
Thanks for your prayers. We'll let you know when Russ is safely home.
Heidi
Letter from Presiding Bishop, Gregory Venables, to the dioceses of the Southern Cone (March 1st) translated from Spanish:
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ
We are writing to you let you know that we have been in touch with Bishop Tito in the Diocese of Chile office this morning.
The internet service and communications in general have been partially restored and working in the Diocesan office. Bishop Tito would like to assure you that both he and Bishop Abelino, the office and pastoral staff and their families are well. Their concern is that the only place they have not been able to make contact with so far is Concepcion, one of the most affected areas.
Currently Bishop Tito and his diocesan team are coordinating the work to make contact with each zone. The pastors are going out to visit each member of their communities and churches to evaluate the situation and check on any damage which has taken place. The road and air transport situation is very complicated, but they hope to be able to drive to Concepción in the next few days with relief and gifts to help in the area.
For the moment, meetings and retreats planned for the next few weeks have been postponed until transport can be re-established.
The bishop and the whole community are grateful for your the prayers and support. The main thing they need is calm, clarity and sensitivity as they make decisions in this emergency situation. We will be in touch with you when a clearer picture emerges over the next few days as to the specific needs of our brothers and sisters in Chile.
We will stay in touch with you.
Fraternal greetings in Christ
++Gregory Venables, Presiding Bishop, Province of the Southern Cone of America
From the former Bishop of Chile, Colin Bazley and his wife, Barbara (on the SAMS Canada website):
February 28, 2010, From Colin & Barbara Bazley:
"We are so grateful for your prayers and those of many people all over the world. It was the 7th strongest quake of all time since records began. It was terrible here but we were some distance from the epicentre. We went to Providencia church today and met people from Concepción who had come to Santiago before the earthquake and now can't get back. One of them told me that her husband's business premises had been razed to the ground and he was going to declare himself bankrupt tomorrow."
February 27, 2010, From Colin & Barbara Bazley:
"Thanks for your note. It was truly a mind-boggling experience. We were shaken awake at 3.34 this a.m. and I got out of bed in our top 24th floor flat and ran to the room where our guests from Bebington, David and Ann Renison, were sleeping, As I ran along the corridor the first of the huge jerks occurred and threw me from wall to wall. I eventually got their door open and David came to the door where we both sank to the floor. We stayed there wedged as best we could, he against the bed and I against the door while the jerks continued.
"It seemed never-ending and while I was there, I remembered that this was our Golden Wedding Day and in between all the other succession of thoughts I smiled to myself! The noise was deafening with crashes and thumpings as things slid around, roofing banging continuously. The lurching of the building was as if the top of the building was like the end of a whip as it jerked from one side to the other.
"When the movement stopped I went back and found Barbara trying to get out. It was very hard as three pieces of furniture had fallen down flat, with books and other stuff all over the place, so she had to climb over the bed in the darkness. The electricity had cut out immediately. The mobile phone rang and it was daughter Katherine asking if we were OK. We managed to get some clothes on, and shoes as well because there was glass all over the place, Two bottles of wine broken with contents all over the kitchen floor.
"Then son-in-law Enrique arrived. It was dark as there was no electricity, nor water or gas either. He had climbed up the 24 floors to our flat as the lifts weren't functioning, carrying torches and some anoraks. He led us down and outside into the patio where we all gathered with the Lagos and Enrique's mother. We just sat there on some seats for a couple of hours and Fernanda plied us with bottled water. Then we were allowed back into (other daughter ) Margaret's flat on ground floor. Katherine and Rodrigo then arrived with flasks of tea. After a while it was decided we should go back with them. We spent the rest of the night and up to mid-morning there. Then David and I went back with grandson Francisco to collect some essentials - medication, clothing, etc. We were able to get into the one lift working up to our flat on the top (24th) floor, gathered stuff out of the total mess there and left it to be cleared up another day. We then went back to Katherine's where we had a lovely comforting lunch.
"We had planned to have a celebratory meal tonight but in view of the devastation decided to put it off till later on. There is so much devastation up and down the country, 740 dead, many more injured. Most new buildings have held up as they are built with modern anti-seismic methods. Most of us felt it would be inappropriate, though some didn't want to deprive people from earning much-needed cash at this time. But it was an 8.8 earthquake (more than Haití in fact) and there are 1.5 million homeless. The main Pan American highway motorway joining the major cities North to South has been broken in several places as bridges have collapsed. Here in Santiago the airport has been badly damaged. Concepción, 500 km South of here is a total mess. News is very jumbled at present. We'll prepare a proper letter soon. But we are grateful to the Lord for his care and praying for those who have suffered far more than we have.
"It wasn’t the Golden Wedding we had planned. But to see the way our families here have pulled together, gave us and our visitors so much care and love, made it a real golden day for us. Sammy, Enrique and Margaret’s son, had very concerned communications with his girl-friend, Peggy, a Chilean Christian girl who is on a two-year contract at a Christian school in Taiwán, received a text message from her. She quoted Isaiah 54:10: “The mountains may disappear and the hills may come to an end, but my love will never disappear. My promise of peace will never come to an end”. My Psalm this morning was number 138, and verses 7 and 8; “Though I walk in the midst of danger, yet will you preserve my life...the Lord will complete his purpose for me. Your loving kindness, o Lord, endures for ever; do not forsake the work of your own hands”.
"We stayed at Katherine and Rodrigo’s overnight. It was a quiet night, with just a few small after-shocks that didn’t wake us. We look forward to going to the Providencia church this morning to worship with God’s people. We value your prayers more than we can say."
Update from Peti Webster (former SAMS missionary to Santiago) on Feb 28:
Hi there,
When I heard about the quake yesterday I immediately started dialing and of course was not successful. 1 1/2 hours after, still dialing different numbers periodically, Luis and Maggie's phone actually rang and she answered. Our conversation went as follows:
Hi Maggie, it's Peti, is everyone OK?
Peti, I talked to almost everyone in the church and it appears all of us are well and no one is suffering any significant damage.. .
…and then the line was cut off again. 15 seconds, enough to find out all were shaken but OK.
Lucila wrote today that it was the most frightening 3 minutes of their lives. They were all upstairs in the centre and because of the tremendous movement of the structure, could not get down the stairs and out, so they huddled together as a family and prayed to the Lord Almighty for protection until it was over. Apparently Valentina had a dream a few days earlier about a big earthquake...amazing isn't it?
When I have more news, I will let you know. Pray for Andy as she has many friends in Concepcion and is trying to get in touch with them.
Blessings and thank you for your concern and your faithful prayers in this time of need of our Chilean family.
Peti and Tim
Update from Samuel Lago (son of the Rev. Enrique and Margaret Lago) in Santiago sent to SAMS Ireland on Feb 28:
First thing to say is that beware of the way certain news channels are
reporting the earthquake. I saw BBC world through my mother's Iphone
and they seem to be reporting this as if it were a new Haiti. It's not
as bad as that. Chile was much more prepared in terms of
infrastructure than Haiti was. The earthquake here released about 500
times more energy and the destruction comparatively is not nearly as
bad.
Having said that, things are quite difficult. Currently in my home,
there is no electricity, phone or gas, though thankfully running water
(currently connected using a mobile phone device). Most supermarkets
are closed, but there are small corner shops selling wwater and basic
goods. The lines for petrol go round corners, as rumours are spreading
about fuel shortages. Other than that, generally Santiago is ok.
Where things are really bad is in Concepción, Chillán, Talca and the
surrounding villages and town in the south. There has been really bad
communication with no one really knowing what has been going on as the
phone lines have been down and every mobil phone signals are weak and
unreliable. Even the government hasn't really known what's been
happenign till about 12 hours ago. The news we're now getting is quite
disturbing: riots, looting, people trapped under buildings and even
hundreds of people having escaped a few of the local prison. On the
coast some towns have been hit by Tsunamis (though things are calmer
now on that front). Prayers are really need and appreciated for (1)
social stability: that the military may get there soon and establish
some sort of order, even if Martial Law is needed for a few hours and
(2) for the church to accompany and help people in the midst of
strategy, and that Jesus Christ may be lifted up in word and deed in
this situation.
Tankfully, the news from the Concepción church seems to be ok in of
itself. We've heard news of many of the Church Families staying
together and sharing food and logings, as things are much more
difficulf there.
We appreciate your prayers for Chile in this difficult time! I'll try
and keep you all more updated.
Update from Bishop Henry Scriven (Mission Director for South America, CMS-UK) on March 1:
All the news we have from Chile is that everyone is OK, even one family in Concepcion. BUT please pray as you see and hear the news, especially for the Christians and their witness.
The previous Bishop of Chile, Colin Bazley, and his wife, Barbara, are visiting family in Santiago and were on the 24th floor in an apartment when the earthquake hit. They were shaken, but not stirred!
The Morrison family in Concepcion are safe.
There is no news from Alf and Hilary Cooper; they are on holiday in the south, but are staying in a wooden house so should be fine (I was assured by his brother in law, Terry Barratt who has just retired after 40 years with SAMS).
I heard from Daniel Kirk in Vina del Mar just after the power was turned back on (Saturday @ 1.30 pm) and they didn’t know what was happening apart from feeling the tremors. His mother in England watched Chilean TV online and told them the news!
