Queensland Synod News

The Church of England, in acknowledging its involvement in the slave trade, will take part in an act of repentance by thousands of Anglicans, including its spiritual head, planned for 24 March. Marchers from throughout Britain are expected to meet in London for a procession led by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, and his second in command, the Archbishop ...

Members of the Uniting Church congregation in Mosman (Sydney) are protesting loudly against the plans for a joint US/Australian military exercise in Australian Wilderness areas in the middle of 2007. Members have expressed their distress at the environmental impact of the exercises on the landscape and biodiversity of the wilderness regions being targeted, including the coastline north of Rockhampton. Local ...

Representatives of the Queensland Forum for Christians, Jews and Muslims have expressed deep regret at the injuries caused by the comments of Sheikh Feiz Mohammed published on DVD and in the Australian media on 18th January. Yet despite the hurdles to interfaith dialogue posed by such incidents, the three communities pledged yesterday to continue to work together. The representatives of ...

The British Airways check-in counter clerk who has been on unpaid leave since her employer told her in September she could not wear a cross on a chain around her neck outside her uniform is to return to work wearing the emblem of her Christian faith. The airline has backed down on its policy of not allowing workers to wear ...

The US Episcopal Church’s diocese of Virginia is preparing for an all-out legal battle over the ownership of the property in 11 parishes that broke away from the denomination over its tolerance of homosexual clergy. The case involves two of the oldest, largest and most prominent parishes in Virginia and pits church members against the diocese in a struggle over ...

Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomeos I, seen by many Orthodox Christians as their spiritual leader, has told European politicians that dialogue between followers of different religions is essential, ”especially in times such as ours when our planet is facing many warfronts all over the world". Both in the past and in the present, "religious reasons were put forth to edge individuals, or ...

Nobel Peace Prize Laureate, Desmond Tutu, the former Anglican Archbishop of Cape Town, has warned it is not possible to win the war on terror as long as conditions that drive people to desperation continue to persist. "There is no way anybody is going to win the war on terror as long as there are conditions in so many parts ...

Communities around Queensland will have stacks of fun with Pancake Day this year, as they cook and sell $2 pancakes to help raise money for those who need it most. Over 600 groups and businesses around Queensland will be supporting UnitingCare’s Pancake Day on Tuesday 20 February, to help the elderly, homeless and vulnerable members of the community. All funds ...

The US National Council of Churches, a long-standing critic of US military involvement in Iraq, has criticised President George W. Bush’s call for additional US troops to be sent to the region.  "Sending more troops is not a change in policy, nor is it even a change in strategy; it is more of the same," the NCC said in a ...

A Chinese monk from the Trappist order, the Rev. Nicholas Kao Se-tsean, who is believed to be one of the world’s oldest Roman Catholic priests, has celebrated his 110th birthday with family and friends in Hong Kong. Kao concelebrated a special Mass on 15 January at the Lady of Joy Abbey (Hong Kong), the place where he has lived and ...