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About The Georgia bulletin (Atlanta) 1963-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 26, 1987)
PAGE 7 — The Georgia Bulletin, November 26, 1987 LOCAL ARTIST Katrina Guettler depicts mothers and children from around the world in j note cards offered by the Community of [ Hospitality in Decatur. Gifts Or Greetings Cards Raise Funds For The Poor BY GRETCHEN REISER Cards expressing love and the sentiment of the season are a deep tradition in this time of Advent and Christmas. Two unusual sources of cards might be considered either for one’s own Christmas cards or as a Christmas gift of note cards to be used throughout the year. Food for the Poor, an organization sending food, grain, books, machinery, clothing and financial help to the destitute in the Caribbean, has Christmas cards and all oc casion cards from the island of Haiti. Funds from the card sales are returned to the craftsmen in Haiti, according to the Pompano Beach, Fla., organiza tion, and, because of the poverty of the island, the small donation can enable a family of four to buy rice for several months. The cards, in tones of beige and brown, are made with banana bark. Christmas cards depict a number of simple images, particularly the Madonna and child. All occasion cards show a variety of native scenes in banana bark. Cards are blank inside. Sets of 10 cards with envelopes cost $8. Specify whether Christmas cards or all occasion cards are being ordered. An additional donation to cover postage is optional, but ap preciated. Orders should be mailed to Food for the Poor, 1301 W. Copans Road, Pompano Beach, Fla. 33064. • •••• The Community of Hospitality in Decatur, Ga., also has two sets of note cards depicting contemporary drawings of mother and child throughout the world. The drawings, which show the ethnic diversity of the universal family, are by Katrina Guettler of Sts. Peter and Paul parish in Decatur. Inside a quotation in calligraphy features short statements by people such as the late Dorothy Day of the Catholic Worker Movement, Trappist monk Thomas Mer ton, Mother Teresa, Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., writer Henri Nouwen and others on topics of peace, Chris tian love and the importance of community. The cards are divided into two sets: each set includes 12 cards, two each of six different designs and messages. Specify set number one or two when ordering. The cards are called “Blessed Mothers of the World.” Cost is $6 a set for 12 cards and envelopes, plus one dollar for postage per order. Proceeds support the work of the Community of Hospitality, which is an interfaith community involved in shelter for the homeless, hunger and work for peace and MADONNA AND CHILD card from Food for the Poor in Pompano, Fla. non-violence. Orders should be sent to the Community of Hospitality, 305 Mead Road. Decatur 30030 or call (404) 378-7840. . Advent Themes (Continued from page 1) daily readings from Scripture to use, have a valuable resource already available to them. During Advent the readings focus on the Old Testament prophets, particularly Isaiah and the Messianic passages foretelling a savior ■j whose message would be “good news to the poor.” These ! readings can be used by individuals, families and prayer \ groups for prayerful meditation. ] Pre-Christmas activities — shopping, cooking, cleaning — often become the woman’s chores in a household. Thorn- berry suggests involving the whole family in these ac tivities to prevent them from being burdensome. Family - activities during Advent could be preparing and lighting an Advent wreath, sharing favorite family activities, making a Promise Tree, sending peace notes. (See related article, page 6.) The Santa Claus tradition, Thornberry feels, has “no socially redeeming qualities.” Santa Claus theology, ex pressed in the lyrics of “Santa Claus Is Coming To Town,” - suggests an omniscient being who knows if children are good or bad and rewards the good, not with heaven, but with toys. “What does this say to the poor child whose parents cannot afford to give many if any toys at Christmas?” he » asks. For persons interested in reconsidering the Santa Claus tradition, Thornberry has prepared a family resource, “Christmas and Santa Claus.” Rediscovering old ways of giving is another Alternatives’ suggestion for improving the quality of Advent and Christmas celebration. Gifts of time, skill and homemade gifts can often signify the gift of self much more forcefully than a purchased gift. Thornberry emphasizes the need to include the whole family in discussions of alternative giv ing. He points out that the gift of time spent visiting the sick, the imprisoned, the lonely, is a gift to Jesus in the least 0 of His brothers and sisters. _ Making Christmas celebrations inclusive of people without family is another suggestion. He notes this is con trary to a cultural bent to make Christmas a “family affair.” Finding room for the outsider, the person without a family, the host welcomes Him for whom there was “no room in the inn.” The theme of this year’s Alternatives Christmas packet is “Remember whose birthday it is.” Thornberry suggests a very practical way to keep this focus. After Christmas, do a cost analysis of how money was spent at Christmas — how much went for gifts, decorations, cards, food and travel. To whom were gifts given? The boss? The pet? Set aside a significant amount — Alternatives suggests 25 percent — to be diverted the next Christmas to the needy or for charitable donations. Early in the pre-Christmas season, retrieve the analysis and keep it in mind while making up the new gift list. Resist the temptation to remove signifi cant recipients on the list in order to include the poor. Rather, make adjustments in the direction of simplicity in all gift giving. By using this suggestion you can help bring the good news to the poor on Christmas. These suggestions, Thornberry acknowledges, are countercultural. To implement them, people need support and encouragement. Thornberry believes the Church com munity can give that support. For him, the consumer- oriented way of celebrating Christmas is a spiritual con cern. “We waste too much, we consume too much. This has harmful implications for the planet, for other people and for the human spirit.” As Thornberry has pointed out, support to withstand the onslaught of commercialism is available. The liturgy’s opening prayer for the First Sunday of Advent pleads: “All powerful God, increase our strength of will for doing good that Christ may find an eager welcome at his coming and call us to his side in the Kingdom of Heaven.” (For an Alternatives catalog of available materials con tact Alternatives, P.O. Box 429, Ellenwood, Ga. 30049; (404) 961-0102.) "The Place" Crafts At Holy Spirit Christmas crafts, handmade by the peo ple of Forsyth County will be available for sale to the public by the sisters of The Place in Cumming at Holy Spirit Church, 4449 Nor thside Drive, Atlanta. The sale will be Sat urday, Dec. 5 after the 5:30 p.m. Mass and Sunday, Dec. 6 after all Masses until 2:30 p.m. Dominican Sisters Kathryn Cliatt and June Racicot work year-round to encourage the poor and disadvantaged who look to The Place for assistance. Well-known for their initiative, the sisters will have available their own cheese products for purchase. Other items for sale will include handmade quilts, teddy bears, weavings and decorated mailboxes, according to Judy Hotle, direc tor of crafts. Pastor of Holy Spirit parish, Father Ed ward Dillon said, “We’re pleased to be a part of a venture which helps people to help themselves and to see how enthusiastically our people support the talents displayed each year.”
