The Archdiocese of Porto Alegre – another city affected by the floods in Rio Grande do Sul – asks the ecclesial communities to organize “moments of prayer with the people before or after the masses this weekend”. A communion of believers so “that we can ask, together, for consolation, protection, union and the strengthening of faith, charity and hope”. According to Civil Defense, at least 31 people died, 70 are still missing and 17,000 are homeless in the State.
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Andressa Collet – Vatican News
The floods that flooded cities, destroyed roads, left at least 31 people dead, 74 who are still missing, in addition to 17 thousand homeless mainly in the regions of Vale do Taquari and Serra Gaúcha, in Rio Grande do Sul, extend to the metropolitan region from Porto Alegre. Since Thursday (2), the flood has invaded the streets of the city’s historic center and the capital’s bus station itself, despite the Guaíba River floodgates having been closed. The level of the river, which bathes the capital, exceeded the flood level reaching more than 4 meters, the highest level in the Guaíba since 1941, when Porto Alegre experienced the biggest flood in its history.
A note of solidarity was released this Thursday (2) by the Archdiocese of Porto Alegre, joining in communion with Regional South 3 of the National Conference of Bishops of Brazil, in a joint effort of reconstruction and hope. In addition to the governmental, military and civil institutions dedicated to the defense of life, the ecclesiastical communities themselves have opened “the doors to welcome those who have lost everything”. But the request of the archbishop of Porto Alegre, Dom Jaime Spengler, goes further:
“In this Year of Prayer in preparation for the Jubilee of the Church 2025, we urge ecclesial communities to unite in prayer, according to possibilities, before the Blessed Sacrament, which is the great symbol of communion and sharing, renewing our commitment as pilgrims of hope .”
One suggestion from the archdiocese is “to organize a moment of prayer with the people before or after the masses this weekend. Pastoral committees will be able to join together in this prayerful and supportive gesture.” A communion of believers so “that we can ask, together, for consolation, protection, union and the strengthening of faith, charity and hope”, ends the note of solidarity.
With prayer, beg God for better days
Dom Leomar Brustolin, president of the South Regional 3 of the CNBB, through a video message, also sends his message to the people of Rio Grande do Sul, praising the power of prayer in this time of trial:
“We are all realizing how Rio Grande do Sul is once again affected by heavy rains that have caused a lot of disruption in our state. We, bishops of CNBB Regional Sul 3, the bishops of Rio Grande do Sul, want to express our solidarity with all the people who are going through this moment of trial. And ask our communities, Christians, to remain firm in faith, praying and begging the Lord to give us better days, sustaining our hope because we believe that this will pass , but at this moment, we need to unite and strengthen charity and solidarity, committing ourselves to each other, especially following the guidelines that are being given so that we can keep life safe for everyone. God takes care.”
Dom Leomar’s invitation reinforces the extra care for people at this time of insecurity with the floods. The 14 de Julho Hydroelectric Dam, between the municipalities of Cotiporã and Bento Gonçalves, for example, ended up breaking due to the force of the accumulated water, and there is a danger of disasters in five other dams. Nearby residents have been advised by Civil Defense and the State government since Wednesday (01) to leave risk areas.
From Rome, the Minister of Mines and Energy, Alexandre Silveira de Oliveira, said he was monitoring the situation of the dams. He met with Pope Francis and talked about the harmful effects that even Brazil is suffering:
“The climate effects, and we experienced this very strongly in Brazil, a huge drought in the north of Brazil last year, in the Brazilian Amazon, I flew over the Brazilian Amazon and I was amazed to see huge rivers that turned into swamps, literally, with a lot of little water; and the South of Brazil, even repeating itself yesterday: a huge tragedy that touched us all, President Lula was present with several ministers, I am monitoring it from here through Aneel and our people who went there to be able to look at the situation. contingency of the dams. In other words, the climate effects are affecting the world and this causes us to create hope and expectations, but mainly it gives us encouragement and strength to carry out the international debate.”
Collaboration: CNBB
