An outrage - and you could help
Jan. 17th, 2005 01:03 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
fpbI just came across this disgusting piece of news: that the little church erected with enormous effort by a small community of Indian Christian immigrants in Australia over a matter of 15 years has been destroyed by arson. This is a despicable crime, and I hope some of us will be willing to offer a little towards its reconstruction.
Fire destroys Indian Orthodox Church near Melbourne
Fire has devastated Victoria 's only Indian Orthodox Christian church building. Fire fighters were called to the blaze in the early hours of a Sunday morning, but the church interior was burnt beyond repair and all its contents destroyed.
For the small Indian Orthodox community in Melbourne this is a heavy blow. Although its resources are meagre, the church had just completed a project to build a parish hall and parsonage, based on the financial commitments of its small membership. It had taken the community 15 years before the church building could be bought from the Anglicans in 1994.
Firefighters suspect the fire was deliberately lit. Police are carrying out investigations. Fr. M. D. Varghese said that the congregation was still in shock. “We are a close knit community that has built this church from scratch. We have made Australia our home, and have been proud citizens of the local Coburg community. It is hard to understand why anyone would do this. For us now, we will use this time to bond together even stronger than before, knowing that our Lord is watching over us.”
Donations to the Rebuilding Fund can be sent to: Rev.Fr.M.D. Varghese, St. Mary's India Orthodox Church, 118-122 Nicholson Street, East Coburg, Victoria-3058, Australia.
Tel:+61-3-93837944Email. frmdv@yahoo.com
Fire destroys Indian Orthodox Church near Melbourne
Fire has devastated Victoria 's only Indian Orthodox Christian church building. Fire fighters were called to the blaze in the early hours of a Sunday morning, but the church interior was burnt beyond repair and all its contents destroyed.
For the small Indian Orthodox community in Melbourne this is a heavy blow. Although its resources are meagre, the church had just completed a project to build a parish hall and parsonage, based on the financial commitments of its small membership. It had taken the community 15 years before the church building could be bought from the Anglicans in 1994.
Firefighters suspect the fire was deliberately lit. Police are carrying out investigations. Fr. M. D. Varghese said that the congregation was still in shock. “We are a close knit community that has built this church from scratch. We have made Australia our home, and have been proud citizens of the local Coburg community. It is hard to understand why anyone would do this. For us now, we will use this time to bond together even stronger than before, knowing that our Lord is watching over us.”
Donations to the Rebuilding Fund can be sent to: Rev.Fr.M.D. Varghese, St. Mary's India Orthodox Church, 118-122 Nicholson Street, East Coburg, Victoria-3058, Australia.
Tel:+61-3-93837944Email. frmdv@yahoo.com
