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The Citizen, 1998-03-04, Page 16Cooking up a feast It was delicious pancakes, sausages and salads for the many people who visited Blyth Memorial Hall, Feb. 24 as Jody Black and John Nesbit flipped the pancakes on behalf of Trinity Anglican Church. CALL ME:1 will pick you up and drive you home. Tel. #: Taxi #: DRIVE SOBER Totally Responsible and In Control ri ri NJ MELVILLE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH BRUSSELS 11:00 a.m. - Morning Service - Sunday School 9:30 a.m. - Belgrave Service 7:30 p.m. - Tuesday Bible Study 2:00 p.m. - Wednesday Bible Study Wheelchair accessible Nursery care available We welcome you to come and worship with us. Rev. Cathrine Campbell - 887-9831 BRUSSELS - ETHEL PASTORAL CHARGE UNITED CHURCH OF CANADA Rev. Christine Johnson - Minister Church Office 887-6259 Home 887-6540 March 8, 1998 SECOND SUNDAY OF LENT Morning Worship Ethel - Stewards to meet following church 11:00 a.m. Morning Worship Brussels - Coffee time to follow Wednesday, March 4 - 8 p.m. - UCW Evening Unit Wednesday, March 4 - 7:30 p.m. - Project Uplift Committee Thursday, March 5 - 7 p.m. - Stewards Monday, March 9 - 7 p.m - "Exploring Rural Theology" Tuesday, March 10 - 8 p.m. - Ministry and Personnel Committee - Ethel COME AND JOIN US FOR TILE SEASON OF LENT! 9:30 a.m. Please join us for worship this Sunday Sunday Morning Service - 10 a.m. Evening Service - 7:30 p.m. "I am. and the Omega, the Oeginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I will give drink with ow cost from the spring of -the mater of life. jle who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be his God and he will be my son. Aevelcuions 21:6-8 BLYTH CHRISTIAN REFORMED CHURCH Rev. Adrian A. Van Geest Hwy. 4, Blyth 523-9233 Wheelchair accessible You are Welcome at the BLYTH COMMUNITY CHURCH OF GOD 9:45 a.m. - Sunday School for Children and Adults 11:00 a.m. - Morning Worship Bible Studies - Wednesday 10 a.m. & 7:30 p.m. Phone 523-4590 McConnell St., Blyth THE ANGLICAN CHURCH OF CANADA you are welcome this Sunday Rev. Nancy Beale MARCH 8 - LENT 2 MORNING PRAYER Trinity, Blyth St. John's, 9:30 a.m. Brussels Wheelchair accessible 11:15 a.m. HURON CHAPEL EVANGELICAL MISSIONARY CHURCH PASTOR JAMES H. CARNE AUBURN 526-7515 ASSOCIATE PASTOR - YOUTH - JEREMY SHUART 523-9788 Sunday 8:45 a.m. - Morning Worship Service 10:00 a.m. - Family Bible Hour 11 a.m. - Morning Worship Service 8 p.m. - Evening Service Monday 7:30 p.m. - New Hope Support Group Wednesday 7:30 p.m. - Prayer & Bible Study Friday 7:30 p.m. - Youth PAGE 16. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, MARCH 4, 1998. From the Minister's Study Compassion should get more than lip service Rev. Adrian A. Van Geest Blyth Christian Reformed Church Last week, the Federal Finance Minister, Mr. Paul Martin, presented what was expected to be a good news budget. And in many ways it was. It's great that we are finally back to a balanced budget. Increasing our already sky high national debt could only lead to further economic problems. But we should also ask at what cost this has been accomplished. Has the government fulfilled its essential obligation to all sectors of our society? Have the cutbacks been fairly applied? Has any group perhaps been unduly victimized by these cutbacks? I am neither a politician nor an economist. I have no special insights regarding the questions I raised. I don't claim to be the judge of our political leaders. But I do read things which make the questions I raise legitimate. Social assistance has been cut back so far that health and educational standards are severely threatened. Also, there are 500,000 more poor children in Canada today than 10 years ago. And that, at a time when the economy is said to be in good shape. Mr. Martin himself told an interviewer (reported in World Economic Affairs, Autumn 1997), Campaign begins A physical disability shouldn't come between a child and their individual potential. So The Easter Seal Society of Ontario is doing all it can to help thousands of kids with physical disabilities across the province reach their full potential. Through community-based child and family services, we provide financial assistance for essential equipment, camps, parent support programs, advocacy and funding for research. Easter Seals helps these kids do the ordinary things others take for granted. You can help too. Give generously to the 1998 Easter Seals campaign. Look for the package in the mail. The Easter Seal Society — putting kids first! Child Find seeks donors One of the most terrifying situa- tions a parent could imagine is the disappearance of a child, not know- ing where they are or if they are safe. Child Find is a volunteer non- profit organization which is dedi- cated to assisting in the search and recovery of missing and abducted children, as well as educating par- ents and children about safety guidelines. With more than 18,800 children currently on the missing or abduct- ed list in Ontario, Child Find con- tinues to offer free-of-charge programs and services such as Kid- check, which fingerprints children of all ages, as well as many other public service and educational venues. With a recovery rate of 90 per- cent of all children reported miss- ing each year, Child Find relies solely on donations from clubs, organizations, corporations and individuals. Anyone wishing to contribute to the battle to find lost children may call 1-900-451-CARE ($10 dona- tion) or 1-900-451-CHIL ($20 donation). "The level of child poverty in this country is a disgrace, and there has got to be a great national effort to deal directly with that." Such statements ought to impact the budget that a finance minister presents to the nation. Our provincial premier, Mr. Mike Harris, has to face up to similar responsibilities. His cutbacks have hit all kinds of individuals, as well as communities, very hard. His intent is laudable: he wants to eliminate our provincial deficit. But on whose back is it being done? It is the homeless, the hungry, the jobless, and innocent children who are hit hardest by the cutbacks. Does the 30 per cent income tax cup help to soften the blow? Not really. That is only giving a substantial benefit to those already well off, to those who can afford to contribute a little more to the needs of the poor. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of compassion among our political leaders for the poor and needy. And that shows how secular our society has become. The direction we get from the Bible would lead to different government policies. We repeatedly read about God's special concern for the marginalized people of Bible times. "He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing." (Deut. 10:18). And in Exodus 22:22 it says, "Do not take advantage of a widow or an orphan. If you do and they cry out to me. I will certainly hear their cry." And what God himself stands for is what he also asks us, his image- bearers, to do. "Defend the cause of the weak and fatherless; maintain the rights of the poor and oppressed." (Psalm 82:3). And the Bible writer James says in chapter 1:27 of his letter, "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world." The "world" is obsessed with money. If anyone questions that, just note how much space the newspapers devote to money matters. The Bible says, "You cannot serve both God and Money." That is also good advice for governments when they plot their economic strategies. The interests of big business may not take precedence over the needs of the hurting people in this world. Compassion should be one of the cornerstones of our national policies, both domestic and international. It should receive more than lip service. That is something for which all of us should be willing to make a sacrifice. And we should challenge our governments to lead the way. Then they will truly be servants of God.