Irish Times Notes
Church of Ireland Notes from ‘The Irish Times’
Christian Aid Christmas Appeal
The climate chaos in South Sudan is the focus of Christian Aid Ireland’s Christmas appeal.
For a long time, 27–year–old Adut Mariu had no choice but to give her children water that she knew wasn’t safe. People were frequently ill from drinking the water but the river closest to the village of Biet in the north–west of South Sudan was the community’s only water source. To make matters worse, Adut is also on the frontline of the climate crisis. South Sudan suffers with drought and flooding and many areas have been badly hit for three years in a row. Locust swarms have also devastated crops. The river near Adut’s village dries up during periods of drought, forcing people to walk long distances in search of water. And it floods during the rainy season, polluting fragile water sources, killing crops and destroying homes.
But with support from Christian Aid, a new borehole was sunk in Adut’s village, bringing clean water whatever the weather. Thanks to this borehole, Adut’s family was safe the last time the river flooded an they drank the clean water.
The borehole is life–changing but clean water is in short supply across the region and the borehole is being used by three times more people than it should be. Your gifts this Christmas could help to build more boreholes, provide seeds and farming tools, and give mothers the chance to set up small businesses to earn a cash income.
Life for Adut has been tough, but so is she. She’s lived through displacement, conflict, loss and now the climate crisis. But she is still full of hope for her children’s futures.
We all do what we can for the children in our lives, especially at Christmas. To find out more and to donate, please visit caid.ie/Christmas or you can make a telephone donation by calling 01 496 7040.
€56 could provide a hygiene kit (jerry cans, water purification tablets, hand soap, detergent, nappies, sanitary items) for eight families displaced by floods, giving them dignity and clean drinking water. €117 could provide food such as lentils, grains, cooking oil and salt for a family of five for four months. €351 could support three women’s groups to start up tea stalls and bread–making businesses, so they can earn extra income for their families.
In Christ Church cathedral, Dublin, tomorrow (Sunday) there will be a Service of Nine Lessons and Carols at 3pm. As the congregation size is limited, places should be booked at RSVP@christchurch.ie. Meanwhile in St Patrick’s cathedral there will also be a Service of Nine Lessons and Carols at 3.15pm for which tickets are not required.
In Monday, at 8pm there will be a Concert of Choral Favourites by Chamber Choir West In St Macartin’s cathedral, Enniskillen, with conductor David Baxter and accompanists Lynsey McCrea and Derick Weir. There will be a retiring collection jointly for Chamber Choir West and Enniskillen Cathedral Organ Fund.
The RCB Library will close for Christmas on Wednesday at 4.30pm and will re–open on Tuesday 4 January 2022 at 9.30am.
Next Friday, the Christmas Eve Service of Nine Lessons and Carols in St Patrick’s cathedral will be an all ticket event beginning at 4pm. Later, the Christmas Eve Eucharist in Christ Church cathedral, at which the Archbishop of Dublin will be the celebrant, will begin at 11pm and intending members of the congregation should book a seat at RSVP@christchurch.ie. This will also apply to the Christmas morning Eucharist.
Published in the Saturday edition of The Irish Times