Author: revivewa

Set your hearts on fire: childrens’ choir forms for Assembly

Post author By revivewa
Post date June 12, 2015

Coming up in July, the Uniting Church in Australia will hold its national meeting, the 14th Triennial Assembly, which is held over a whole week, but only once every three years. Members of the Uniting Church from all over Australia come together to discern with each other, and with God, on the future of the church until the next meeting. The theme for this year’s meeting is ‘Hearts on fire.’

At the opening service of this event, on Sunday 12 July, children from Uniting Church in WA congregations and schools are invited to take part. This is a fantastic opportunity for young people to be involved in this important meeting. The opening service will also include the installation of the new president of the Uniting Church in Australia, Stuart McMillan, and it will be held at Scotch College in Swanbourne.

A children’s choir will be performing on the night, and children from across WA are invited to join in. The choir will be performing one song, and singing another one from the stage with the congregation. There will be two rehearsals before the big event, plus a run-through before the service starts, so everyone involved will know exactly how it’s all going to work. Kids from rural areas who want to take part are invited to get in contact with organisers to possibly arrange an alternative time and venue for rehearsals.

Tags Uniting Church

News & Announcements

Pilgrimage of a lifetime

Post author By revivewa
Post date June 11, 2015

In November and December this year, a group of twenty Christian young adults will travel to the Holy Land on an adventure and spiritual journey like no other – and you could be part of it. For two weeks the group will be visiting historical and biblical sites, and will return home forever changed by the experience.

The Young Adult Pilgrimage to the Holy Land will be jointly led by Rev Dr Ian Robinson, chaplain at the University of Western Australia (UWA) and spiritual retreat leader; Rick Morrell, First Third co-ordinator at the Uniting Church in WA; and Rev Dr Emanuel Audisho, multicultural ministry co-ordinator at the Uniting Church in WA; with the help of John Snobar from Christian Pilgrimage Inc.

Beginning in Jordan, the pilgrimage will travel through Israel and Palestine, touring ancient cities and visiting significant sites such as where the Dead Sea Scrolls were found, where Jesus met the woman at the well, and Capernaum, where Jesus based his public ministry. Along the way, the group will be meeting a range of people, from locals to fellow pilgrims, and encounter new cultures and languages.

Ian Robinson has been on such a pilgrimage five times, and is excited to share the experience with a new group of young Christians. He believes the trip will be a life changing experience for those who are up for it.

Tags Theology and Spiritual Reflections, Youth

News & Announcements

English classes for more opportunity

Post author By revivewa
Post date June 9, 2015

Throughout March and April this year, 11 students from West Papua immersed themselves in Australian culture as part of the Australian Papuan Cultural Exchange Program. Through this program, the students, aged between 18–25, are able to build-up their English language skills, giving them more opportunities back home.

The idea originally sparked within All Saints Floreat Uniting Church after a visit to The Evangelical Christian Church in the Land of Papua (GKI di TP), a partner church of the Uniting Church in Australia. In its third season since 2010, this year the program was run with the assistance of many Uniting Church congregations across WA, including Scarborough, Trinity North, North Midlands and Foothills St Martins. From teachers and conversation partners to host families and bus drivers, this program is no easy feat to pull off – but its rewards are immeasurable.

Whilst in Australia, the students lived with host families in Perth, spending their days learning English in a classroom held at the Floreat church. It’s not all hard work though, as they also spent time exploring some of the city’s attractions, as well as heading south to Busselton and north to Coorow for some fun and time-out.

Tags Church and Community, International

Stories & Feature Articles

Messy Church Mix-Up

Post author By revivewa
Post date June 7, 2015

On Sunday 3 May, 10.00am, in Busselton, something really mixed-up was happening at Bryant Memorial Uniting Church. This was not normal.

The usual crowd for a Sunday morning service were all there, but this was not what they were used to; it was not Sunday church as they knew it. For a start, the music was different – instead of the usual piano and organ, there was a band – and look, are those our ministers with the guitars? Yes, Rev Brenton Prigge and Rev Andrew Broadbent are both up there in the band, and those are Andy’s boys, Tom and Ned playing with them.

But that’s not all – there was no sermon; there was a Godly Play story instead. And then there were all these other wonderful young families who usually only go to church once a month on a Saturday for Messy Church. Maybe this service had been planned just for them? Maybe this was a typical Messy Church?

But no, the Messy Church people were also finding everything a bit mixedup. There was no craft, for a start, and the whole thing was happening in the sanctuary instead of using the hall as well. And there were just pews; no tables and chairs. Not only that, but there was much more singing than at Messy Church and so many more wonderful ‘Granny and Grandpa’ type people… and after the Godly Play story that was all about the ‘Table of the Good Shepherd,’ they had this wonderful thing where everybody was actually invited to gather around the table, just like in the story. That never happens at our Messy Church!

Tags Church and Community, Youth

News & Announcements

Australian churches call for National Day of Prayer and Fasting

Post author By revivewa
Post date June 5, 2015

The National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) has invited all Australian Christians to participate in a National Day of Prayer and Fasting on Refugee Sunday 21 June.

The purpose of the day is to focus on the plight of asylum seekers and refugees both on mainland Australia and in offshore detention centres.

The General Secretary of NCCA, Sr Elizabeth Delaney, said, “For all who believe in believing prayer, the combined prayer of Christians from all churches is surely powerful. This, combined with fasting, prayer in action, is a concrete witness both to Christians responding to the Gospel call to welcome the stranger and our desire for unity through common action.”

Jesus taught that fasting from food and prayer is a way of accessing the power of God to enable the kingdom of God to come on earth as it is in heaven (Matthew 6.16-18; Matthew 17:14-21).

The NCCA has made available a range of resources for the day of prayer and fasting, including liturgy, prayers and teaching on fasting in the Bible. For more information visit http://www.ncca.org.au/.

Tags Uniting Church

News & Announcements

Save money on food AND eat well

Post author By revivewa
Post date May 29, 2015

Juniper, together with Foodbank and Bentley Community Focus will show seniors how to save money on groceries while also achieving a healthy diet through three weekly free information sessions for seniors.

Utilising FOODcents methodology, the three sessions will cover topics such as food budgeting and meal planning, including how to create inexpensive meal options.

The third week includes a cooking class on a specific meal, a tour of the Bentley Community Garden where herbs and other produce will be gathered for the meal and a free lunch.

FOODcents is an education program from the Department of Health that aims to teach people how to get value for money when grocery shopping while achieving a balanced diet.

Tags Ageing and Community

News & Announcements

Faith leaders target politicians on climate

Post author By revivewa
Post date May 27, 2015

Prominent leaders from diverse religious traditions in Australia are joining calls for more ambitious post-2020 emissions reduction targets, ahead of separate debates on each side of the political divide. Rev Prof Andrew Dutney, president of the Uniting Church in Australia, alongside the heads of the Anglican Church, peak Hindu and Buddhist bodies, and prominent leaders in the Catholic and Jewish communities, state there is a ‘moral imperative’ for considerably higher targets.

In letters to all Labor and Coalition parliamentary members, they write, “We propose 40% below 1990 levels by 2025, and 80% below by 2030, and to increase our offer to the UN Climate Fund.”

The current bipartisan target is 5 percent below 2000 pollution levels by 2020.

“We have a duty to this generation and the generations to come to protect the world around us. To do so, we need to cut pollution in line with the recommendation of scientific experts,” said Thea Ormerod, President of the Australian Religious Response to Climate Change (ARRCC), who co-ordinated the letters. “The current target fails to live up to our responsibilities as a nation. It is fundamentally immoral.

Tags Environment

Stories & Feature Articles

Let your light shine

Post author By revivewa
Post date May 27, 2015

For many of us, being a Christian is easy… on a Sunday, in a church building, in worship, in the company of other Christians, etc. Come Monday morning and the other days of the week, however, and all of a sudden we’re afraid of who we are. Why is that?

If we read Matthew 5:14-16 we will do well to remember that Jesus told us: “You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.”

As followers of Christ this is what we are: ‘the light of the world’.

In John Chapter 1 we are told that “The true light that gives light to everyone was coming into the world.”

This ‘true light’ is Jesus, and ‘his coming into the world’ we celebrate at Christmas time.

Tags Theology and Spiritual Reflections

News & Announcements

100 years of history at Osborne Park

Post author By revivewa
Post date May 10, 2015

September is a big month for us at Osborne Park Uniting Church this year. One hundred years ago, on 5 September 1915, our little church opened its doors for worship for the first time. To commemorate the occasion, the church is planning a number of events over the week beginning with an open day on the actual anniversary date, where there will be an opportunity for the community to see some of the old photos and books from the early years, provided by church members and the City of Stirling.

Although all the plans are not finalised, we hope to have some events over the week from Saturday 5 to Sunday 13 September, when we will hold a Special Anniversary Service at our normal time of 9.30am.

The decision to build the church was made with the help and encouragement of the local Member of Parliament, Mr John Veryard MLA. Those present at the meeting represent many families whose association with the church continued through its history and to this day. The building, it was decided, would be erected on the ground given by the Osborne Park Company. We have a picture of the sales brochure, which is similar in style to the Grenville Church. Originally, an unlined weatherboard building on wooden stumps, with a corrugated iron roof made up of six foot sheets, as was the standard in those times, it had a small wooden spire at the front pointing to heaven.

Tags Church and Community