THE Cherry Orchard area of Dublin acquired a great deal of notoriety last Hallowe'en on the occasion of what became known as the Gallanstown riots. The serious and concerted attack on gardai that night brought to the attention of a wider public the threat of a catastrophic breakdown in social cohesion.

The Ireland of rapid economic growth and cultural pride symbolised by the Riverdance phenomenon has two faces: boom for some, but doom for others.

The Cherry Orchard Faith and Justice Group, some members of which are working in theology and social justice, addressed this explosive situation from an explicitly Christian standpoint in a booklet published last week.

In Cherry Orchard, as in so many urban public authority housing estates in Ireland, we live in a physical environment under strain. There are few facilities - one corner shop for over 5,000 people, no public phone box, no schools, cinema or local health centre.

There are signs of wear and tear everywhere - graffiti on walls, broken glass and litter strewn on pavements and roads, and remains of burnt out cars removed by the public authorities on an almost daily basis.

These physical signs of decay and stress are an accurate reflection of the human predicament for many of us. It is a grim, relentless struggle for most people to make ends meet. Unemployment (around 50 per cent) is such that male morale especially is low, with fathers and husbands experiencing a loss of dignity and esteem.

All this means intense pressure on women, who are often burdened with the task of keeping the family together and supplementing social welfare payments with part time, low paid jobs.

Confidence is not helped by feeling, pushed around and talked down to by officials. The taboo on speaking out about domestic violence exacerbates an already fraught situation for some women.

The effects of all this on children are considerable. They tend to leave school early and to under perform academically, so that the cycle of long term unemployment is reinforced.

PARENTS quickly discover that so called free education is a misnomer - there are so many hidden costs that, in a poor house, a child at school is easily seen as a drain on the family finances rather than as a source of future earnings.

This document is not a litany of woes, and does not betray an exclusively victim mentality. Again and again we name the many positive features of life in Cherry Orchard, and we make recommendations about how we as local people can improve matters.

So, for example, we are proud of the magnificent contribution to community development of the Bungalow Resource Centre and the Orchard Community Centre. We are clear that a key strategic element in improving our situation would be the intensified targeting of areas such as ours to alleviate educational disadvantage.

Right through our analysis we draw on the notion of a Christian God, as portrayed in Jesus, who protests against the reality of such great suffering and multiple deprivation in people's lives.

Why wonder what Jesus would say about these things? It is clear from the Gospels how He chooses, to be, involved. It is impossible to imagine Jesus not being angry about what happens here. And He did not stop at anger and protest: He intervened actively on behalf of those who suffered.

And so we note the challenge this poses to good, decent, church going Irish Christians who do not experience this kind of deprivation.

Is it the same God to whom people pray in our area as in better off areas? If so, are we not all called to criticise economic policies that increase wealth while doing nothing to increase employment? Are we not all called to address the exclusion felt by women within church and society?

Why is it that Kieran Kennedy of the ESRI can note that "despite the fact that Ireland still remains and overwhelmingly Christian country, religious motivation has never been strong in regard to wider social responsibility"?

This document is a cry of pain and anger, but also one of hope and invitation. We in Cherry Orchard are determined to build a community of which we can be proud.

HOWEVER, we are also clear that our situation does not happen by accident. It is largely the product of how our society is organised and how structures are put in place which allow the majority to benefit at the expense of such a substantial minority.

Because of this we need - in justice, and not in charity - the help of outsiders, of churchgoers and people of goodwill throughout Ireland. We need you also to acknowledge your responsibility for the threat to social cohesion in our country.

Not so that you may beat your breasts and become paralysed by guilt. But so that just as you get concerned about the heavy burden of personal taxation, you might devote a proportionate amount of energy and lobbying to the issues of how the policies of government and other powerful bodies impact on areas like ours.

Politicians need to look to the short term. Our problems in this country will not be tackled until we create a culture in which the desires and values of our people encourage the politicians to take risks on a more long term strategy which will involve a certain amount of sacrifice on the part of the better off in our society.

Many of us believe and say that we do not knowingly contribute to injustice. This document challenges all such ordinary people to get off the fence and work actively for justice.