Baptist response to Syrian refugee crisis

#1126 for broadcast on 2CH, 13 September 2015

Australian Baptists have joined other Christian churches in welcoming the Abbott government’s initial response to the Syrian refugee crisis.

Australian Baptist Ministries National Director, the Reverend Keith Jobberns, and Executive Director of Baptist Care Australia, Ms Carolyn Kelshaw, urged the government to go further, providing additional financial aid and more refugee places.

They said, “Business as usual responses … will leave millions without protection … It is time for our nation to take extraordinary measures to care for fellow human beings fleeing persecution.”

Baptist leaders urged the government to provide refuge to comparable numbers of Syrian  refugees every year until the Syrian crisis abated, allowing “Australia to continue our regular refugee program while offering additional relief to thousands of those fleeing the violence in Syria.”

God help all those who have fled the violence in Syria; those who give them shelter, food and clothing; and those who make the big decisions about compassion and quotas.

I’m Rod Benson for the NSW Council of Churches.