Melbourne was the first Australian city to celebrate World Refugee Day, which began with a protest to free more than 1600 children held behind barbed wire and a call to end mandatory detention. The rally coincided with the Multicultural Arts Victoria’s Emerge festival, which celebrated its 10th anniversary.
The festival is part of the United Nations World Refugee Day ...
Imagine you live on the other side of the world and know nothing about Australia. Deciding to change that, you begin by reading the country’s founding document, the supreme law under which the society is governed – the Constitution.
At the conclusion of the 25-page document, you’d be forgiven for thinking ‘Terra Australis’ was completely devoid of human life ...
THE Asylum Seeker Project (ASP) has now officially joined the recently amalgamated Lentara UnitingCare.
Lentara, which was formed last year by the union of the longstanding Sunshine, Broadmeadows and Orana UnitingCares, will consolidate the ASP with its Asylum Seeker Welcome Centre in Brunswick to provide a strengthened asylum seeker service to the Melbourne community. ASP will still be based in ...
By Nigel Tapp
Like many Australians, Misha Coleman is frustrated by the language used to describe those who take to the water to seek asylum in Australia. ‘Queue jumpers’ and ‘illegals’ are terms trotted out ad nauseam by political leaders from both the right and left of ...
Hidden by the federal government’s leadership stoush last month was the passing of the Living Longer Living Better aged care reform package, opening the door for better long-term support measures for ageing Australians.
The move takes on key recommendations of the Productivity Commission’s Caring for Older Australians report tabled in 2011.
UnitingCare Australia national director, Lin Hatfield Dodds, said ...
The Australian Hymn Book Pty Ltd has announced an international hymn writing competition as part of its work in gathering the finest congregational songs for its growing Together in Song collection. The competition has two entry levels, either of which may be selected by an individual competitor – general and specific.
The general level competition is seeking songs that re-imagine ...
A petition of 570 signatures collected by Uniting Church members was tabled in the Victorian Parliament. The petition calls for the Parliamentary Education and Training Joint Investigatory Committee to conduct an inquiry into the impacts of the changes to TAFE funding. The inquiry was asked to specifically investigate the impact on access to education for disadvantaged youth and employment outcomes ...
ONE big issue dominated Synod 2013 – although there were many other reports and memorable moments – and that involved the two pronged report brought by the Property Board. The first revolved around the aftermath of the closure of Acacia College. The second centred on two proposals relating to the financial sustainability of the Synod, post Acacia College.
MR ALF Popple, a member of the Neale Street congregation in Bendigo, recently celebrated his 100th birthday.
how to make your ex want you backThis year also marks 70 years of ministry as a lay preacher for Mr Popple in the Methodist and Uniting Churches.
VISITING Indonesian minister Rev Novita Sutanto took a host of valuable experiences and fond memories home to Jakarta when she departed the synod after a three-month stay at the end of last month.
how to get your ex backMs Sutanto is a congregational minister with Gereja Kristen Indonesia (GKI, the Indonesian ...
ALMOST 100 guests commemorated Wesley Mission Victoria’s 120th birthday early last month.
Members of the Uniting Church, the Wesley board, staff, volunteers and clients attended the celebration at Wesley Church in Lonsdale Street, which concluded with a sausage sizzle.
For all of its 120 years, Wesley has been known as an outspoken advocate for social reform. It began life ...
FOR the past 30 years, the Uniting Church in Australia and the Lutheran Church of Australia have shared a close relationship.
This was recognised at the UCA Assembly meeting last year, with the adoption of A Great Prayer of Thanksgiving with Commentary.
Produced by the LCA/UCA dialogue group, the booklet was launched last month in Horsham.
