Sunday, May 27, 2007

Mercy, justice, compassion

Lately we have been studying books like 'Small is Beautiful' and 'Pedagogy of the Oppressed' and looking at how God sees injustice in the world as he spoke through the Old Testament prophets. Jesus himself announced his ministry on Earth by quoting Isaiah 4:18,19;

God's Spirit is on me;

he's chosen me to preach the Message of good news to

the poor,

Sent me to announce pardon to prisoners and

recovery of sight to the blind,

To set the burdened and battered free,

to announce, "This is God's year to act!"


There has also been the anniversary of the illegalization of the slave trade in England; we've studied some of the great reformers, Lord Shaftsbury, Wilberforce, Wesley, Luther, Booth; yet still the world is full of injustice, the rich nations oppress the poor, powerless people are still trafficked in their thousands in the modern day slave trade, third world workers are exploited, young girls forced into prostitution, major corporations more often than not are concerned with the profit margin over and above the welfare of their workers. To be truly Christian, we must align ourselves with the poor and carry on Christ's mission to the oppressed. But what can one person one do?

Awareness of the issues is a start, knowledge is powerful. Frustration is better than apathy…

It's time to go to the archives. Here's a poem I wrote long time ago:

Sole Music

The squeak of his boots as he shoots for his goals,

Brings payment for his fame in the game,

He gained the world when he leased his soles;

Twenty million dollars for his Name.


The tingling ring of the register drawer;

Takes her two hundred dollars from her view,

'...But to wear a pair like Jordan wore'

Said her son 'is the cool thing to do...'


Sewing Machines stutter on the sweat shop floor

Where the boots are produced at a price.

Sixty hours a week at eighty cents an hour

Barely covers the cost of his rice.


The African mourns the death of his daughter

But drought, dust and war leave naught to eat,

No land, no home, no hope, no water,

No boots! He's thankful he has feet.


The squeak of the boots, the register's ring;

The sewing machines click clackity.

The rich man, the poor, who mourn, who sing?

Listen

To the din

Of Inequity...






Monday, May 07, 2007

small coincidence


On the way back from Uluru, we stopped one day for lunch in Port Augusta, in a nice park in the centre of the town. I could see from where we parked the bus the old Salvo hall, just further up the street. I used to live in the house right next door to that! My parents were the Salvo officers in Port Augusta when I was about 4. A fair while back now...
The house is no longer there... But sitting in the park, we found a Warcry, the Salvo magazine. And in it was an article about Christian Radio Broadcasting in Australia! About half a column on that story was about a woman called Sarah McIllwraith, a program director at a Christian radio station in Adelaide, who had trained in radio here in Poatina with Fusion. We wondered if this was a sister of our class-mate Julia, who hadn't come to Uluru with us (but I had borrowed her plastic plates for the trip). It turned out it was! Cool!
A further small coincidence. My friend Fiona, who is currently doing a doctorate in theology (at a much bigger bible school that the one I am at now) and has also worked on radio - some of it was as a producer for ABC radio in Horsham (a much bigger radio station than Heart fm where I work!), also lived in Port Augusta as a pre-schooler, when HER parents were officers in Port Augusta. hmmm

Sunday, May 06, 2007

Uluru song

Uluru 2007 Tasmania Song

Sweet Home in the Outback

Bus wheels keep on turning

See red dirt everywhere

We’re far from home Tasmania

To meet some fine folk such as you


Sweet home in the Outback

The Southern Cross is in our sights

We’re a bunch of Tassie Pilgrims

Big Red Rock we’re comin’ to you!


We went to Tandanya

Learnt about the didgeridoo

Aboriginals call it Yiriki

We hope you learnt something new


We stayed in caves in Coober Pedy

Had a look around the town

Sang some songs and we got tired

Way before the sun went down


We have faced some persecution

10 Million flies are in our face

As pilgrims we should love our enemies

We’ll make exceptions in this case


We’ll soon be off home back to Tassie

Goodbye heat wave, hello thermals

With all your faces in our memories

We will bare the winter cold


Sweet home Tasmania

We have gone to the rock

Now we’ve got crusty undies

And a pair of smelly socks