Young single adults from The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and other faiths will come together 23rd July in suburban Adelaide for an interfaith service event to kit-build 30 prosthetic hands for victims of landmine injuries.
The 'Faith Matters' event has drawn interest and support from the Muslim, Baha'i, Anglican, Sikh and Catholic faith communities. The idea arose from the Church’s Pacific Area Presidency's call for church members to reach out to people of other religious backgrounds and to join with them in doing good.
The service project will be undertaken by 30 teams, each consisting of three to four young adults working side by side. The prosthetic hand kits will be sourced from the Helping Hands Program.
"We hope when they team up together they will have that aim of getting to know new people, as well as learning about the differences and the commonalities across faiths and religions," said Church youth advisor Jill Scott.
A symposium will follow the project, with guest speakers highlighting the connection between faith beliefs and the desire to strengthen communities and to serve within them. Speakers will include the Honourable Reverend Dr Lynn Arnold AO, a former Premier of South Australia, now an ordained Anglican priest; SA Parliamentary Speaker the Honourable Michael Atkinson MP, and the Honourable Jing Lee, a member of the SA Legislative Council.
There will also be a Q&A panel made up of representatives from each of the attending faith communities. "We hope this kind of discussion really boosts understanding and connection, and that it will lead to future interfaith initiatives and activity," said Jill.
The July 23 event will be held at the Church meetinghouse, 120 Gage Street, Firle, South Australia. For more information about the event, go here.