FALLS CHURCH, Va. (ABP) -- Baptists in the Philippines are appealing to the global Baptist community for donations as they gear up for relief efforts in the wake of a Sept. 26 typhoon that has killed 300 people there and elsewhere in Southeast Asia.

"For Christians, every disaster is a call to action," said Joel Raner, president of the Luzon Baptist Convention, a regional body affiliated with the Baptist World Alliance that serves in an area of the Philippines hard hit by Typhoon Ketsan. "We are called to help those who are suffering when they need it, and this is certainly the time of most need."

Baptist World Aid, the BWA's relief-and-development arm, urged Baptists around the world to respond to drastic needs of victims of flooding.

"We are also concerned that Typhoon Ketsana is now heading for the Mekong Delta in Vietnam," said Paul Montacute, BWAid director. Montacute said the BWA also has relationships with some Baptist groups in Vietnam, and BWA president David Coffey has visited with Baptist leaders there.

BWAid's Rescue 24 team, operated by Hungarian Baptist Aid and made up of trained international volunteers, is trying to work out details to offer services to the Philippine government, the Luzon convention and Vietnam.

Donations can be made online at the BWA website.

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