Holy Father, God of Love You are the Creator of this land and of all good things. We acknowledge the pain and shame of our history and the suffering of our peoples, and we ask your forgiveness. We thank you for the survival of indigenous cultures. Our hope is in you because you gave your Son Jesus to reconcile the world to you. We pray for your strength and grace to forgive, accept and love one another, as you love us and forgive and accept us in the sacrifice of your Son. Give us the courage to accept the realities of our history so that we may build a better future for our nation. Teach us to respect all cultures. Teach us to care for our land and waters. Help us to share justly the resources of this land. Help us to bring about spiritual and social change to improve the quality of life for all groups in our communities, especially the disadvantaged. Help young people to find true dignity and self esteem by your Spirit. May your power and love be the foundations on which we build our families, our communities and our nation, through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Prepared by Wontulp-Bi-Buya
Indigenous Theology Working Group, 13th March 1997, Brisbane
Wontulp-Bi-Buya is the Queensland branch of Nungalinya College, Darwin, and provides leadership training for Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders. Wontulp-Bi-Buya is supported in Queensland by the Anglican, Catholic, Lutheran and Uniting Churches.
A group of Aboriginal Christian leaders from the partner Churches of Wontulp-Bi-Buya form the Indigenous Theology Working Group. They meet periodically for discussion and draw on their life experiences, traditional spirituality, Biblical reflection and Christian spirituality, to give expression in indigenous theology for the everyday life of their people.
THIS PRAYER IS REPRODUCED WITH THE PERMISSION OF REV DAVID GILL, GENERAL SECRETARY OF THE NATIONAL COUNCIL OF CHURCHES OF AUSTRALIA WHODISTRIBUTED THE PRAYER IN 1997. A LETTER OF APPRECIATION HAS BEEN SENTTO THE WONTULP-BI-BUYA INDIGENOUS THEOLOGY WORKING GROUP.
