NZ students use Facebook to aid victims of earthquake

Can any good come from Facebook (other than the fun quizzes)? Apparently, yes.

Kiwi students use Facebook to organise earthquake clean up
From AFP and YahooNews

CHRISTCHURCH, New Zealand (AFP) – Hundreds of enterprising New Zealand students have turned to Facebook to organise themselves into relief squads helping residents in the earthquake-hit city of Christchurch.

Canterbury University Law student Sam Johnson hit on the idea after learning that lessons had been cancelled for a week after the 7.0-magnitude earthquake hit New Zealand's second largest city on Saturday.

"On Saturday night I saw all these Facebook groups like 'I survived the quake, lets party' and 'buy a T-shirt, Christchurch quake 2010' had sprung up," the 21-year-old told AFP.

"I thought 'come on guys, surely we can do something more positive than that and do something positive for the community'."

Johnson set up the group "student volunteer base for earthquake clean up", calling on his peers to get out and help clear the debris littering Christchurch after New Zealand's most destructive quake in almost 80 years.

Posted on September 8, 2010 10:30 AM | |
Comments (2)

Well I like the term 'Holy One'. On the naming of the Holy One and the implications I really recommend Elizabeth Johnson's "She Who Is" although of course there are many other good books. Personally I believe that because of its almost universal usage, we retain the name 'God' and its pronunciation, but encourage people to spell it 'Godde' which is exactly halfway between culturally male 'God' and culturally female 'Goddess', because down that middle spelling we look through gender to the One who transcends gender, while fully knowing what it feels to be both male and female, and creating us male and female, in the divine image. By retaining 'Godde' I think you allow others to journey in their own way and own speed, and they hear 'God' in your prayers, or think they do. But you still know you're praying to the one who some days may seem like a faithful father to you, and on other days seems to hold you at breast like a baby, while you rest in her love. Or, as I sometimes find, Godde is like a female friend next door, who comes round the back way to my kitchen, and sits down for a coffee, and we chat and enjoy each other, and I think Godde can be right there at our level like that - far removed from the images of the avenging warrior, which historically coloured the imaging of that male God. Because really, Godde goes far beyond just male or just female. As I've found as a transsexual woman, gender is part of who we are, but personhood involves so much more. Surely the same with Godde?

Susannah - I think you meant this to be with the Beyond God the Father discussion?? Ed.

Posted by Susannah Clark [TypeKey Profile Page] | September 8, 2010 12:46 PM

My apologies - the post above was meant to go to a different thread *headdesk*

Thanks for the inspiring NZ report, though

Posted by Susannah Clark [TypeKey Profile Page] | September 9, 2010 1:21 PM

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