Uniting Church in Australia - Welcome to the Year of Mark! NEW Lectionary out now, post-referendum worship resources & more in UC National News 18-24 October

18-24 October 2023 National Update Your weekly snapshot of the Uniting Church in Australia

Our Featured Story Welcome to the Year of Mark The Assembly is excited to release the 2023-24 Lectionary leaflet for preaching and worship leading in the new church year, which begins on the first Sunday in Advent. The leaflet includes an introduction by Assembly Associate General Secretary Rev Lindsay Cullen and helpful resources for preachers including commentaries, websites and podcasts. The gospel readings for this Lectionary year are focussed on the Gospel of Mark, the earliest gospel and the shortest - a rapid and urgent telling of the stories of Jesus. Rev Lindsay Cullen writes in the Lectionary introduction, "May those of us who preach and teach in the Year of Mark lead people to meet this irresistible Christ who reaches out to each of us through the pages of Scripture!" A printed leaflet is available for purchase from MediaCom Education and a PDF version can be downloaded from the Assembly website. Enjoy preaching and worship leading in the Year of Mark! Get the Lectionary UNITING FOR THE VOICE Post-referendum worship resource The Assembly has released a new worship resource to help Uniting Church communities process and reflect on the result of the referendum. The resource includes a Foreword from President Rev Sharon Hollis, liturgies and rituals, almost 20 prayers and questions for your community to reflect on together. Contributions have been offered from across the national Uniting Church and compiled by the Assembly Resourcing Unit. On referendum night the Uniting Church acknowledged the referendum result in a joint statement from President Rev Sharon Hollis and Rev Mark Kickett, National Interim Chair of the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress. UNITING FOR THE VOICE Marking five years: National Apology This Sunday 22 October will mark five years since the National Apology to Survivors of Institutional Child Sexual Abuse. The Uniting Church is committed to acknowledging this anniversary each year as an opportunity to reflect on and lament the wrongs of the past and to reaffirm our own apology to survivors and promise to embody a culture of safety. We invite local communities to use the Liturgy of Acknowledgement and Lament in their worship and to read the joint statement from the Assembly, UCA Redress and National Safe Church Unit. ACT2 PROJECT Reflecting back: our national theological culture Between August and October 2023 the Act2 Project ran five public National Forums focussed on key national areas: Our voice in the public square; international partnerships and ecumenical relationships; promoting the mission of the Church; multicultural and intercultural identity; and national theological culture. ICYMI, you can now watch the Zoom recordings of all five Forums and read reflections on the key themes, including a reflection on the final Forum released today. THIS IS MY UNITING CHURCH "Taking Jesus seriously together" This week in our This is my Uniting Church series we hear about the faith communities that are formed at the Young Adult Gatherings (YAGs) which are a project of the Pulse team in the Synod of NSW/ACT. Gathering young adults from across Sydney, the YAGs are growing relationships and disciples. Will Giacometti and Summer Potten share: "We have been inspired by the conversations about collaboration between congregations and the shared excitement for the future knowing there are other young adults passionate about being courageous disciples and taking Jesus seriously, together." JUSTICE Time for a treaty on the ban of nuclear weapons The Uniting Church Assembly is among 130 organisations which have endorsed a new civil society statement released by the International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons (ICAN) this week. On 15 October 1953 the first nuclear weapon test on mainland Australia took place at Emu Field, south of the Anangu Pitjantjatjara Yankunytjatjara (APY) lands in South Australia. No consent was sought and the resulting radioactive “black mist” fallout has led to ongoing environmental, health and social outcomes. 70 years on, the statement urges the Australian government to sign and ratify the Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons (TPNW).

Act2 Project New theological culture papers Have you been keeping up with this Act2 series? Each week we have been dropping new papers, reflections and provocations from theologians across the country about the theological culture of the Uniting Church. New contributions this week are from Megan Ady, Meredith Yabsley and Rev Ben Gilmour. Keep an eye out - there's lots more to come in the next few weeks! Read them now Resources Going beyond Sunday More than Worship, More than Sunday is a practical resource with ideas, processes and planning tips to consider as part of your community's intergenerational ministry journey. A short, concise document, the resource encourages communities to explore ways to nurture an intergenerational ministry - not just intergenerational worship - which goes beyond the Sunday gathering. Read more Uniting Church Adult Fellowship Joan Stott Bursary Awarded Congratulations to Laura Rose from the Synod of VIC/TAS and Michaela Anthill-Cassie from the Synod of NSW/ACT, the two recipients of the Joan Stott Bursary for 2023-2024! Administered by the National Committee of the Uniting Church Adult Fellowship, each year the Joan Stott Bursary supports younger people through a grant towards the cost of theological or leadership studies. Meet the recipients Towards Zero Take our Emissions Survey The Uniting Church is on a journey to net-zero emissions by 2040. UCA communities are invited to take a new survey to help the Assembly understand actions being taken around the country and how we are tracking against our goals. We particularly invite responses from potentially larger emitters such as agencies, schools, synod and presbytery operations and larger congregations. Take the survey

Positions Head of Philosophy and Religious Studies - Newington College, Sydney Lead the thriving Philosophy and Religious Studies Department at the Stanmore campus of Newington College. Pastoral Practitioner, Sydney North Shore - Uniting NSW/ACT This role within the Mission team provides meaningful pastoral care services to people in Uniting's care across the Sydney North Shore. Upcoming Dates 16-20 October: Frontier Services Bush Chaplains National Conference, Adelaide 21 October - 24 October: Queensland Synod meeting 22 October: Anniversary - National Apology to Survivors of Institutional Child Sexual Abuse Check out more dates across the year Join us in prayer for All those, and especially First Peoples, who continue to process the referendum result. Wherever there is grief or division, may the Spirit which has been in these lands since creation bind us in love and solidarity and dwell with us in our ache for healing. Survivors of child sexual abuse and their families and communities. We pray for justice, truth and healing as we mark the fifth anniversary of the National Apology. The Synod of Queensland, meeting this weekend on the Sunshine Coast, and Rev Bruce Moore who will be inducted as Moderator. Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico as part of the WCC Ecumenical Prayer Cycle. What is your Uniting Church story? Email us! Our weekly PowerPoint with stories, resources and prayer points for use in your weekly worship. Click 'enable content' to play video.