Washington-based Cardinal Theodore McCarrick visited the town of Palo on Leyte island and led a mass for the faithful at a heavily damaged cathedral. Speaking to VOA later in the day in the city of Ormoc, the 83-year-old acknowledged that words of scripture may not be enough for some traumatized people.
"At the beginning everyone is hurting. And they lost so many friends and family," he said. "And they do not know why God is doing this to us. Well, in a real sense, we say it is not that God is doing this to us, [but] he is allowing these things to happen probably for a greater cause."
In its latest casualty report issued Sunday, the Philippine government said the typhoon killed at least 3,974 people and left about 1,200 others missing. Many of them were swept away and drowned in a huge storm surge triggered by one of the strongest cyclones on record.
The Civil Defense Office also estimated that almost four million people have been left homeless.
British-based child development agency Plan International posted a dramatic video of the storm surge on YouTube. Filmed by staff member Nickson Gensis, it shows tsunami-like waves engulfing homes in the coastal town of Hernani on Samar island.
Gensis said he shot the video from the second floor of a building that withstood the impact.
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