National Update

Your weekly snapshot of the Uniting Church in Australia

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ASSEMBLY LEADERSHIP

Inevitably destined to sink? Andrew Johnson reflects on our Church as a new role begins

This week the Assembly has been delighted to welcome Andrew Johnson as he officially commences in his role as Assembly General Secretary. This reflection is the first in a series he will offer over the coming months, inspired by the speech he gave at the 17th Assembly in response to his appointment.

"One of the most popular questions we ask is, “Is this just shuffling the deck chairs on the Titanic?’ I recently discovered this phrase was first used, The Washington Post reports, in 1969 to describe reforms in the Catholic Church."

"This prompted me to ask – do we think we are on the Titanic as a Uniting Church? Do we believe this enterprise of hope we embarked upon over 47 years ago is, like the Titanic, inevitably destined to sink?"

Read now

UNITING CHURCH PRESIDENT

A call to listen, learn and act for reconciliation

On Monday, President Rev Charissa Suli had the privilege of attending a Parliamentary reception for King Charles III and Queen Camilla during their visit to Australia. Both an address by the King, and a protest which saw Senator Lidia Thorpe removed from the event, have been widely reported over the past two days. The President has written this reflection about her experience, urging us to pay attention to emerging truths.

HOLY LAND

Prayer Vigil for Peace in the Holy Land

With the Holy Land in the continued grip of violence and trauma, the Assembly's Working for Justice Circle will lead an online prayer vigil for peace on Thursday 28 November at 7:30pm AEDT. Register for the Zoom now.

THEOLOGY

Rev Dr Geoff Thompson takes on 'spiritual but not religious'

In this piece published by ABC Religion & Ethics, Uniting Church theologian Rev Dr Geoff Thompson engages two unlikely conversation partners to take on the "dated binary" of spirituality v religion and reclaim the 'strangeness' of Christianity.

FRONTIER SERVICES

A week of community connection in Eugowra

Frontier Services' Outback Links volunteers were joined by NRMA staff in Eugowra last week, providing practical support to families still recovering from catastrophic flashing in 2022 which nearly wiped out the town. Through practical support and companionship, the team made a lasting impact on a community that continues to rebuild. Read this good news story and many others in the latest edition of Frontier News.

ACT2 PROJECT

Reflecting on mission, discipleship, evangelism

The Act2 Project has launched a new call for papers, seeking theological reflections and perspectives from across the Uniting Church on the terms: mission, discipleship, evangelism and diaconal communities. Read more here.

WORSHIP RESOURCES

Sign up for the new Lectionary

The 2024-2025 Uniting Church Lectionary resource will be released before the end of October. To make sure you don't miss it, sign up now to get it straight to your inbox as soon as it's available.

Assembly Bodies

Call for EoIs

The Assembly invites expressions of interest from skilled people to fill vacancies on two Assembly bodies: UCA Assembly Limited Board, and the Audit, Finance and Risk Committee.

Climate

Talanoa with climate activists

Join this talanoa as climate activists from Tuvalu and Kiribati invite engagement around their struggles with the impacts of climate change in their home islands.

Assembly Leadership

RSVP for Commissioning

Andrew Johnson will be commissioned as Assembly General Secretary on 23 November in Canberra (and live-streamed). All are invited and welcome. More information and RSVP here.