JourneyOnline
What’s coming up
Uniting Church and Luminous Lantern Parade
Each year, Multicultural Development Australia hosts a wonderful free event to welcome new arrivals to our state – the Luminous Lantern Parade. The whole community is invited to take part and say welcome. The Queensland Synod has organised to take part in the parade this year. We invite everyone to come along as part of this multicultural church, to walk together and say welcome.
Luminous is on Friday 8 June at Southbank Parklands. We will meet at 5.30 and participate in the parade, which will be followed by a multicultural concert. If you want to come, please email Sue Hutchinson to get the fine details.
Week in review
Ramadan Mubarak
As the Muslim community in Australia marks the fasting period of Ramadan, Uniting Church President Stuart McMillan offers his good wishes to all Australian Muslims. The Uniting Church will host Iftar Dinners in five states during Ramadan as an expression of our solidarity and friendship with the Muslim community. The Queensland Synod will be hosting a dinner on Sunday 3 June, with the Islamic Council of Queensland – Friends in Faith.
Indigenous rangers to be the eyes and ears for Great Barrier Reef protection
ABC News reports that protection of the Great Barrier Reef is set to be boosted with the help of 40 new Indigenous rangers. The rangers are being trained by the Great Barrier Reef Marine Park Authority as part of a $30 million Federal Government program.
Aboriginal settlement was ‘no accident’
SBS News has reported on research showing Aboriginal settlement in Australia more than 50,000 years ago was no accident, but was the result of large-scale migration by skilled maritime explorers.
Another refugee has died on Manus Island
A Rohingya refugee from Myanmar has died after jumping from a bus on a remote Papua New Guinea island, almost five years after he was sent there by Australia, officials said. The UNHCR, human rights and refugee advocacy groups have called for change in government policy.
Domestic violence in the church
Julia Baird reports: “For the past year, my colleague Hayley Gleeson and I have been investigating how religion and faith intersect with domestic violence; how it might impact the behaviour of perpetrators or shape the actions of victims, and how women in faith communities might have particular vulnerabilities, or, especially, concerns about how their leaders respond to them…”
Why is Reconciliation important?
Brooke Prentis – a Queensland Wakka Wakka Christian women shares her thoughts as part of National Reconciliation Week.
Call to action
Cup rescue now underway!
Here’s an environmentally friendly solution to the huge problem of plastic-lined paper coffee cups, which as we all know can’t be recycled – UNTIL NOW!
An organisation called Simply Cups (operating in several other countries!) will now take the used cups. They provide a receptacle for customers to put the cups into, which automatically stacks the cups, then collect the used cups for recycling here in Australia. It’s a new initiative, still developing its capacity, and it looks as though it would be free. They also sell environmentally friendly cups, lids etc in two sizes.
Does your congregation use paper cups?
