1 WOMEN’S WORLD DAY OF PRAYER INTERNATIONAL AND INTERDENOMINATIONAL 4 TH March 2011

2 Chile is easily recognisable due to its long thin shape stretching from North to South along South America’s Pacific coast from Peru to its southern most point, Cape Horn

3 Stretching from North to South means that Chile has many different climates. The Atacama Dessert is the driest desert in the World

4 What is it like to be a woman in Chile? Chilean women only entered the labour market in recent years and represent just over a third of the work force. Women tend to work in less prestigious and poorly paid jobs such as: domestic service, seasonal work- selling in street markets and many different ‘home based’ jobs (sewing, making bread, etc.) They usually earn two thirds of the minimum wage for this type of work. Research carried out by the University of Chile reveals that 87% of the women interviewed felt that women suffer discrimination in some form or another. Equal opportunities are pursued. For example, pregnant women and mothers of new born babies are protected by law. They receive special benefits and cannot be made redundant from their work. Unfortunately Chile has the highest incidence of domestic violence in Latin America. It is said that 28% of Chilean women suffer physical or sexual violence and nearly 20% suffer psychological violence. The number of women killed violntly is a cause of concern.

5 Chile is a land of incredible contrasts with its deserts, beaches, fjords, deep sea channels, glaciers and icebergs. It is also a land of volcanoes and earthquakes. The Chilean side of the Andes mountain range includes over 600 volcanoes.

6 Theme of the day: How many loaves do we have? We looked at loaves as qualities and talents that we can share amongst us to make the world a better place.

7 How many loaves do we have? Make people smile Offer each other company. Help the disabled. Comfort others when they need help. Give advice to people. Charity work. Giving up your things e.g. time, money and gifts. Education.

8 Many of these qualities are seen throughout the world on a daily basis and many of them are shown to others by women. Whether as a mother, a sister, a daughter, a carer or a friend, women have strength and show love to others. These small offerings are always made greater by God. As we will hear in the Gospel reading, the women who returned to the tomb to anoint Jesus’ body were the first to hear the Good News of Jesus’ resurrection and tell others.

9 Prayer Almighty God, we give thanks for giving us the privilege of having a good education. We give thanks for being present in our lives and for giving us the strength, as women, to keep going forward. We also give thanks for making us good people with the strength for being able to love and care. We give you thanks for always helping us when we most need you and for never abandoning us, especially those people who have nothing to eat, and nowhere to live. We ask you also to look after the children in need of help and guidance, and those who live alone on the streets. We place all our trust in you and we know that you will listen to our prayer. Amen. Oración Dios todo poderoso, te damos gracias por el privilegio de tener una buena educación. Te damos gracias por existir en nuestras vidas y por darnos la fuerza como mujeres para salir adelante. También, te damos las gracias por hacer de nosotras personas de bien y con fuerza para amar y querer. Te damos gracias por ayudarnos siempre cuando más te necesitamos y por nunca abandonarnos sobre todo a aquellos que no tienen nada que comer, donde vivir y también a esos niños que están desamparados por las calles de la ciudad. Confiamos plenamente en ti sabemos que escucharás nuestras plegarias. No nos desampares Amén

10 Reflexiones y pensamientos sobre el día Hoy aprendí que Chile es un país afortunado y con mucha fé, por ejemplo cuando había 33 hombres mineros que se quedaron encerrados en una mina tuvieron fé y Dios le salvó. Lo que más me gustó fue que aprendimos con nuestras amigas. Pudimos crear una oración que podemos compartir con otros. Dayana It was really good. I like that we got to work with other Latino American girls. I learned a lot about Chile and I liked preparing the assembly. I learned that however small our talents might be, they could make a big difference. Valeria Today I had a lot of fun. It reminded me of year 9 when we did Spanish together. The most fun I had today was I got to learn about the beautiful country Chile. I hope I can repeat this again. Jenifer

11 Reflexiones y pensamientos sobre el día Hoy ha sido un día muy interesante. Hoy he aprendido muchas cosas sobre Chile en el día internacional de las mujeres de Chile. Ahora s é donde se sitúa en Sur América. Chile es un país que es muy largo y por todo el país hay diferentes climas. También hay un desierto y muchas montañas. Chile es un país muy bonito. Sara Hoy fue un día muy diferente. Aprendí que el cuatro de marzo es el día internacional de la mujer. También aprendí que las cosas pequeñas pueden cambiar el mundo. Erika Today was really helpful as I was working with the other Spanish speaking girls. I found learning about Chile and Chilean women really interesting. Working on prayers helped us to reflect and put ourselves in their shoes. One of the most fascinating things we talked about was the 33 Chilean miners. Clara

12 Today was fun and a very interesting day. We have learned so many things about Chile that we have never learned before. We also learned how much men should learn how to appreciate and not discriminate against women. I really enjoyed working with the group and the teachers. Jennifer Today was really good and interesting. I got closer to the Latino American girls and I also learnt things about Chile. Carolina Hoy he aprendido que el cuatro de marzo es el día Mundial de las Mujeres. También aprendí que es muy interesante compartir con otras alumnas del colegio. Yessica Reflexiones y pensamientos sobre el día

13 I learned how women should be considered in the world. Also as I was with the Latino American girls I felt more comfortable. I Learnt about Chile and how women are treated as well. Tracy Hoy fue un día importante para mi. Aprendí mucho sobre Chile y también del día internacional de la mujer. Cuando creamos una oración mis compañeras y yo, lo hicimos desde el corazón y cuando lo expusimos todas lo hicimos muy bien. Todas colaboraron para hacer un proyecto genial. Dios siempre estuvo presente en todo lo que hicimos. Nos ayudó a hacerlo bien. Maritza Reflexiones y pensamientos sobre el día