ST PETER’S PONTIFICAL INSTITUTE

Faculty of Theology

SUMMARY OF THE ARTICLE: - “FINDING CHRIST IN

DEBRIS: CHRIST EXPERIENCE IN THE DEVASTATING
NEPAL EARTHQUAKE OF 25TH APRIL 2015”.

An assignment presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the

Bachelor’s Degree in Theology

by

SANTHOSH KUMAR J.

Reg. No. 2003-31

Moderator
REV. DR LAWREN CETONY

Bengaluru
2021

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Introduction

All the human beings have only one question to ask, that is why we suffer? What
is the reason behind the suffering? As we know the philosophy deals with three things that is
man, nature, and God. When we take the notion of Man the first thing is sufferings. Al the
philosophers were trying to find out the answers of suffering. And in this book Samuel Simick,
S.J is also start his article with the big question that is sufferings. Samuel Simick tries to find
out Jesus through Finding Christ in Debris Christ Experience in the Devastating Nepal
Earthquake of 25th April 2015. The fact of suffering, whether in the catastrophic form that
extends across entire communities—cruelly exemplified, as we write this Introduction, by the
distressing famine that now threatens hundreds of thousands of people in conflict-riven
Somalia—or the suffering that focuses on just one person as a result of individual illness or
misfortune, is so closely bound to the character of human life, that it seems we cannot address
the question of what it is to be human without also attending to the question of what it is to
suffer, of how suffering is to be understood, and of what suffering calls for by way of response.
Suffering ought thus to be a fundamental concern regardless of whether we are now suffering,
regardless of whether we have suffered in the past, regardless of whether we will do so, or think
we will do so, in the future.

Now let us think about the present condition of the world. We are going through
a great struggle that the pandemic condition we have now called Covid -19. Why all this all
natural calamities? Still innocent man suffer.

Devastating Nepal Earthquake of 25th April 2015

Now I could like to just give a news that is what happened in the Devastating
Nepal Earthquake of 25th April 2015. Nepal earthquake of 2015, also called Gorkha
earthquake, severe earthquake that struck near the city of Kathmandu in central Nepal on April
25, 2015. About 9,000 people were killed, many thousands more were injured, and more than
600,000 structures in Kathmandu and other nearby towns were either damaged or destroyed.
The earthquake was felt throughout central and eastern Nepal, much of the Ganges River plain
in northern India, and northwestern Bangladesh, as well as in the southern parts of the Plateau
of Tibet and western Bhutan. The initial shock, which registered a moment magnitude of 7.8,
struck shortly before noon local time (about 06:11 AM Greenwich Mean Time). Its epicentre
was about 21 miles (34 km) east-southeast of Lamjung and 48 miles (77 km) northwest of
Kathmandu, and its focus was 9.3 miles (about 15 km) underground. Two large aftershocks,

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with magnitudes 6.6 and 6.7, shook the region within one day of the main quake, and several
dozen smaller aftershocks occurred in the region during the succeeding days. On May 12 a
magnitude-7.3 aftershock struck some 76 km (47 miles) east-northeast of Kathmandu, killing
more than 100 people and injuring nearly 1,900.

Summary

Samuel Simick, S.J. tries to understand the problem of this suffering with the help of
Jesus Christ. For that understanding he tries to take some bible quotes. He writes that he was
rush to help those who suffer not because he saw Christ in them to start with, but because he
felt that it is the right thing to do. He thought this is a constant challenge in his life—to find
Christ in each individual, especially those who suffer. Something of this inner struggle he had
to face during the support work for the survivors of the Nepal Earthquake 2015.

His own experience of that day

Here he is trying to explain his own experience. On May 16 Fr. Norbert with a group
of 5 people went to Hindung, a village in Serthung VDC, for medical assistance. It’s a 4 hour
walk, a rough and dangerous trek. After the earthquake they were the first medical team to
reach, except the first rescue mission by the government.The trail to Tipling. Source: Bill
Robins, SJ They stayed overnight in the village. The team could not go to another village,
Neber, close to Hindung, because the medicine supply was insufficient. The trek they took
was so dangerous that they decided to take another round about trek via Lingjo, to their
surprised the trek was equally bad and they had to walk three hours more. The team reached
home safely. Relief materials are arriving and being distributed to the people, however the
distributing committees are not doing their work properly. There is much argument and
quarreling about who gets what and how much. The Indian helicopter that brings relief
materials lands where they think is best, and sometimes the people will not know how much
has arrived. The security personnel are trying to run up and down registering and reporting.

They were trying to start morning and evening classes for the children. Now they need to find
a proper place. Aama Samaj is ready to start BBC (Baal Bikash Centre) soon with the help of
Buwas who will help them put up a shelter. They were waiting for some good tents and
tarpaulins. The day is fixed to go to the forest to collect the poles and wood needed. Their
Internet system is giving us a lot of trouble. It does not connect regularly. The is a problem
with the set we use. However, they were lucky that it works sometimes. They have problems
attaching anything with the mail they send.

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 It has been 16 days since the devastating earthquake hit Tipling VDC, together with
many parts of Nepal. The situation is getting under control. People have accepted their fate and
have now started to collect and to rebuild their lives and houses. The first-hand data shows that
there are 9 wards in this VDC, totaling 547 houses; there are more than 3,229 people affected
by this earthquake. Out of 3,229 people 1,179 of them are outside the village, working or
studying. There were 9 deaths and 11 injured; and many animals were killed during this
earthquake. All the people are under the make shift tents, because every house is damaged and
unfit for staying inside. Not only have the houses been destroyed, but also the access trails
leading to the VDC from Dhading Basi and Shebru Besi have been swept away by the
landslides in various places. The only possibility of reaching the village now is through
helicopter, or take the dangerous trek with landslides, which will take around two to three days
to reach the VDC and carrying any useful material is almost impossible.

Nine days after the earthquake, Fr. Samuel Simick, after many attempts and helps from
many well-wishers, could reach the Mission. Till that time Fr. Norbert D'Souza with the help
of a few friends collected the data and was able to save many useful things of the community
as well as of people. Fr. Norbert went through all the 9 wards to help the victims and collect
the data. He went to different villages with our mobile health team to help the injured. Only
yesterday, (10/05/2015) a makeshift tent for Tippling Jesuits was setup. There is no chance of
staying in the old rented Jesuits Residence. And the Priests were busy helping the people in
different ways. The weather is still cold and wet. We have rain almost every evening. The tents
could hold for few months at the most-we hope. The rainy season is approaching. It remains
till October in this area, therefore, we need some kind of temporary shelter that could withhold
heavy rain and hailstones occasionally. Rebuilding of the houses will not be possible one the
rainy season starts. Things do not move as smoothly in this area as in other places. We don't
have engineers, builders, laborers, and supply of building materials.

Villagers going for supplies dropped by helicopter. Supplies are getting low! The shops
that used to keep things are empty; the trails that used to carry things by mule are no more.
People are trying to get anything that they could. The relief that people are getting is not quite
enough. One trip of helicopter-a big one-can carry around 2000 kgs of goods. The smaller
helicopter can carry only about 400 kgs of goods. The government pays for the big helicopter
but the smaller ones are for the rescue and sometimes privately hired ones, which could cost
from 80,000 to 1,50,000 Nepali Rupees (USD 785 – USD 1,470). Some organizations have
supplied with food items but they could bring it only till where the vehicles could come. People

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from the villages have gone to carry the food items. People could carry only a small amount
and all the families could not go to bring the food items because they are busy with their own
works-repairing the broken houses, looking after the animals, farming etc.

Conclusion

After everything again the question follows him that is suffering. But here in this point
he is thanking the Lord. Because that last nine moth it was a surprise for him. Because those
who worked no one got hurt. There was no road, no vehicles, but all were walking without an
struggles. He understands that all he did is because of still we have “hope in humanity”. The
hope for humanity was the motive force behind that helped him to overcome all the struggles.
Because of that him all the challenges became strength. Here he reflect on Christ on the Cross.
That he known that he must have felt the same. He was able to see Christ in there team
members. Many times he had to hear rush words from others, but he was remembering Christ
on cross. They were the body of Christ broken for the quake survivors. He found that death and
destruction brought new hopes, which remembers the resurrection of Christ. Those who died,
they have a resurrection. He stops with the big wish “The quest to find Christ in the debris
continues”.

Jesus came to bring hope

Hope for the future — that we will be redeemed. Hope for the present — that we are
not alone, but are loved and have purpose. Hope even over the past — that our failures are not
greater than God’s power to transform. When we as believers speak of hope, we don’t mean a
desire that may or may not be fulfilled. No, our hope is certain. Our hope for forgiveness, for
reconciliation with God and a perfect, holy, eternal life, rests on the finished work of Jesus. We
have received new birth into a living hope that’s real every day. It’s living because Jesus is
alive and offers to transform our hearts, minds, and actions daily. As we understand God’s
forgiveness, we start forgiving others. As the reality of Christ’s sacrifice penetrates our hearts,
we lay down our selfish desires. We begin to serve our families, our neighbors, and even
strangers on the street in his Spirit's strength. Although mundane, painful, and stressful events
threaten to diminish our hope, Jesus renews our hope whenever we seek him. The world lacks
hope. Human beings are clamoring to fill their empty lives with stuff. Abuse, addiction, illness,
and broken relationships surround us. People need to know that Jesus came to bring hope, that
he is our hope, and that our hope is alive.