Queensland Synod News

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, says he believes that in some regions in China the percentage of the population attending church on Sundays is as large or even larger than that in most western European countries. Speaking at the residence of the British ambassador in Beijing after a two-week trip to the world’s most populous nation, Williams said the ...

The Uniting Church today welcomed the first wage decision of the Australian Fair Pay Commission (AFPC). Uniting Church President Rev Gregor Henderson said the Church had advocated on behalf of the most disadvantaged workers in its submission to the Fair Pay Commission and he was pleased the Commission recognised their needs by ruling an increase of $27.36 per week to ...

UnitingCare Queensland Director Anne Cross has said that the article “Aged Care Disgrace” printed in the Sunday Mail (22 October 2006) was both incorrect and unnecessarily alarmist and that all Blue Care aged care homes identified in the article are fully compliant with accreditation standards. “All Blue Care aged facilities identified by the Sunday Mail were fully compliant at the ...

Age Care Queensland has said that yesterday’s Sunday Mail story “Aged Care Disgrace” is misleading and alarmist; and it may cause unwarranted fear and anxiety amongst elderly residents and their families. Selective comments from audits conducted as long ago as 2003 were used to imply that each of the 38 “nursing homes” named was found to be non-compliant in maintaining ...

Queensland Governor Quentin Bryce launched a Queensland Council for Social Service (QCOSS) report during anti-poverty week at St Mary’s Catholic Church in South Brisbane. The report, undertaken by the University of Queensland Social Research Centre, examines the extent of income poverty in Queensland and looks at the impacts of poverty on particular groups in the community. QCOSS President Karyn Walsh ...

Guinness World Records have officially verified that the first ever world record has been set for the most number of people to Stand Up against poverty in multiple locations over 24 hours. Queensland Uniting Church Social Responsibility Advocate Heather den Houting said that 23,543,613 people joined in the Guinness World Record attempt. “This includes 91,987 in Australia, a tad shy ...

The award of the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize to Bangladesh economist Muhammad Yunus and his Grameen Bank for pioneering small loans to poor people to set up in business has been hailed as a major boost for what is now called microfinance. "Muhammad Yunus gave a new perspective for life to the 1.1 billion people that live on less than ...

A report by the Fertility Society of Australia, to be released later this month, will reveal that 70% of survey respondents nominated a stable relationship as the top pre-requisite for having children, not income level. “The baby bonus has proven valuable in increasing the birthrate,” said Mr Wallace, Managing Director of the Australian Christian Lobby, “but 70% of people clearly ...

The head of the US National Council of Churches says he is shocked by the results of a new study – contested by President George W. Bush – estimating that more than 600,000 Iraqis may have died as a result of the US-led invasion of March 2003. "The perpetrators of this war can no longer tell us this is ‘collateral ...

The Rev. Ian Paisley, who heads Northern Ireland’s largest political party, the Democratic Unionist Party, has met the leader of the Roman Catholic Church in Ireland in what has been hailed as a step to overcome tension in the religiously-divided territory. Paisley, who has in the past faced accusations of making inflammatory remarks against Roman Catholics, met the Catholic Archbishop ...