Sydney
1 Dec 2002
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St Cecilia’s children go ‘bush’ for the day
Radical bid for men-only teaching job offers
Crackerjack way to see charity in action
Destruction of human life for profit - research fear
Fr John says ‘thank you’ and ‘goodbye’
Real meaning of Christmas
Perth statue: Archbishop orders inquiry
... deported, then disappeared or dead
Avoid war at all costs: Caritas
Christmas Bowl gets helping hand from a Leunig angel
Govt bows to Church pressure
A walk against war
Persecution: UN should be forced to act
Casting a NET to reach young adults, older kids
Tom Singer, lost in a ‘coward’s war’
Asylum seeker kids allowed to attend Catholic school
Editorial: When aid is misused
Letters: Breadwinners?
Conversation: Terry Underwood, Ambassador, Year of the Outback
Reflections: US bishops pose questions on Iraq
Kids go ‘bush’ at St Cecilia’s to help drought victims
It’s ‘family first’ for SOS (son of Sergio)
Dad had to face racism on field
Retreat helps with the healing
Love of books pays off for coastal school
‘Greedy people’ let the needy go without
Third degree burns
Christmas Bowl gets helping hand from a Leunig angel
By Marilyn Rodrigues
“We must wake up. The world is a very small place. What happens in Palestine, or in Bali, or in Australia, or in New York affects every one of us,” says Dr Bernard Sabella.
Dr Sabella, from the Middle East Council of Churches, is in Australia to promote the Christmas Bowl program, which provides aid and development through the National Council of Churches’ Christian World Service’s partners in 20 countries.
He carried the message that Christian and Muslim organisations are already working together to provide relief to suffering people - and that co-operation must increase.
That co-operation is summed up in the image carried on the sides of the vehicles used by his department, the Department for Service to Palestinian Refugees.
It incorporates a cross and a crescent.
“The crescent, the symbol of the Islamic religion, and the cross, the symbol of the Christian religion,” he said, “sum up what we all believe - religion should bring humanity together, not divide and disperse.”
Dr Sabella met NSW Premier Bob Carr and Foreign Minister Alexander Downer during his visit and joined Matthew Wale, a peace worker and mediator in the Solomon Islands, in forums held in Sydney and Canberra about the problems in their very different countries.
Matthew Wale works for the Solomon Islands Christian Association Peace committee, mediating in ethnic conflicts and engaging with militia, police and government on the peace process.
He says his country has lost $30-40 million from the national treasury through banditry and is being “drip fed” by aid.
The NSW Ecumenical Council launched the NSW Christmas Bowl 2002 appeal with the help of an angel.
It is one of Michael Leunig’s whimsical and sometimes profound creations - an angel, or a human, reaching for, or gratefully receiving, a shining star.
To contribute to this year’s Christmas Bowl, Tel: 1800 025 101. Christmas Bowl kits for parishes or groups are also available through the website www.ncca.org.au.