I know that, as Christian people, we have all been very concerned about the drought that has gripped so much of NSW, and the special needs of those who work on the land. This concern is reflected in the warm response to the Archbishop’s Appeal in February this year.

I am glad to report that $195,000 was raised, mainly from the Sydney area, and I have been able to make distributions via the Bishops of other dioceses in the State. This has been most gratefully received. Bishop Clark of Riverina has written to me, for example, asking me to convey to the parishes in Sydney the thanks of his people for our concern and assistance.

The problem is that the drought has not yet broken. Yet because there has been fairly good rain in some parts of the State, not least in the Sydney region, many of us feel that the crisis is past.

We intentionally launched the Appeal in February because we knew then that the effects of the drought, even if rains came, would be long-lasting. There remains, and will continue to remain, further need for help. Bishop Clark asks us to pray for the ministry and Christian witness of the people in the Riverina. It would be good also to be able to send more financial assistance in due course.

The Archbishop’s Appeal is especially, but not only, directed to the need for ministry to be sustained in rural NSW. Further gifts can be sent to the Archbishop of Sydney’s Appeals Unit, PO Box 1416, Parramatta, 2124.

The effect of drought is a constant reminder to us of the way in which we depend upon God’s mercy for our lives. We have no right to claim anything from him. We cannot demand that he feed us. The Bible tells us that it is as he opens his hands that we experience the abundance of this world.

Our position in Sydney protects us, on the whole, from the worst effects of drought and may mean that we take God’s mercies for granted. We ought to remember how frequently drought was used by God in biblical times to challenge and check his people, and how we should be constant in our calling upon him for rain.

Of course, no matter how bad things are in NSW they are worse in other parts of the world where people have no easy access to water. This year has been designated as International Year of Freshwater, and the Archbishop’s Overseas Relief and Aid Fund is working to help the needy of the world to gain access to clean and abundant water. Once again, I commend this fund to your attention and assure you that it will do good in areas of great need.