On Saturday, the St. David’s Uniting Church again hosted their annual ‘Search for an Angel’ event.
Search for an Angel is a fun event for children where they look for angels who provide clues to the gift of Christmas. The ‘treasure hunt’ ends with a live nativity of farm animals and baby Jesus.
A big thanks to all who helped make the day a success. And big congratulations to our two prize winners who get a free entry to the Rain, Hayne and Shine animal farm on the Mornington Peninsula.
This year’s winners are:
The Ferdinands family of Oakleigh &
John Berlangieri of Mt. Waverley.
You can check out a photostory of the day here (1MB)Â : Search for an angel 2007 (1M)
or for those with a fast connection, you can check out this larger version (7MB): Search for an angel, 2007
Ministry intern student, Jay Robinson, reflects on how her new personal ministry situation and changes involved has given her a new sense of what Advent is really like.
Jay shares her thoughts along with many others on the new UCA synod of Victoria-Tasmania’s blogsite called trapeza. Trapeza is an online community of people who are interested in faith. It is a place of reflection, spirituality and contemporary theology.
Along with stimulating content to read, trapeza is a place to leave a comment, to have a voice. There is an invitation there to share your view on spirituality, the church, or whatever is on your soul.
“Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?”
John the Baptist is in prison and seems life-weary. His purpose in life was to proclaim the coming of Jesus and now he questions whether his life has had meaning and purpose.
For all who are jaded or find Christmas a distressing time, the answer the Jesus provides might spark some new hope, and a place to lay down the heavy burdens that seem to track close to us.
Sermon Sunday December 16th, 2007Â (pdf)
St. David’s Uniting Church, Oakleigh
Rev. Arnie Wierenga
TEAR, an international Christian agency that is a strong advocate towards eliminating global poverty, has announced that the signing of the Kyoto protocol by the new Rudd Labor government in good news for the world’s poorest people.
Advocacy Co-ordinator for TEAR Australia, Ben Thurley, said he was “thrilled that the first act of our new Prime Minister was action on Kyoto. I hope it signals a new era in climate change negotiations and that Australia will now take more of a lead in the right direction.â€
Andy Atkins, Advocacy director of Tearfund UK, added: “This is a huge boost to the Bali talks, good for Australia and the world’s poorest people who suffer most at the hands of a changing climate. ”
The Christmas season brings with it many gestures of good will – and with it the pressure to buy gifts for family and friends, work colleagues and others. With the increasing awareness of environmental issues, David Scott explores ways we can make a difference to Christmas gift buying in order to spread good will not just to each other, but towards the planet as well.
Primate Phillip Aspinall, leader of the Anglican church in Australia, has spoken out against Israel’s occupation of Palestinian territories after touring the West Bank.
He described Israel’s separation barrier as inhumane.
Sydney man, Jeremy Jones, has been awarded a human rights medal for his work in promoting interfaith dialogue, in particular between Jews and Muslims. The Human Rights and Equal Opportunities Council issues the award for outstanding work in the area of human rights.
Mr Jones said, “If you relate to other human beings by thinking of them first and foremost as being people who deserve to be treated with dignity, you see unfairness.”
The prophet Isaiah speaks of a world where wild animals live in harmony. His image of utopia is a pointer to the difference that the promised one will make.
If this promised one comes to us at Christmas, it is time to consider those places of hope and promise and the difference that God’s work of Christmas makes.
Sermon 9th December, 2007Â (pdf)
St. David’s Uniting Church, Oakleigh
Rev. Arnie Wierenga
A priest says plainclothed police kicked their way into a Roman Catholic church in eastern Cuba then beat and used pepper spray on a group of dissidents.
The incident took place on Tuesday (local time) at the parish of Santa Teresita in Santiago as Father Jose Conrado Rodriguez was dressing before saying evening mass.
“I thought the church was on fire when I heard all the shouting,” he said.
Last Sunday churches around the globe began the season of Advent. While most people are focussed on the coming of Christmas (buying gifts, carols in the shops, decorations, community Christmas carols), there is often confusion about what Advent is really about.
For a reflection on what Advent means to the Christian church, read more>>