Love Is Only Answer to Haiti's "Sea of Grief" says Father Lombardi

(January 16, 2010) The outpouring of love expressed in solidarity is perhaps the only possible consolation for the catastrophe in Haiti caused by Tuesday's earthquake, says a Vatican spokes person. Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office and Vatican Radio, reflected during Vatican Television's "Octava Dies" on the disaster in the Caribbean and the Church's immediate response. "The world is shocked by the tragedy of the people of Haiti, by the tens of thousands of victims, by the immense number of those affected, by the difficulties of organizing aid in a situation of general confusion, by the heartbreaking grief of a whole people, one of the poorest on earth," Father Lombardi reflected. Father Lombardi suggested that this "generous and genuine love is, perhaps, the only consolation, the only great answer to this sea of grief, as the love of Christ who dies on the cross is the only true answer to man's suffering." He recalled how Pope Benedict XVI immediately called for solidarity and how his voice has been joined by that of many others. The Caritas Internationalis has in a big way gone ahead to serve the victims. Caritas Latin America Regional Coordinator Fr Antonio Sandoval who is in Haiti, said, “The situation is very bad and the people are in need of water, food, and medicine. People are still on the streets and in parks, where they must sleep. We’re coordinating with the national Caritas and our international and regional members as well as working with the UN and other humanitarian agencies.” Caritas President Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez Maradiaga, speaking from Honduras, called for special prayers for the people of Haiti this Sunday and to support the work of Church and aid agencies in Haiti.