By Santosh Digal
Colombo: An earthquake that devastated Nepal in 2015 did not destroy its people’s spirit of resilience, says the head of the country’s Catholic Church.
“Survivors of Nepal earthquake might have lost some of their loved ones and property worth of millions, but they did not lose their indomitable spirit to rise to the occasion,” said Bishop Paul Simick, Vicar Apostolic Vicariate Apostolic of Nepal while addressing the eleventh Federation of the Asian Bishops’ Conferences (FABC) on Dec 4 in Colombo, Sri Lanka.
The April 25, 2015 Nepal earthquake and subsequent tremors killed nearly 9,000 people and injured nearly 22,000.
With the help of Caritas Nepal and its federation members across the globe, the vicariate of Nepal undertook massive relief work and rehabilitation activities in the aftermath, said Bishop Simick told more than 140 bishops, FABC officials and other delegates.
After the earthquake, many bishops from different parts of Asia and beyond telephoned the Nepal prelate or wrote numerous letters to him expressing their prayers and support to help people rise up the earthquake.
Bishop Simick said that he was touched by the visit of Cardinal Antonio Tagle of Manila, president of Caritas Internationalis (CI) to earthquake-struck areas, and support CI extended to Nepal.
CI is the confederation of over 160 members who are working at the grassroots in almost every country of the world in social work.