At face value, “Be lighter and simpler” is one of the more attractive Statements of Intent* adopted by the Synod.
Who would not want to embrace the notion of being lighter and simpler?
It conjures up images of the simple life, of restful holidays, of no demands, of walks in the sun. It speaks ...
LESS than a decade after it was formed the Uniting Church in Australia boldly declared itself to be a multicultural Church. More than 30 years on from the 1985 statement can the UCA say it is “mission accomplished” or does the statement remain aspirational rather than a reality?
Melbourne’s Hosier Lane is a renowned location for street art but this week it was in the news as businesses shut off alcoves that were sheltering homeless people. Our front cover illustration is inspired by British street artist and activist Banksy. Image by Crosslight illustrator Garth Jones.
All of the September Crosslight stories are available here. Crosslight ...
Seconds out – How an op shop rivalry turned into a Synod duel
The Box Hill Town Hall in June was the scene of a showdown between two Uniting Church ministers, one that had been building for months.
Rev Cynthia Page and Rev Claire Dawe came to the Synod meeting with their fashion fates in each other’s ...
Over the last few weeks I have spent considerable time thinking about safety, security and what it means for us to become a safer church. Some of this thinking has arisen from meeting with survivors of abuse.
Their courage in telling their stories and holding us accountable for what they suffered demands that we work as hard as we ...
The youngsters at Scots Early Learning Centre in Hobart put their green thumbs to the test as part of National Tree Day and Schools Tree Day in July.
Activities were spread over a week rather than just one day and included planting a herb garden, extension of the existing vegetable garden, construction of a bug house, replenishing flower pots and ...
Ok, so we’re born, live, and then we die.
“There is a time for everything under the sun.”
But I’m not sure that it always feels like that. How about that time in between – when you’ve not yet died, but you’re no longer able to live as the person you once knew yourself to be? That ...
BOOK | GOD IS NO THING: COHERENT CHRISTIANITY | RUPERT SHORTT
There is a strain of English Christianity that sees faith as entirely reasonable and sensible, like packing an umbrella when the weather looks inclement.
We see it in the theology of Alister McGrath and John Polkinghorne, who make arguments from natural theology, who explain how ...
TELEVISION | PREACHER | MA
Critic Adam Marshall, writing for Christianity Today, characterises AMC Television’s adaptation of cult graphic novel Preacher as being part of the presently popular vanguard of superhero entertainment.
Reflecting upon these stories as miracle narratives in which good reliably triumphs over cosmic evil, Marshall characterises Preacher protagonist Rev Jesse Custer as a ...
BOOK | DISTURBING MUCH, DISTURBING MANY: THEOLOGY PROVOKED BY THE BASIS OF UNION | GEOFF THOMPSON
Since 1977, there have been numerous studies of the Basis of Union of the Uniting Church in Australia. Nevertheless, this recent volume by Rev Dr Geoff Thompson (coordinator of Studies in Systematic Theology, Pilgrim Theological College) breaks new ground.
...
Prayer is…
The 1656 painting Praying Always by the Dutch painter Nicholas Maes is an icon of the Reformation. It shows an old woman at her kitchen table, with a simple but symbolic meal set before her. The fish, the bread and wine, the key hanging on the rudimentary hook alongside the hourglass, the bell, the ...
Uniting Church President Stuart McMillan has signed a historic partnership agreement with the Methodist Church in Fiji at their annual conference in Suva, Fiji.
The Methodist Church is the largest Christian denomination in Fiji, representing more than 36 per cent of the total population. The agreement affirms the two churches’ shared Methodist heritage and expresses their commitment to work together ...
