Beloved in the Lord,
In addition to serving as Archbishop of the Anglican Church in North America, I have the distinct honor of serving as President of The Anglican Relief and Development Fund. It is with a heavy heart that I ask you to prayerfully consider giving to help our Anglican brothers and sisters in Nepal who have experienced devastating loss.
An earthquake of 7.8 magnitude hit Nepal on April 25 just before noon (local time). More than 8,000 lives have been lost and many more thousands have been injured.
We have just learned that another earthquake of 7.3 magnitude struck Nepal today, May 12th, resulting in further landslides and collapsed buildings. At least one thousand more people have been injured and many more lives lost due to this further tragedy.
Roads are impassable, hospitals are overcrowded and people are in despair; thousands have lost their homes and loved ones; there are shortages of food, water and shelter, and their future looks bleak.
This is a summary of the current state of affairs from the Rev. Lewis Lew, Dean of the Anglican Church of Nepal:
- 18 of our Anglican Church buildings destroyed.
- More than 8,000 homes in Anglican communities destroyed.
- More than 30,000 in these areas are displaced.
- Many are still in need of temporary shelter, food supplies and medical aid.
- 78 among the Anglican community have died, including Pastor Laxman, whom I had ministered together with him in his village just a month ago. We miss him.
We need your prayers, for myself and the clergy team from Singapore, and for our brethren in the Anglican Church in Nepal:
- The medical and crisis relief workers.
- Coordination of water, food and temporary shelters.
- The Nepalese as they brave this catastrophe and the coming monsoon season.
- The Anglican Church in Nepal, that it will shine for Christ in this difficult time.
As Archbishop of this Church, I am asking that each parish would receive a special offering on Sunday, May 31st and to send those funds to Anglican Relief and Development Fund-US or Anglican Relief and Development Fund-Canada.
U.S. parishes should direct gifts to ARDF-US:
http://anglicanaid.net/urgent-relief-appeal-nepal-earthquake/
Anglican Relief and Development Fund US
P.O. Box 645354
Pittsburgh, PA 15264-5354
And Canadian parishes should direct gifts to ARDF-Canada:
http://www.ardfc.ca/emergency_appeal.htm
Anglican Relief and Development Fund Canada
c/o Box 1013
Burlington, ON, L7R 4L8.
Your gift will go to the Anglican Church in Nepal and assist them in the long task ahead of rebuilding their lives, their ministries and their communities.
Your brother in Christ,
The Most Rev. Dr. Foley Beach
Archbishop, Anglican Church in North America
President, Anglican Relief and Development Fund
Use this Church Bulletin Insert to help your congregation get involved on May 31st.
