The Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church Of Christ) is inviting the public to avail of its free medical and dental services being offered for free during its “Lingap Laban sa Kahirapan” (Aid to Fight Poverty) on Sunday, July 15, 2018 to be held at the Quirino Grandstand grounds in Manila.
The charity mission, planned to be the biggest so far in Manila, will be conducted by the INC in commemoration of the Church’s 104th anniversary this July 27. It will start at 7 a.m. and will last the whole day.
“This activity is meant to reach out to everyone so this is open not just to the brothers or brethren but also to everyone in the community who needs help and nowadays it seems everyone else needs help,” said Dr. Serge Santos, of the Felix Y. Manalo Foundation which is spearheading the event.
“The Church is offering free medical and dental services with support from the diagnostics and the laboratory departments meaning we will have free blood chemistry, complete blood count, urinalysis and even blood sugar determination,” Santos said.
The free medical and dental services include blood tests, urinalysis, ultrasound, genetic screening, X-ray, 2D echo, and ECG.
“For the radiology department, we have free x-ray, ultrasound, 2d-echo genetic screening for those pregnant women who wants or interested to know the gender of their children inside their womb. These are all free,” he said.
A compact operating room will also be set up wherein minor surgical procedures may be performed. Food parcels will also be distributed.
“We have been doing this activity through the leadership of our Executive Minister, Brother Eduardo V. Manalo,” Santos said.
-Successive Aid to Humanity events after May 6 Worldwide Walk
The activity came just two months after the record-breaking May 6 Worldwide Walk to Fight Poverty by the Iglesia Ni Cristo which was held simultaneously in more than 300 sites across 18 time zones around the world.
It also comes after the recent Aid For Humanity missions carried out in June in South Africa, specifically in Malawi and Kenya.
“The Iglesia Ni Cristo or Church Of Christ has been doing humanitarian services and projects that help the community at large — not just the brethren but the whole community — ever since the time of Brother Felix Y. Manalo’s administration of the Church,” Dr. Santos said.
“Today at present through the leadership of our beloved Executive Minister Brother Eduardo V. Manalo, the Church or the Iglesia Ni Cristo has been doing outreach programs not just here in the Philippines but across many countries in many time zones all over the world,” he explained.
Santos said that the INC is doing these services of reaching out to help other people in fulfillment of God’s will, particularly the commandment to “love your neighbor as you love yourself.”
The largest medical and dental mission done in a single venue done by the Church was held last year at the Maharlika Village in Taguig City.
-Hundreds of volunteer medical personnel to help in Lingap-
On July 15, the INC volunteers is preparing for a whole day mission that will help as many people as they could.
There are already 200 medical doctors, 150 dentists and 700 paramedics including nurses, medical technologists, radio technologists and first aiders.
Santos said even medical personnel who are not INC members, including doctors and dentists, have asked permission to participate in the charity activity, as they have observed that the INC medical missions benefit a lot of people, even non-INC members.
“They are seeing that we are really helping all people,” Santos said.
The focal activity of the charity mission is the Bible Exposition so that beneficiaries as the INC also aimed to help people not just in their physical needs, but more so in their spiritual needs.
Thousands of food packs will also be distributed to those who will attend the Bible study which will be the highlight of the day.
“Napakarami po nating gusto at nais na matulungan, kaya punta po kayo sa July 15 at tayo ay magkita-kita po doon. (We really want to help many people. So we are inviting everyone to come on July 15. Let’s see each other on that day)” Santos said.
Now on its 104th year, the Iglesia Ni Cristo continues its humanitarian mission in reaching out to help those who are in need, conducting Lingap Sa Mamamayan activities not only in various parts of the Philippines, but also around the world, as it had done so in China, Panama, Canada, Australia, and even in the USA.
This year also marks the Church’s 50th year in the West, as it celebrates the establishment of its first overseas mission in Honolulu, Hawaii and in San Francisco, California in July 1968. (with an INC-PIO release)