Good Friday Holy Land appeal

Sydney
20 April 2003

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Good Friday Holy Land appeal

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Good Friday Holy Land appeal

Catholics in the Sydney archdiocese have been called on to give extra support to the Good Friday Collection for the Holy Land during these troubled times in the Middle East.

Franciscan Fr Paul Smith, Commissary of the Holy Land in Australia, said that for the Christian community there “survival in the midst of people of other faiths is not easy, especially because of ongoing political and religious conflict”.

“They need the support of their fellow Christians in other parts of the world,” he said.

Fr Smith said the Franciscan Friars had been caring for the churches and shrines of the Holy Land for centuries.

“But it is not just churches and holy places that make up the Holy Land,” he said.

“The presence of Jesus can be felt in the local Christian community, which makes up just two per cent of the population.

“For these people it must be more tempting than ever to find another country in which to raise their families in a way to which all people are entitled.

“They are living with the destruction of their homes and with curfews and blockades which prevent them from travelling to work.

“Their economy is being destroyed because one of their main economic lifelines, tourism, is all but dead because of pilgrims’ fears for personal safety.”

Fr Smith asked Sydney Catholics to pray for these Christians on Good Friday and, where possible, assist them by giving to the Good Friday collection.

Last year’s Good Friday collection in the Sydney archdiocese raised $149,680 - the most of any diocese in Australia.