On the website, “Give hope: Uniting for asylum seekers”, the Church states: “Over a thousand asylum seeker children are currently being held in detention facilities in Australia and at offshore sites such as Nauru. These children have done nothing more than seek safety and freedom in another country. Through our work with vulnerable young people, we know how important it is for children in community detention to be provided with a life of hope, stability and belonging” (http://givehope.org.au).
Several hundred people gathered around the quilt, to support taking a stand against current government policy and to share in a service of lament and prayer for those who suffer.
The first part of the service included an acknowledgement of the arrival of the First Fleet and colonisers taking the land from the Indigenous owners, the Gadigal people. Led by the previous Moderator of the NSW/ACT Synod, Rev. Niall Reid, the people made this commitment: “As Jesus heard the cries of the oppressed, so will we listen to the cries of those who flee persecution, violence and hatred. As Jesus touched the excluded, so will we reach out to those whom our government locks away. As Jesus ate with the outcasts, so will we share what we have with refugees in our country. As Jesus welcomed the little children, so will we set the children free. Before this nation and before you, our Holy God, we declare: We will not forget those rendered invisible. We will not turn our backs. We will not be silent. Amen.”
The Rev. Elenie Poulos from Uniting Justice Australia reflected on the theme, “Let the little children come”, and Christine Cung, a student from Pymble Ladies College, brought “A message of hope”.
After the service, the people sent thousands of bubbles into the sky as they sang and imaged the rising of hope.
