JourneyOnline
May God bless us
This prayer is a beautiful and challenging benediction and is relevant to all of us as we seek to live out our mission as followers of Jesus. Take a couple of minutes to sit with this benediction.
Coming up
Affected by mental health issues?
A Nouwen Network encourages and supports, within and across faith communities, attitudes of awareness, acceptance and respect for those whose lives are affected by mental health issues. The network also encourages the provision of appropriate pastoral support and advocacy.
Sign up to receive their newsletter. There are regular coffee mornings in the Brisbane region. If you live in regional or remote areas, email the network for help to start your own coffee mornings.
Eradicating elder abuse
You’re invited to attend the 2019 National Elder Abuse Conference and take action towards eradicating elder abuse. Themed “Rock the boat”, the conference will take place on 22 and 23 July 2019 at the Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre. This conference aims to help safeguard the right of older Australians to live free from abuse, violence, exploitation and neglect. Elder abuse has an enormous impact on our society and there are particularly complex dynamics of elder abuse within the family requiring much deeper analysis. Register now
Week in review
“In a few days I’ll be homeless again”
“Am I really homeless?” That’s what I often asked myself during the months I was sleeping on my ex-husband’s floor, my clothes crammed into a suitcase next to my head …” Elizabeth Laura Nelson writes of her experiences.
#ThingsDisabledPeopleKnow
Read this article by Kay Morgan-Gurr, a woman in ministry who happens to have a disability, reflecting that “Churches aren’t good with disability”. There are some straightforward ideas here which make the article worth the read.
How to save the Murray-Darling? Ask the Indigenous nations
Recognising Aboriginal legal rights to access and manage water is the key to addressing the “unfolding ecological and cultural disaster on the Murray-Darling”, say Indigenous nations of the river system.
Escape from Saudi
The women who make it and the ones who don’t. Hundreds of women have tried to escape Saudi Arabia in recent years, fleeing the strict male guardianship laws that control every aspect of their lives. ABC Four Corners follows the stories of some of the women who attempt the desperate dash for freedom. This is an eye-opening read.
Regional Australians, mental illness, “pill shaming” and stigma
ABC Riverland reports on a new awareness of the impacts of “pill shaming”, which can prevent people from purchasing medication to help treat their mental illness. The National Rural Health Alliance identified that around 20 per cent of people Australia-wide experience mental illness. Rates of suicide and self-harm increase for people living more remotely. The negative stigma in regional Australia has caused people to feel embarrassed about accessing medication. Continued efforts to reduce negative perceptions of mental illness must be made. A very interesting read.
Call to action
Everyone can make an impact on the planet
“If we get together, we have time to start healing the harm that we’ve inflicted. So the main message is, every single individual, that’s you and me and everybody in the audience and everybody who’s listening, each one of us make an impact on the planet every single day and we can choose what sort of impact we want to make,” says primatologist Dr Jane Goodall. Watch this video and get inspired.
Back the Bill – Nauru and Manus Island
While we celebrate that the last four children on Nauru are very soon to be resettled in the USA, the illness being suffered by so many refugees and asylum seekers is ongoing. Independent MP Dr Kerryn Phelps introduced The Urgent Medical Treatment Bill into Federal Parliament in late 2018. The Refugee Council of Australia is urging all of us to contact our local members to request their support for this Bill. Talking points are provided to make it easier.
