Sunday, September 30, 2001


It is the Lord who keeps faith for ever,
who is just to those who are oppressed.
It is he who gives bread to the hungry,
the Lord who sets prisoners free.
(Psalm 146 v.7)

Dear friends,

It seems likely that the United States and Britain will attack their
enemy in Afghanistan later this week, with unpredictable consequences.

Please pray daily - and ask others to do so - that the oppressed people
of Afghanistan may at last receive justice, that the hungry may receive
bread, and prisoners freedom; and please also take any opportunities
that arise to contribute to these good causes.

On the What's New page of our bishops' Website -
http://www.catholic.org.nz - I will be regularly putting up links
related to events in Central Asia, such as statements by our bishops and
by Pope John Paul, and also reports of initiatives for mediation and
assistance to war refugees by the Catholic peace and aid organisations.
There will also be links to reports on 10th Ordinary Assembly of the
Synod of Bishops (September 30 to October 27).

'kiwicath' members Stan and Sheela Benjamin and their two young children
are due to fly from the Gulf region to their new home in Auckland in
just two days' time. If war should break out before then in Central
Asia, flights in the region will probably be cancelled and the Benjamin
family will be unable to leave. So please keep them in your prayers this
weekend also.

God bless,

Mike Leon
*************************************

MEET THE AFGHANS

Last week some of the asylum seekers rescued by the container ship
'Tampa' arrived in Auckland. They are staying at the Mangere Refugee
Resettlement Centre while their applications for asylum or refugee
status are processed. Many of the new arrivals are of the Hazara ethnic
group, a religious and ethnic minority in Afghanistan, from the vicinity
of Mazar-i-Sharif, a town near the northern border of Afghanistan
captured by the Taliban in 1998.

New Zealand Herald reporters interviewed one of the group coming to New
Zealand before they left Nauru: 17-year-old Sayeed Taheer. His
experiences would be typical of the others:
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/storydisplay.cfm?storyID=218867&thesection=news&thesub\
section=general


The U.S. State Department's human rights report on Afghanistan details
the treatment of the Hazaras by the Taliban and describes what happened
when the Taliban occupied Mazar-i-Sharif:
http://www.state.gov/g/drl/rls/hrrpt/2000/sa/index.cfm?docid=721

If you would like to learn a bit about Afghan history and culture,
there's lots of information at Afghanistan Online:
http://www.afghan-web.com

FROM THE SECULAR PRESS

'Northlander ministers to New Yorkers struck by tragedy'
NZ Herald 24 sept 2001
http://www.nzherald.co.nz/latestnewsstory.cfm?storyID=218606&thesection=news&the\
subsection=general&thesecondsubsection=latest

A former Northlander working amid the nightmarish aftermath of New
York's World Trade Center devastation lives in anguish. In an e-mail
home to Whangarei, Father Emile Frische, a Roman Catholic priest who
works in Manhattan, writes of almost unimaginable tragedy, but also the
triumph of the human spirit, in the wake of the terrorist attacks that
killed thousands.......

Holmes Show Sept 25: "A New Zealand priest in New York" (video interview
with Fr Frische)
http://tvone.nzoom.com/programmes/holmes/story.html?story_2001_archive.inc

'Bishop leaves for Rome assembly '
The Evening Post 24 September 2001
Summary: A forum at which diocesan bishops from around the world
could discuss key pastoral issues is to be proposed by New Zealand's
Catholic bishops at a month-long assembly in Rome. Bishop Patrick Dunn
of Auckland, representing New Zealand, leaves this week for the assembly
of 300 bishops who will examine the ministry and role of bishops in the
modern era.

'Election candidates dine on the bread line' (photo)
Otago Daily Times 22 Sept 2001
http://www.odt.co.nz/cgi-bin/search-display-story-online-new?date=22Sep2001&obje\
ct=KLE12B9641RJ&type=html&WORDS=catholic&DB=Editorial

A taste of life on the poverty line was on the menu for Dunedin local
body candidates yesterday. About 25 candidates took part in a lunch
organised by helping agencies to raise awareness of the plight of some
citizens........

'Arrivals keep support group busy ' (photo)
Otago Daily Times 8 September 2001
http://www.odt.co.nz/cgi-bin/search-display-story-online-new?date=08Sep2001&obje\
ct=K3H00C1323NC&type=html&WORDS=catholic&DB=Editorial

The rooms of Catholic Social Services Dunedin were quiet, which was not
surprising unless you knew there were 13 babies aged between one month
and five months present. The babies were visiting with their mothers,
the most recent class through the service's Birth Support Group.......



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