Welcome to the May edition of Journey and my first in the editor’s seat. I’d like to acknowledge the fine work of my predecessor, Rohan Salmond who produced a magazine that truly lived up to its core mandates: to inspire, to provoke and to engage. The major question I ask myself as I settle in the role is, “What kind ...

Later this month some 350 people of the Uniting Church in this state will gather at Alexandra Park Conference Centre for the 32nd Synod in Session. The word “synod” comes from the Greek language: “syn”, meaning together, and “hodos”, meaning a way, a road. So a synod really is about “together on the way”. Archbishop Mark Coleridge, in talking about ...

White South Africans continue to leave their home country in droves, many unwilling to share their stories as the pain of leaving lingers on. Ashley Thompson talks with three South Africans about how they have been affected by escalating tensions in the post-apartheid nation. As first-hand observations of race-based university protests fill my Facebook newsfeed with statements like “cloudy with ...

Telling others about the good news of Christ’s death and resurrection is a vital part of mission and discipleship, but it can be difficult—even intimidating. Rohan Salmond looks at how to overcome some of the challenges to evangelism. When Jesus was betrayed and crucified, the movement which had built up around him was shattered and immediately went underground. The eleven ...

This edition marks 30 years of Journey magazine. Mardi Lumsden explores the past, present and future of church communications. Leafing through newsprint is a fast-disappearing luxury. The dusty 30-year-old pages of the Journey archives are filled with stories of the church at work in the world, calling out injustice and celebrating global, national and local milestones. This is a record ...

A renewed passion for planting new communities of faith is taking root in the Uniting Church Queensland Synod. Rohan Salmond explores. There was something different about the 31st Queensland Synod in Session. While synods are usually fairly sedate—sometimes even ponderous—on 14 and 15 October 2014 members of Synod raced from room to room talking excitedly in groups about the future ...

The members of the last Synod in Session asked the church to prioritise ministry with children, youth and families. While my journey of faith was marked by a conscious decision to commit my life to Christ in my early 20s, the experience of Christian community as a child and a youth was profound and life changing. I look back on ...

A couple of weeks ago, one Friday night, the youth group from St Stephen’s Roman Catholic Church in Brisbane hit the streets. They introduced themselves to people and told them that the cathedral was open for prayer; that they were welcome to go in, pray about something that was on their mind or troubling them, and light a candle as ...

“Preparation for married life begins the day you are born.” It was one of those new thoughts that made such common sense that as a 34-year-old, I wondered why I hadn’t thought of it before. I still remember the time and place it was said 23 years later! We learn what married life is about by observing and modelling. The ...

For a community of faith to grow, it needs to make room for people who have never been to church before. Rev David MacGregor explores a variety of ways newcomers can feel at home in a new place. In our worshipping communities we struggle to make inclusion real in our life together, especially with those who have never previously belonged ...