Choose your stateACTNSWQLDSA/NTVIC/TASWA
Congratulations to Roland Bartlett & Ross Savill (OAM)
The Governor-General, Her Excellency Quentin Bryce AC, Chancellor of the Order of Australia, has approved awards announced today in the Australia Day 2010 Honours List. Included in these awards are 446 recipients, who are receiving awards in the general division of the Order of Australia, in recognition of their diverse contributions and service to fellow citizens in Australia and internationally.

"I want to give my strong support to the awards made through the Australian Honours System’, Ms Bryce said. “They elevate the concept of giving to others. They heighten our respect for one another, and they encourage Australians to think about the responsibilities of citizenship in our democracy."
“Awards in the Australian honours system represent the highest level of recognition accorded by our nation for outstanding achievement and service. The Honours announced today recognise community values and celebrate what is important and unifying in Australian life”, Ms Bryce said. Emeritus Professor John Hay AC, Chairman of the Council of the Order, said the diversity of service across all fields of endeavour was recognised today in the Australia Day Honours List.
Read more...
Haiti Earthquake

Please go to www.gmp.org.au for the latest updates on the Churches of Christ response to the Haitian earthquake.

COCOA Haiti information [15 Jan 2010]: here

COCOA Haiti Appeal response form [15 Jan 2010]: here

Letter to church leaders
5th January 2010

He defends the cause of the fatherless and the widow, and loves the alien, giving him food and clothing.  And you are to love those who are aliens, for you yourselves were aliens in Egypt.
(Deuteronomy 10:18-19)

Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called sons of God.
(Matthew 5:9)


To all church leaders

During the last meeting of the National Council of Churches in Australia (of which Churches of Christ are members), a concern was expressed by a representative of the Mar Thoma Church regarding the recent attacks against Indian nationals in Australia - particularly in the larger metropolitan  regions.  The NCCA wrote to its church members in December, urging us to bring this matter “to the attention of the appropriate leaders in your church who are in a position to support the students and communities who might be affected by mistreatment”.  It is to this purpose, and in the wake of further violence, that I write to you now. 

Can I urge you to do what you can in your local settings to show compassion to Indian nationals (and any other groups who may feel threatened)?  As local church leaders, you will know what this will best look like for your church community: 

*   It may include something as simple as a shared meal. 
*   It may include lobbying local, State or Federal government representatives to  enact measures that increase the safety of your local community.
*  It may include arranging a service (on Sunday, or midweek) that focuses on the role of the church in society as peacemakers, and inviting representatives of the Indian community in your area to attend, or
*   It may include meeting and listening to representatives of the Indian community, and offering ongoing opportunities to listen and counsel.

We all know that fear is a difficult emotion to quell.  Those who feel it need our compassion.  They need our reassurance.  Fear can lead to irrational thoughts and actions that can inflame the sense of persecution, whether it exists or not.  The above verses would be good ones for us to dwell on – they remind us of the church’s role of compassion and it’s role as a peacemaker.  Compassion was a key aspect of Jesus’ character and one – if we are to truly be Churches of Christ –we would do well to model.

Let us not underestimate our ability to bring peace of mind to those who may be living in fear and anxiety.

I pray every blessing on your endeavours.

In Him

Craig Brown
Federal Coordinator of Churches of Christ in Australia

<< Start < Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 Next > End >>