Spearwood Uniting Church is inviting people of all ages to join in the fun on Palm Sunday at their all age service. An outdoor service will be held on the church grounds, followed by free pony rides for the kids and a barbeque brunch and morning tea.
Playing on an old tradition of riding a donkey into church on Palm Sunday as a retelling of the story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem, the pony rides will add a fun flair to the day.
Churches, organisations and individuals will be calling for humane policies for asylum seekers and refugees in Australia this Palm Sunday 13 April. Palm Sunday has been known as a day when churches march for peace as it is the day Jesus is recognised as the King of Peace. A Walk for Justice for Refugees will take place on the streets of Perth, organised by the Justice4Refugees WA network. They are calling for compassion, not punishment; an end to offshore processing and an end to mandatory detention.
Kids’ Camp Out (KCO) was all about celebrating the harvest this year, with children from all over WA coming together to spend time with their congregations and get to know people from others. In a relaxed atmosphere, campers, junior leaders and leaders enjoyed a weekend of craft, games, Godly Play storytelling, worship and singing. The Feast, held on the Saturday night with an extended welcome to people of all ages, was a vibrant celebration made all the more fun by the Byford Footprints Band who entertained dancing guests into the evening.
In April, I conclude seven years as National Director of UnitingWorld to take up congregational ministry. As I look towards that role, one of my first thoughts concerns how I will enable the congregation to engage globally.
How will I support children and adults who have been baptised to meet, at least in their imagination, their brothers and sisters in faith across the globe? How I will I help those coming for confirmation to have a deep sense of being bound to people beyond their locality? How will I help nourish disciples to act with the people suffering injustice not reported in popular media? How will I guide the congregation in experiencing God beyond the constraints of Western culture?
The invitation to travel to Canberra to attend a vigil on the lawns of Parliament House on 18 March 2014 was extended to Uniting Church people throughout Australia. I was on long service leave pending retirement at the time, so I was free to travel to this national event. My husband Robin and I travelled to Canberra as representatives of the WA Synod.
The vigil was part of ‘A Destiny Together: A Week of Prayer and Fasting for Justice for First Peoples. It was planned by the Uniting Church Assembly in response to the stories of suffering from Indigenous people affected by the government Intervention in the Northern Territory and the subsequent Stronger Futures legislation.
It is good to be home after our long overseas trip followed by a brief visit to a very successful Yurora NCYC 2014 in Parramatta. Viv and I hope you had a happy Christmas and wish you every blessing for 2014.
Our time in the Holy Land was a particular blessing to us both. We spent ten wonderful days as pilgrims travelling with twelve other pilgrims in what must be the place of pilgrimage for Christians. Even the worst snowfall in Jerusalem for 100 years, freezing temperatures at night and the heating breaking down in the college didn’t prevent us from soaking in the pure wonder of just being there.
Bushfires in Perth’s hills around Parkerville, Stoneville and Mt Helena this January have devastated the area, with reports that 55 homes have been destroyed.
Rev Ron Larkin, moderator of the Uniting Church in WA has responded, extending prayers and care for those who have been affected and giving thanks for the courage and dedication to people who helped fight the fires and who are caring for those who have lost so much.
“Faith is a practical thing,” preached Julian Hamilton, of the Methodist Church of Ireland on the third day of Yuróra, the 2014 National Christian Youth Convention (NCYC).“We must perform the text, and when we do God turns up.”
With a week full of worship, song, dance and social justice, mixed in with a healthy dose of Yuróra, how could we not be performing the word of God? Yuróra was the theme for the 2014 NCYC, a biennial event held by a presbytery or synod of the Uniting Church, and means ‘passion’ in the Dharug language. As over 1000 delegates and volunteers pulled up outside the Centre for Ministry, Parramatta, it was clear their yuróra was calling them.
As neighbours from across the city, year five students from Scotch College enjoyed a day out last year celebrating with students of North Balga Primary School (NBPS) in their Multicultural Day. North Balga Primary School is a vibrant, multicultural school, with many students speaking English as their second language, from many different cultures.
Students from the school performed a range of dances and displays to celebrate their different cultures with the students from Scotch College, a Uniting Church school in Perth’s Western Suburbs.
UnitingWorld’s Lent Event provides opportunities for people of all ages to – as their motto says – connect, reflect and act. Connect with overseas communities; reflect on your faith and act, by giving up everyday items and donating the money to vital relief and development projects instead.
This year Lent Event includes a new, youth-inspired addition – Give it UP for Lent. Running over one weekend from March 7–9, Give it UP for Lent is the result of collaboration between UnitingWorld and South Australia’s Uniting Young People. It includes a full range of youth group resources, video and bible study materials.