Post No. 6 - Thursday 26th March

From the Rector

The following is an abbreviated message from the joint-Presidents of the Conference of European Churches, of which the Church of Ireland is a member:

“Cast all your anxiety on him, because he cares for you” 1 Peter 5:7

As we all brace to fight COVID-19, being a fellowship of European churches, we reaffirm our common Christian faith based on the certainty that life is stronger than death, that Jesus Christ overcame death and the fear of it. Our faith holds us together, that is our strength.

While we take measures to protect our loved ones, our communities and ourselves, let us remember to not lose touch. We need physical distancing – but we also need social solidarity. Let us think of each other and remain connected with our brothers and sisters.

As we distance physically from each other, let us remember to be close spiritually. Online praying may be a new experience, but we know that our members and partners across Europe are using digital means to continue congregational life in a successful way. They are offering messages of hope and encouragement, sharing online resources not only to spread information but also to support each other spiritually.

Together we pray for the vulnerable and elderly. We pray for those who are frightened or depressed because of isolation and exclusion. We also pray for the medical staff and nursing professionals at the front lines, in hospitals and care homes.

We pray too for researchers and scientists searching for proper medication and a vaccination to deliver us from this virus, and for the health authorities, who have the primary responsibility for planning, confronting and overcoming this crisis. We keep in mind all those who continue to work for our basic needs and we live with the hope that science will indeed prevail.

The pandemic is bringing economic stress, with companies struggling to survive during lock-downs and large numbers of people losing their jobs. This threatens the social fabric of our societies and sharpens social and economic divisions, making an effective response to COVID-19 even harder to achieve.

Together we pray for people who are losing their jobs and whose livelihood is at risk due to changed patterns of living and restrictions imposed to control the situation. We pray for our politicians, decision makers and experts that they may act wisely and for the common good.

Rev. Christian Krieger (President, Reformed Protestant Church of Alsace and Lorraine), Rt Rev. Dr Guli Francis-Dehqani (Vice-President, Church of England) and Metropolitan Cleopas of Sweden and All Scandinavia (Vice-President, Ecumenical Patriarchate).

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The organisation Churches Together in Britain and Ireland reports that in China, the Amity Foundation, a faith-based Chinese non-governmental organisation, has expressed its deep appreciation and gratitude for the support and encouraging messages from all over the world, while it has been working actively to help contain the Coronavirus outbreak.

It has sent more than 470 tons of disinfectants, food, and hundreds of thousands of pieces of medical protective clothing and other medical equipment. Supplies have been delivered to more than 300 hospitals and medical centres, and more than 100 communities and organisations in 14 cities in Hubei and Jiangsu Province.

The Guarding Angel project, that provides meals for personnel at hospitals affected by the crisis, has delivered 120,000 meals to front-line medical workers.

The Dorca Fellowship

Christians of the Dorca Fellowship are purchasing and donating medical supplies to the Amity Foundation.
Dorca Fellowship is a fellowship of Christians in Zhejiang. It has been supporting Amity's social development projects for more than ten years. After the coronavirus outbreak, brothers and sisters did not only actively raise at home and abroad, but also actively contacted the hospitals in the affected areas to understand their needs. Moreover, they also volunteered to find supplies for Amity at home and abroad.

In order to save time for Amity, they purchased supplies themselves and donated them to Amity afterward. Brother F. of the Dorca Fellowship said, "When I heard that doctors in the epidemic area were extremely scarce of medical supplies, they risked their lives to save the patients, by just wearing normal raincoats. They saw patients without proper protection. I thought that what we could do was to help as much as possible and share more of the love of Christ." Brother F. requested anonymity because he felt that all he did, was to glorify God.

Furthermore, he said that the Dorca Fellowship hopes to share the love of Christ to those in need, to witness the faith, and to show that Christian identity is more than personal belief. [Amity Foundation]

Post No. 7 by 10.30am on Sunday 29th March. This will be a short act of worship. (Please note that Internet service disruption can cause delay.)