INSTEAD of their usual call to be more spiritual, a cluster of churches in the east on Monday preached a very secular message of hope.
There were more than 800 jobs on offer at the Hope - or Helping our People - job carnival held at the Pentecost Methodist Church in Pasir Ris.
It attracted about 1,500 people of various races and religions.
Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean, who was guest of honour at the event, applauded the organisers for their support of the community in the current economic downturn.
'Religion can sometimes lead to a certain exclusiveness, but the approach taken by the church members today, and other religious organisations, to reach out to the wider community and to extend help to all is a very positive one,' he said.
Mr Teo's comments mirrored those made by several ministers over the last few weeks during Racial Harmony Day and National Day events.
All called for the various religions here to come together and to prevent any tension from arising between groups.
Said MP for Pasir Ris-Punggol GRC, Dr Ahmad Magad, who was also at the job fair: 'We should not draw barriers or walls amongst us...We should all look upon each other as Singaporeans, as one large family.'
Mr Teo said the job fair could not have been a more apt example, as it offers another helping hand in the community.
- The Straits Times
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