“Whoever welcomes you, welcomes me”  Matthew 10:40

Each year on June 20 World Refugee Day, we celebrate the strength and courage of refugees and displaced people. Please make this a special time to pray for all people who seek refuge from harm and to share what you can with refugees who need food, shelter and care.

God of Compassion is a response to our world.  It offers resources for Refugee Sunday designated as June 23, for Methodist and Presbyterian churches and July 7 for Anglican parishes.  The kit includes stories from refugees, prayers, lectionary notes, links to videosand other material for worship, focusing on our responsibility to refugees and displaced people. A PowerPoint slide is available or as a PDF.

Operation Refugee is our annual fundraiser to support refugees – this year from Palestine, Syria and Ukraine.  You can pick one of three challenges to do or support refugees.  If you prefer, you can sponsor one of the participants or donate to the special appeal.

In June the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) reported that 117.4 million people were displaced in 2023, reaching over 120 million by the end of April this year.  Many more people are leaving because it is no longer safe to stay at home.  They are trying to escape rape, torture, kidnapping, murder and persecution but getting out is harder than ever as more countries tighten their borders.

If you need further information or resources, please contact us on 0800 74 73 72 or at cws@cws.org.nz

July 4, 2024

Thanks to Albin Hillert, Lutheran World Federation for the images of people fleeing Ukraine.