mmmm Cake and Coffee on beautiful sunny mornings mmmm
Sydney has enjoyed stunning sunny weather even in the middle of Winter:
Perfect for cake and coffee with friends and family at outdoor cafes everywhere.
We in the Western World are extremely fortunate to live in peace and freedom.
Unfortunately not everyone on Earth lives freely or peacefully.
Let us remember the millions of refugees fleeing war and terrorism.
Let us remember the asylum seekers trapped in detention.
Let us look at what God thinks of these “aliens”:
This is what the LORD says: “Do what is just and right. Rescue from the hand of his oppressor the one who has been robbed. Do no wrong or violence to the alien*, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place.”
Jeremiah 22:3
*Alien also translated as Foreigner – a stranger/outsider from another country
God commanded Jeremiah to tell this message to the king of Judah.
Jeremiah lived approximately 600 years before Jesus.
God warned Judah that they faced judgement if they did not repent (turn back to Him).
Included in this judgement is a message of special care for the disadvantaged.
God showed His justice towards aliens, orphans, widows and victims of robbery.
The king and his people were to treat these poor people with fairness.
They were not to act violently or wrongly towards the alien.
Similar messages are repeated elsewhere in the Bible (see Psalms, Zechariah & James).
The principle of justice and fairness still applies today as we consider refugees.
My friends and I are shocked at Australia’s treatment of refugees.
Australia detains refugees offshore in neighbouring foreign countries.
Refugees on Nauru and Manus Island have experienced violence and injustice**.
Since 2001, racism and xenophobia have increased in Australian society.
Politicians have taken advantage of this “fear of foreigners/aliens”.
Harsh policies towards “boat people” have sadly become popular with voters.
Australia is a rich and affluent country with plenty of space to share.
Instead we Aussies have lost our compassion and become selfishly insular.
What happened to the Aussie concept of a “fair-go” for everyone?
Obviously the “fair-go” does not apply to refugees in our current society.
Aussies prefer to ignore what is happening on Nauru and Manus.
In January 2017, the Australian Prime Minister phoned to congratulate the USA President.
President Trump had just been inaugurated after winning the 2016 Election.
This was the first phone call between Australian and USA leaders.
The transcript of this call was leaked to the Washington Post in August 2017***.
This shocking transcript reveals our leaders’ callous attitude towards refugees.
They are dealing with “actual real human lives”, not commodities that can be traded.
Understandably Trump is unhappy with this “dumb deal” (see his Twitter account).
Australia should NOT be exporting our refugees to USA.
The refugees on Nauru and Manus are Australia’s responsibility, not America’s.
#BringThemHere to the Australian mainland immediately.
For followers, how can you demonstrate God’s love towards refugees?
Footnotes:
**On the day I posted this blog (7th August 2017), it was reported that a 5th refugee died on Manus Island and fellow detainees say that it was not suicide.
***The leaked transcript from the Washington Post was republished on the SBS News website (Australia) 4th August 2017.
Additional reporting from SBS News linking the leaked transcript & the refugee death on Manus Island: Was Donald Trump right? 8th August 2017
mmmm Bible mmmm
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