Photo was taken at the Millstreet Fair, Co.Cork (Irl) taken from the archive 10 years ago

A colourful cockerel makes his presence felt as he gets shown to potential customers at the Millsteet Horse Fair. It is the wide variety found at these fairs that make them so popular.

Thought on Sunday – September – 29/09/2019

Thought For Today is by Jane Mellett called ‘The Rich Man and Lazarus’

The Rich Man and Lazarus is a powerful story reminding us that we are called to live our faith in our daily lives through generosity towards the poor and in working towards justice in our world. We do this in a variety of ways and we can see the goodness around us in those who are living examples of the Christian message. We are now called to listen urgently to the cry of the earth and to reflect on the injustices caused by the climate crisis. Millions of people are suffering worldwide through drought, sea-level rise and a breakdown of the earth’s ecological systems.

Joanna Sustento lives in Tacloban city, Philippines. On 8 November 2013 she lost her parents, her brother, her sister-in-law and 3-year-old nephew in the storm surge of Typhoon Haiyan. This storm was the largest to make landfall in recorded history, with wind speeds of over 300km per hour. 10,000 people perished in two hours.

Joanna’s story is one of thousands. The strength of Typhoon Haiyan is attributed to climate change. It is an injustice that those who have done the least to cause this problem are on the frontline. The governments of the world must act. They will only do so if the public demand it. We have a responsibility to ensure they do so. We are at a crossroads as a global community and we have the solutions. Let us go forward together to a more sustainable future and listen to the cry of the earth and the cry of the poor.