Pope Benedict urged the international community on Tuesday to provide generous and effective aid to help Burma deal with the death and disaster caused by a cyclone.
In a telegram sent in his name to the Catholic bishops of the country once known as Burma, the Vatican expressed the pope's deep sadness and heartfelt sympathy and assured his prayers for the victims and their families.
The telegram said the pope was "confident that the international community will respond with generous and effective relief to the needs" of the country.
The cyclone that slammed Burma's Irrawaddy delta triggered a massive wave, killing at least 15,000 and leaving 30,000 others missing and several hundred thousand homeless, according to officials.
It was the worst cyclone to hit Asia since 1991, when 143,000 people died in Bangladesh.
-
Nicaragua bans international visitors from bringing in Bibles
-
Controversial US bishop to give BBC Christmas message
-
The little-known history of the X in Xmas
-
Evangelical vicar accused of abuse won't stand trial
-
Pastor who gave sermon near abortion clinic stands trial
-
Christians protest LGBT nativity play where Jesus is 'King of the Gays'
Most Popular
News
The mystery of the Wise Men
The carol assures us that “We three kings of Orient are…” and tells us they were “following yonder star”. Can we be sure there were three of them? Were they kings? Where in the Orient were they from? What was the star they followed? In fact, there is a lot that we just do not know. This is the story …
English Heritage deletes debunked claims about pagan origins of Christmas Day
English Heritage has admitted it got it wrong when it shared false claims that the date of Christmas is derived from a pagan Roman festival in honour of a sun god.
Guinness Book of Records recognises 'the world’s longest serving Sunday School teacher'
Pam Knowles started helping out her church Sunday school in 1951 at the age of 13.
The origins of ‘traditional’ Christmas celebrations
Today in the UK we celebrate Christmas and the period around it with many familiar traditions and activities. There is an understandable assumption that we have always done things this way. However, celebrating Christmas has a long and complex history and things change over time.