JourneyOnline
What’s coming up
Advocate for gender equality and safety
Join multi-faith and human rights groups on Friday 23 November at 4.30 pm for a public event in Brisbane City to mark the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women. Starting at Emma Miller Place, the walk will move via Queens Park, to Speaker’s Corner at Parliament House. Everyone is welcome, and attendees are encouraged to wear something orange. For more information and to register interest email icd@griffith.edu.au or call 07 3735 7052 or info@believingwomen.org.au.
Write for Rights
To make this event bigger than ever, the annual Write for Rights campaign will become a letter writing marathon over ten hours. Join for one hour or several! Write a letter or lots of letters! But please join us to catch up with other local networks, activist, volunteers, branch members and staff and celebrate our successes.
Date: Sunday 9 December
Time: 12 pm to 10 pm
What: Letter Writing Marathon/Celebration to mark the 70th anniversary of the UDHR/End of year party
Where: The Green Beacon, 26 Helen Street, Tenneriffe
RSVP: By Wednesday 5 December here
Week in review
Faith, change and the power of words to inflict deep hurt
Liz Schneidewin is a Toowoomba based writer, who was at her Uniting Church when a man walked out permanently over theological differences in marriage. She reflects on this experience, the difficulties associated with change and the power of words to wound a heart. Read more here.
Hoda Afshar’s lens on Manus
This article in The Saturday Paper is a fascinating profile of this photographic artist. Building on her earlier works essaying colonialism and her experience as an Iranian migrant to Australia, photographer Hoda Afshar turned to presenting the humanity of the men detained on Manus Island. Her most recent work, Remain, focuses on questions of identity. Composed of a series of portraits and a 24-minute film, Remain was shot on Manus Island, where Afshar travelled between March and April this year.
Jesus was a refugee—for kids
Jesus was a refugee is based on that unsettling bit of the Christmas story in Matthew 2:1-23. This never makes it into the end of year nativity play. Fair enough. Who wants to traumatise the kids with Bad King Herod, the atrocities in Bethlehem and a dull ending where the family drifts off to Nazareth. Compare that to the five star, family friendly version where it all ends with a magnificent shepherd dancing, angel singing, expensive gifting, new born baby finale. So, why tell the escape to Egypt story to children? Simply because it is a Jesus story and it mirrors the story of 70 million people including 25 million children around the world who have been forced from their homes. Check out the resources. Purchase the book.
Towards a zero-waste future by 2035
Minister for Environment and the Great Barrier Reef Leeanne Enoch has announced that the Palaszczuk Government was moving ahead with the development of a comprehensive waste management strategy, underpinned by a waste levy, and that changes would be proposed as a result of consultation with major stakeholders.
“We know Queenslanders care about recycling and want to make a difference in waste management,” Minister Enoch said.
Queensland is working toward a zero-waste future by 2035.
Australian loneliness report
New research indicates that one in four Australian adults are lonely. Older Australians (aged over 65) are the least lonely. People who are lonely have significantly worse health status—both physical and mental—than connected people. This research report makes interesting reading and has relevance for every congregation in the state.
Call to action
Join Vic/Tas Synod postcard action—kids off Nauru now
The Justice and International Mission cluster of eLM has produced postcards to the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs welcoming the government’s intention to transfer all the children seeking asylum off Nauru, but asking that this be done immediately and that their claims for asylum be processed in Australia. If you would like any postcards for your congregation, please send the following to jim@victas.uca.org.au: “Please send [Insert number of postcards] ‘Kids off Nauru’ postcards to [insert name] at the following address [insert address].
Refugee Council: help get remaining kids off Nauru
There are still 22 refugee children on Nauru with their families, along with over 1000 other refugees and people seeking asylum between Nauru and Manus Island. Many of those transferred to Australia have been placed in detention centres or in hospitals or are living under guard in a hotel.
There is still more work to do. Please sign the petition today!
