Category: General Secretary
Bold, courageous, connected and collaborative
Theologian and author Lesslie Newbiggin said somewhere that “in the end, the witness of the church, in respect of public issues will depend more upon the day to day...
Let’s not forget the unforgettable
The Rev. John Thornton (chairperson of Mid North Coast Presbytery and Chairperson of the Placements Committee) made an observation at a recent Presbytery meeting,...
Abundant life is coming
For most of the year, Jacarandas are pretty quiet and unassuming trees, but come November – my goodness! – what a glorious, purple, joy-filled Advent shout! They...
Made by God out of hope and imagination
Someone, reflecting on the foundational documents of the Uniting Church (UCA), once said to me that the UCA is ‘perfectly designed’ for stasis. He...
Faith requires courage and imagination
When we talk about faith and calling, we often do so from the perspective of the individual and we talk about ‘my’ faith and ‘my’ calling. However, ‘my’...
How to live a Jesus-shaped life this Lent
The problem with ‘leadership’ – which we talk about a lot in the UCA and usually in terms of lament – is that it is too easy, too tempting to lose sight that the...
Preparing hearts for what lies ahead
Phew! It’s the end of the year at last! As far as I can gather everyone’s tired. People are looking forward to the beach, the cricket, to reading trashy novels and...
Do or do not, there is no…
Five weeks before the actual event of Synod 2017, I’m writing this column for the post-Synod edition of Insights magazine (out on 22 October). At this moment, I...
What an idea!
In church a few weeks ago, I encountered a children’s story called What Do You Do With an Idea? It’s by Kobi Yamada and I don’t think it’s particularly new. The...
Jesus is Lord
In recent times I’ve had reason to think about the phrase ‘Jesus is Lord’, one of the earliest and the shortest of Christian creedal confessions. I well remember...
