Each time I filled in the hospital admission papers, for giving birth, I was asked, “What is your religion?” and each time I would get into trouble with the Baptist chaplain because I wrote ‘Christian’ – not ‘Baptist’ – so she never found out that I was there. (I would Read more…
Dear Friends, Last Sunday we held Aboriginal Sunday, a day Yorta Yorta man and Aboriginal leader, William Cooper, called on the Australian Church to observe, on the 26th January 1938, to be in solidarity with Aboriginal peoples. And yesterday, on Australia Day, Common Grace sent out a list of the Read more…
Dear Friends, As I write this, bottle rockets are raining on the office roof launched by very happy and excited SMAD campers! 😊 It is wonderful to see (and hear) the programme happening again – even amid the concerns of Covid – and to see Penny able to be here Read more…
Dear Friends, Happy Epiphany! Or Happy Three Kings Day! Today is the Feast of Epiphany – celebrated in the church worldwide as the day the magi visited the Christ Child (Matthew 2:1-12). The word ‘epiphany’ comes from Greek and means ‘manifestation’ or ‘appearance’, and can refer to either the appearance Read more…
Dear Friends, The final Sunday to Sunday for 2021! So much to think about. So much to give thanks for. And so much to pray and hope for you all and for us as a community in 2022! Most of all I am grateful for the faithful presence of God Read more…
Dear Friends! There was lots of joy to go around on Sunday! Joy in the beautiful music (thank you to James and our talented and burgeoning choir!), joy in giving to Communities@Work, joy in prayer (I loved the quote from Rebecca’s Baptist women friends!), joy in flower arranging (and stewarding Read more…
On Sunday Jeanette preached on peace and one the beautiful words of Isaiah 52:7-10, “How beautiful upon the mountains a the feet of the messenger who announces peace.” But she also gave us a new way of thinking about the end of this passage, “The Lord has bared his holy Read more…
While I was looking for pictures of jacaranda trees for Sunday’s slide show, I came across this story about the jacarandas of St George and Sutherland Shires in Sydney – https://www.abc.net.au/news/2021-11-19/the-story-behind-the-jacarandas-in-sydneys-south/13638852 In 1952 Sister Irene Paxton who ran a maternity hospital began giving jacaranda trees to young mothers, asking them Read more…
Would you like to hear some good news for a change? Do you know someone else who would like to hear good news for a change? This Sunday is the start of Advent; the time of preparing for the birth of Christ into our lives and into our world. It Read more…
Dear Friends, It was puffer jacket weather in church last Sunday! In my new role as pastor/amateur meteorologist it looks like this coming Sunday will be mid-teens – so perhaps you’ll still need a coat or cardigan in church! As mentioned in last week’s Sunday to Sunday, we are following Read more…