Date: 2010-02-22 21:30:42
We listened to presentations and talked to each other about the topic of Christian unity. We discovered new things about each other’s churches and rejoiced in growing friendships. We felt the impatience of those wanting to move on and not knowing how to move the final hurdles out of the way (“A new way of living”).
Then, at the end of the annual ecumenical retreat of Toowoomba Churches Together, Rev. Bruce Johnson, himself one of the presenters, put a spanner in the works. “The issues we have been discussing together [about Christian unity] ... are of little or no interest to those beyond the church.” This was in his homily during the closing worship.
Good thing we were packing up anyway, we thought.
But that was not all. Bruce pointed us to Isaiah and urged us to get on with the job of unity as a joint prophetic voice in the world, proclaiming – and ourselves heeding – “the call of God to a new way of living.” Yes we need to “do the hard work of looking for the way that God would re-unite us” – but unity is for the sake of mission, and we can’t wait for the first one to happen before we do the second.
It seems to me the hardest thing is to believe that our own personal and collective mindset can be transformed, switched into prophetic mode. Let’s pray – together – for that miracle this week.
***
QCT News will take a break next Monday, while I return from a number of visits to towns further west of Brisbane. I hope I will have a fresh stack of stories for you in weeks to come.
Glenine Hamlyn
At the 2010 ecumenical retreat of Toowoomba Churches Together, participants from four churches practised ways of seeing the Church in each other.
Sign up to receive daily Lenten studies and stories via email on the theme of violence against women – the anguish, but also the hope.
The Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholemew has issued an encyclical on the Sunday of Orthodoxy (21 February) insisting on the need for dialogue despite the condemnation of zealous opponents.
Church leaders in Northern Ireland, both Catholic and Anglican, have welcomed a recent milestone sealing the complete devolution of power from Britain.
The G7 nations have pledged to cut Haiti’s debts. The World Council of Churches welcomes this step and urges the IMF to follow suit.
A group of Christian health workers has been arrested during a training workshop. The World Council of Churches has appealed to the President of the Philippines to release them.
The World Student Christian Federation (WSCF), based in Geneva, is looking for a new general secretary. The time frame is brief, so hurry if you are interested, or send this on now.
In an eloquent and moving account, the head of the Lutheran team in Haiti, Sylvia Raulo, depicts developments since the earthquake – and the hope of survivors.
Dateclaimer: Tuesday, 1 June 2010, 7:30pm in St John’s Anglican Cathedral, Brisbane: a service of real partnership and reconciliation, bringing together Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Christians and other Christians from diverse churches.
7 March - You are invited to the artists' church service and the opening of the Visionaries Exhibition, "Psalms and Wisdom" at St Andrew's Uniting Church, Brisbane City.
The World Day of Prayer (Friday, 5 March) focuses on Cameroon – a fascinating country with a strong Christian tradition – and strong women in the churches. They work in health, education, engineering, theology and social justice, especially in the area of trafficked women. The theme of the World Day of Prayer is: “Let everything that has breath praise God.” See the great powerpoint presentation.
Posters and Prayer cards for the 2010 Week of Prayer for Christian Unity are now available. Tell us what you are planning for this too.
The ABC has set up a blog on its website, ‘Talking of Faith’, dedicated to reflections and comments on the Parliament of the World’s Religions.
27 February - “Wadda Mooli” is Birrigubba language meaning greetings such as “hello, goodbye, or welcome”. Please join Moreton Bay Regional Council Elders Incorporated, in association with Woongara Koomba IYSRAI, and come along to 'Wadda Mooli' Family Day.
Sunday 21 March – Believing Women for a Culture of Peace (BWCP) invite all interested women to a follow-up session for women who attended the Parliament of the World’s Religions in Melbourne in December 2009. Other interested women are also invited to attend.
17 April - Eco Justice is one of the central concerns of the Institute of the Sisters of Mercy. Come along and support their work by attending, the Go Green Fair.
2 March - After an introduction to the spirituality of Sufism, the Nematollahi darvishes musical group will provide an evening of sufi spiritual music in the Persian tradition. All welcome.
21 March - All are invited to a celebration of the contribution of Rev. Dr. George Rosendale toward Aboriginal & Islander Theology and the community of north Queensland, as he receives an Honorary Doctorate from the Australian Lutheran College. The event includes worship, singing, testimonies, community involvement and dance.
…to send this newsletter on to someone who might like to subscribe.
