The Uniting Church WA calls on the State and Federal Governments to prioritise investment in renewable energy and social housing in WA.
The decision was made at the 44th Annual Meeting of the Synod of WA where more than 150 Uniting Church members from around Western Australia came together to discuss issues of importance in the life of the Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Western Australia, and the wider community this weekend, Friday 11 to Sunday 13 September.
The Struggle for Justice: Conversations with John Bottomley about transforming church community services, by Kate Dempsey, Coventry Press 2020
The Uniting Church, according to this book, is both “shrinking and ageing”. The congregational side of it certainly is. But the community services side is expanding. I have argued in my PhD on the Uniting Church’s future that if the Uniting Church’s community services were amalgamated and “quoted” on the Australian Stock Exchange, the new Uniting entity would be one of the exchange’s largest companies. As governments continue to privatise their welfare services, so the Uniting Church will be among the not-for-profits scooping up the additional work.
When Susy Thomas received a tap on the shoulder to nominate as Moderator Elect of the Uniting Church WA, she was thrown. As a retired, successful CEO of a community service organisation, she was ready to enjoy some rest and much-loved time with her grandchildren.
Susy Thomas, Moderator Elect of the Uniting Church WA, was invited to attend an annual Christian convention at the church she grew up in, in Kerala India. The conference was held in February this year, just before COVID-19 restrictions came into place. She shares her experience.
Robert Watson, a Past Moderator of the Uniting Church WA, and his wife Nely, both members of Foothills St Martin’s Forrestfield Uniting Church, used their time of physical distancing during COVID-19 to experience Perth in a whole new way.
Rev Dr David Ferguson, Presbytery Officer for the Uniting Church WA, reflects on the power of shared music.
This Sunday marks 282 years since John Wesley’s often called ‘conversion’ experience where he uttered the words: “My heart was strangely warmed.” This change in his understanding of faith eventually led to the formation of the Methodist Church. The Methodist Church in Australia is one of the three Australian churches that came together to form the Uniting Church in Australia in 1977.
Are you feeling creative in these times of physical distancing? Rev Dr David Ferguson, Presbytery Officer for the Uniting Church WA, shares some ideas and inspiration for how we can collectively create while we are physically apart.
A weekly meditation session that is usually held at Willetton Uniting Church has gone online for the duration of COVID-19 restrictions, with positive results.
Rev Lorraine Stokes, Minister at Willetton Uniting Church, regularly runs the meditation sessions on Thursday mornings in a corner of the worship space, with a handful of people. When COVID-19 restrictions meant they could no longer meet in person, Lorraine started up an online session via Zoom technology.
Rev Dr David Ferguson, Presbytery Officer for the Uniting Church WA, reflects on using the labyrinth as a spiritual practice during the COVID-19 global pandemic.