Margaret's Message
This Sunday is Peace Sunday marking the 76th Anniversary of the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. From tragedy, these two cities became the touchstone of a global movement to create a world of peace, without nuclear weapons or war.
It remains important to support campaigns for nuclear disarmament, but the creation of peace also needs a local movement. Peace requires sharing bread as well as eliminating bombs. When Jesus commanded his followers to love one another, he wasn’t speaking merely about feelings or even about kindness. He saw love as action which included
addressing conditions of economic injustice. In speaking of him as ‘the bread of life’, the early Christians recognized that he responded to both physical and spiritual hunger.
Alana, St Michael’s Office Administrator, told this local ‘act for peace’ story about a friend who had moved house during the pandemic.
“A friend has moved into their home. They hadn’t met their neighbours before lockdown. As a way of introduction and a moral boost they baked chocolate chip biscuits and
delivered them, with a handwritten note, to each house in their street. The positive and
enthusiastic responses from these strangers, now neighbours, were many. It was a street filled with joy. Not bread from heaven, but biscuits from a good person bringing positive cheer in a time of difficulty.”
This week let’s all find a way to act for peace in our neighbourhoods.
IFoodBank Victoria or the Carlton Uniting Church of All Nations which is feeding vulnerable Australians and providing vital social inclusion programs.
We all have the resources to respond to spiritual hunger through the practices of care and kindness. An act of kindness does all sorts of good things, both for the person receiving the care and for the carer! If you need inspiration, check out Random Acts of Kindness.
Go gently my friends,
Margaret
