Magazine

Some of you may be familiar with Sergeant Alvin York but a quick recap for those unaware. York was a highly decorated American soldier during WWI and received the Medal of Honour for one particular attack he led which resulted in 25 enemy deaths and 132 captured enemy soldiers. What makes York particularly fascinating and relevant in a faith context ...

Unless you’ve been in a coma or busy on the International Space Station I’m sure you’re aware of the debate surrounding the proposal to legalise same-sex marriage. I’m also sure you will not have escaped the avalanche of advertisements, media opinion pieces and (sometimes heated) discussions in your social circles about the issues at stake, so the last thing you ...

Brisbane medical specialist and Uniting Church member Dr Ian Airey, chairperson of Wesley Mission Queensland’s Art from the Margins, talks to Dianne Jensen about the healing power of the creative arts. Anaesthetist and former intensive care specialist Dr Ian Airey is no stranger to ministering to people undergoing trauma or dislocation. Yet walking into a Brisbane park with other Albert ...

As we continue to celebrate our 40th anniversary year with reflections on the church’s storied past, Rev Duncan Harrison reminds us of the importance of remembering the Basis of Union, the tensions around union, and the leadership team who guided the new church. Moses on Mt Moriah challenged Israel after their 40 years of wandering, “Remember your bondage in Egypt ...

Rev Dr Dean Drayton explores why “Kingdom of God” still has a place in Christian understanding and worship. My own personal discovery 40 years ago of the importance of Jesus’ announcement of the good news of the Kingdom of God, and his teaching about the importance of “entering the kingdom” has had me emphasising this term as vital for the ...

Dr Paul Inglis and his wife Robyn from Dayboro Uniting Church had done plenty of research on what to expect on a YWAM medical outreach in Papua New Guinea, but the adventure was still full of surprises and challenges. Dr Paul Inglis reports. Things got busy as soon as we joined our daughter Emily, son-in-law Jason, grandsons Hugh and Monty ...

As I write this the village of Tolpuddle in Dorchester is having its annual celebration of the Tolpuddle Martyrs, a group of Methodist lay preachers who were transported in the mid-1800s to Australia for forming a union to protect their interests as agricultural workers (they were later pardoned). On 30 August at the Brisbane City Hall, the Queensland Community Alliance ...

Art has been on my mind: I visited Sydney’s Art Gallery of NSW and Museum of Contemporary Art Australia during a recent holiday and it reminded me how art can unlock ways we see the good, the bad and the ugly in our society, and gave pause for contemplation about who we are and where we’re headed. I also stumbled ...

I recently watched the classic 1962 film Birdman of Alcatraz starring Burt Lancaster and it’s impossible to finish without contemplating the nature of revenge and rehabilitation. For those unfamiliar with the real-life story of the Birdman, Robert Stroud was an American murderer who escaped the executioner’s noose but had his sentence commuted to life in solitary confinement. There, he began ...

Looking for contemporary Christian music that everyone can sing to inspire your worship? Journey suggests five modern worship songs that will get your foot tapping and your heart pumping. “Hootenanny” by Tim Neufeld and the Glory Boys (2016) Saddened that worship music is generally bereft of banjos? Then Tim Neufeld and the Glory Boys are for you! The multi-award winning ...