INDEPENDENT NEWS

Auckland Gets First Taste of U2 this Friday

Published: Wed 15 Nov 2006 04:42 PM
Auckland Gets First Taste of U2 this Friday
The challenge to end world poverty takes on a new rock'n'roll twist this Friday. Auckland's St Matthew's in the City is hosting New Zealand's first U2Charist – a service featuring the guitar driven political melodies of U2, heightening awareness of the international campaign Make Poverty History and raising funds for Oxfam and the Auckland City Mission.
Fans and philanthropists are invited to join with U2 covers band 'The Believers' in belting out some favourite songs of the band who are playing in Auckland next week, all "in the name of love".
"As we saw last month with the success of Oxjam, music is a way in which Kiwi's can come together and not only have a good time, but stand up and take action against poverty and the injustices in our world," says Oxfam New Zealand Executive Director Barry Coates.
Playing on Bono's vocal support of Make Poverty History campaign, U2Charists have been held to great success worldwide. Speakers at the Auckland service include Elemeno P's Dave Gibson and Oxfam's Prue Smith.
"There has been some resonating times in history that my generation have not been apart of. The Civil Rights Movement, women gaining the vote, NZ spearheading the anti-nuclear movement, to name a few," says Gibson. "I believe we are currently, smack bang in the middle of one of these moments in time. Our moment is eliminating poverty, our moment is raising public awareness to the injustice of third world debt. Our moment is now and we're all apart of it."
Coates agrees: "From fair trade to campaigns such as Make Poverty History, advocacy plays a critical role in the work we do," adds Coates. "We have seen that engaging the public to apply pressure to governments and large organisations can make a lasting difference in the lives of those living in developing nations."
The service starts at 8pm, Friday November 17. Seats are limited, so it is advised to come early. There will be a raffle to win tickets to see U2 live in Auckland, with all funds raised going to Oxfam and The Auckland City Mission.
ENDS
Editors Notes The U2charist is based on the highly successful events in the United States, and is a liturgy combined with the popular music of U2, performed by a live band.
The overriding message of the event will be to help those who cannot help themselves by signing petitions and donating money so that we can make a contribution towards ending poverty.
The U2 Eucharist (or U2charist) is being held by St-Matthew-in-the-City in conjunction with Oxfam. All proceeds from the event will go to Oxfam, who works in partnership with poor communities across the world to help people identify and address the root causes of poverty.
The U2charist is a free event and we want as many people as possible to attend so that we can all make a difference in helping end poverty - and of course enjoy the great music of U2! We do ask that each attendee contribute a gold coin donation and all proceeds collected on the night will be given to Oxfam.
This is a first for New Zealand which is very exciting. St-Matthew-in-the-City is a progressive church and is proud to be the leaders in incorporating such popular contemporary music, with a valuable, topical message.
ends

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