Anglican Communion News Service

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has written to the Anglican church in Burma following the devastation of Cyclone Nargis in the area of the Irrawaddy River Delta.

In the letter to Archbishop Stephen Than Myint Oo, Dr Williams assures the church of the prayers of the Anglican Communion and commends the rescue operation now underway:

“I am heartened to know relief efforts are underway to help hundreds of thousands of people who are without clean water, food, or shelter. Our hearts grieve with all those who have lost their loved ones, their homes and their livelihoods. In the face of such loss, all I can offer in my prayers for you is the totality of the love of God, even in the face of all that on earth is disfigured by natural disaster. ‘This is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up on the last day.’ (John 6.39). Please be assured that your brothers and sisters across the Communion are holding you in their prayers.”

Ends

Note for editors:

Myanmar Cyclone – Emergency Appeals

Myanmar was struck by Cyclone Nargis over the weekend and it has been reported that approximately 22,500 people are dead, with 40-50,000 missing without food, water and shelter. The extent of damage is still being assessed and communications in the area is still difficult.

Below are some of the Christian Relief Agencies responding to help the people of Myanmar.

USA: Episcopal Relief and Development (ERD):
http://www.er-d.org/newsroom_96874_ENG_HTM.htm

Canada: The Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund
http://www.pwrdf.org/stories/all-stories/stories/?tx_ttnews[year]=2008&tx_ttnews[month]=05&tx_ttnews[day]=06&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=416&tx_ttnews[backPid]=1&cHash=9e1216ce40

Church World Services (CWS) and Anglican Missions (Anglican Missions Board of the Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia) Emergency Appeal:
http://www.churchworldservice.org/Emergencies/international/2008/myanmarcyclone.html

UK: Christian Aid:
http://www.christian-aid.org.uk/emergencies/current/burma_cyclone/index.aspx