It’s her first official day as Ambassador of the Philippines to the Holy See. Ambassador Mercedes Arrastia-Tuason. presented Pope Benedict XVI her credentials. Meanwhile, thousand of miles away, her homeland is bracing for super typhoon Parma. This after Typhoon Ketsana swept south east Asia last month, which lead to the worst flooding in the country in 40 years killing more than 250 people in the Philippines alone. The Pope assured the ambassador of his spiritual closeness and prayers to the victims of Typhoon Ketsana. Another issue facing the country is the conflict between Muslims and Christians in the south. The ambassador of the third largest Catholic Nation, assured the Pope the peace process is gaining momentum and hopes to provide non-violent diplomatic channels of communication. The Pope says he supports the governments plans to make peace prevail. Both believe the Pilipino people’s faith is strong enough to get them out of any difficult situation.