The Rev. Jesse Cortes delivers his homily Monday night at St. Bridget Catholic Church in downtown Las Vegas. About 60 parishioners, many originally from the Philippines, gathered in the church’s adoration chapel to pray for those affected by the super-typhoon that struck the Philippines last week.
Tuesday, Nov. 12, 2013 | 2 a.m.
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They started gathering before 7 p.m. Monday, quietly entering the adoration chapel and slipping into pews. Mass wouldn’t begin for another hour.
But in this octagon-shaped room at St. Bridget Catholic Church, Filipinos living in Las Vegas bowed their heads and prayed. Silence, aside from a squeaky shoe or rustling page in a prayer book, enveloped the group.
It was an escape from television screens bearing troubling images from their homeland, the Philippines, devastated by a super-typhoon that slammed ashore Friday. Officials fear the death toll from the powerful storm could top 10,000.
“It hurts me,” said Lorna Aisa, who moved to Las Vegas from the Philippines 16 years ago. “It’s so depressing.”
News coverage showing the destruction of entire communities and the desperation of survivors — hungry, thirsty and in need of shelter — is jarring to those born in the southeast Asian county made up of more than 7,000 islands, said the Rev. Rey Salditos. It’s not the “pearl of the Orient” they recall.
“I love the country. It’s very nice. The shorelines …” he said, trailing off in thought. “The rising sun is very beautiful every morning.”
Two days ago, his sister, who still lives in the Philippines, sent him a text message. She and her children are safe, unlike so many others, Salditos said.
His native country will need an outpouring of financial support to begin rebuilding, but on Monday evening, prayer was this group’s first goal.
“This is the saddest moment in the history of the Philippines,” said the Rev. Jesse Cortes. “We need more people to pray.”
The three priests conducting the Mass pondered the unanswerable question: Why the Philippines? Could it be God’s reaction to immorality and sin? Or the Lord’s response to government corruption?
And so the parishioners sang.
Oh, Lord, Christ, have mercy on us …
And then they prayed some more. They asked God to watch over the people killed, be with the families suffering and prevent the outbreak of disease.
Finally, they reached into their pockets, purses and wallets and filled baskets with money that would be sent to the Philippines.
“Please, don’t send us calamity after calamity,” Cortes prayed aloud.
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