Tag Archives: SUMMER2018

One of the strangest Christmases I’ve experienced was when I was living in Beijing. The weather was freezing as is common for North China at that time of year but as the days rolled towards the 25th I was finally treated to soft, delicate snowflakes raining down on the city. The red, green and white tinsel was draped around many ...

Second Chance Bangkok is an op shop with a difference. Run by a family from Australia and located on the edge of the infamous Klong Toei slum (Thailand’s largest, population 120 000), the op shop has arranged to receive surplus clothing from the many ex-pat workers who are employed in Bangkok on short-term contracts. Instead of shipping their wardrobe home, they ...

I was delighted to participate in the recent Queensland Synod Inspired Disciples event, taking the opportunity to explore a range of topics and perspectives on discipleship. In each session I also found myself thinking about mission. I was wondering “What does it mean to be a missional disciple?” and “How do discipleship practices inform my sense of mission?” The Queensland ...

From planning a nativity to hosting carols, Uniting churches across Queensland are creating opportunities to share the joy and hope of the Christmas message. Read about six ways different congregations are helping local communities to rediscover the wonder. Light up your neighbourhood Sandgate Uniting Church has been helping people rediscover the wonder of Christmas for more than 25 years through ...

While a great deal of society tends to focus on material “wants” at Christmas, Trinity College Queensland’s Dean of Formations and Dispersed Learning Rev Nigel Rogers uncovers the relational “needs” at the core of the Christmas narrative, and how God holds the key to a flourishing, abundant life. “Oh, wow, a T-shirt! That’s awesome, thanks so much,” I said as ...

The Christmas Bowl is an annual tradition for many Australian congregations and individuals, sharing the Christmas message through supporting people in need across the world. Jess Xavier from Act for Peace reminds us of this enduring legacy of hope. It was 1949. Millions of refugees were starving in war-ravaged Europe. And as Frank Byatt, a young minister in Victoria looked ...

The journey of the Magi has, in my latter years, become my favourite part of the Christmas narrative. It might be because of T.S. Elliot’s 1927 poem “Journey of the Magi” which we studied in school. Elliot evoked great drama and wonder out of a fairly sparse biblical source, at least in terms of who these people might be, where ...

Performing artist Hayley Kitchener (stage name Ellah K) shared her story at UnitingWomen 2018, captivating the audience with her song “Ice Cave”. Hayley, who is vision-impaired, has part-time roles as Young Adults, Families and Mission Pastor at St Lucia Uniting Church, Brisbane and assistant chaplain at QUT, and is a candidate for Minister of the Word. How did music come ...

A new podcast series from Trinity College Queensland will take on the Bible’s most controversial elements to help Christians better understand how a sacred book can contain such problematic material. Ben Rogers reports. Sex, violence, slavery, genocide … no, we’re not talking about the latest hit series on HBO or Netflix but rather the “Good Book”. For many Christians such ...

With more than 300 women from across Australia in attendance, UnitingWomen 2018 was an opportunity to weave stories of wisdom and wonder. James O’Callaghan reports. From the opening words of welcome to the closing communion service, the theme of sharing stories about the interweaving of faith and life ran through the third UnitingWomen conference in Brisbane at the end of ...