live and give

October 31, 2008

Join the generous revolution - give away

Idea in a nutshell. - ‘Live & Give’

Join with other youth groups/church groups/action groups to go ‘trick or treating’ on Halloween to collect non-perishables.  Phone cards, met cards, food or toiletries are a great way to support people who have no income to buy the basic things we take for granted.

This will be a fun way to look outside our needs, support people and actually meet our local communities.
Goods will go to a local charity/group (chosen by the group) or centrally to Hotham Mission’s work with asylum seekers and the Indigenous hospitality house.

These are good outcomes from my perspective.

Currently, approaching and looking for interested congregations and groups to try it this year. Contact me if you are interested - age@morepraxis.org.au  Thinking it may become a good annual event.

Main costs would be the printing of cards for a letterbox drop. (or give tees although shipping time could be an issue)

Process:

• Adverstise and gather your group from now (maybe do a night on generous revolution generousrevolutionsheet)
• work out a realistic route for your walk
• Advertisement postcards to be letterbox dropped the week before Halloween.
• dress up
• meet and brief
• walk, collect and have fun
• donate the non perishables to your group (or back to me to get to the central groups)

Remember to be smart about door knocking (particularly as we don’t practice ‘trick or treating’ in oz)

• go in groups,
• Identify your self, group and what you are doing,
• remain outside the homes and
• be friendly.

About Central Groups

Hotham Mission

The Hotham Mission Asylum Seeker Project (ASP) is a Uniting Care agency that works with asylum seekers living in the community who do not have work rights, income or Medicare. These asylum seekers are on bridging visas and living lawfully in the community awaiting a decision on their refugee or humanitarian claim, yet are denied any government supports.  Treat asylum seekers this Halloween!

Indigenous Hospitality House

The Indigenous Hospitality House (IHH) was established in response to a report written by Indigenous workers at the Royal Children’s Hospital, Lookin’ After Our Own, which identified the need for appropriate accommodation for families supporting a patient. IHH functions as a kind of extended family home, where those that live in and around the main house share the duties associated with welcoming, cooking, cleaning and chatting with guests. Treat Indigenous people this Halloween!

Local Groups

Reconciliation Vic - Conferences

October 16, 2008

to

October 18, 2008

Learning Together Conferences

Education and Local Groups Conferences

Rec Vic & ANTaR Vic will host two conferences on October 17 & 18 at the Aborigines Advancement League. See the flyers and registration forms attached for full details.

Oct 17 will be a dedicated Education conference for teachers and education specialists.

Oct 18 will run as the annual Local Reconciliation Groups conference, with a focus on integrating local reconciliation groups and local councils.

Step Up! 2008! - Youth Gathering - October 16

Reconciliation Victoria is proud to present Step Up! 2008, a youth gathering for students in Years 8-12, to be held at the Australian Catholic University, Fitzroy on Thursday, October 16.

You can register and find more infomation for these conferences here.

World’s Table

October 25, 2008
9:00 am	to	1:00 pm

A half-day of training and conversations about family, justice and daily life

Around the world meal times bring families together. Pasta, rice, roasts or soup, whatever’s on the menu, food is the central point of family life. The ‘dinner’ table becoming a defining place for how families engage with questions of sharing, fairness, good and bad, and of remembering God’s grace.
How does your household do family ‘food’ time? How do you remember God’s gifts? Do you tell your kids to eat their ‘leftovers’ because African kids are starving?
World’s Table is an opportunity to meet with others passionate about positively shaping their families, households and churches around Kingdom values. It’s also a great opportunity to be exposed to some new resources and ideas designed to engage kids

Ashburton Uniting Church - 5 Ashburn Gve, Ashburton

Organised by Tear and Uniting Church

Get out from under the nuclear umbrella!

October 10, 2008
1:30 pm	to	2:30 pm

Japan and Australia have set up a nuclear disarmament commission, but each country is under the US nuclear umbrella, which adds credence to the view that nukes bring security. Japan’s national broadcaster will be in Melbourne on Friday and they want to film us protesting!!! Come along for the cause and the fame. We’ll have ICAN (International Campaign to Abolish Nuclear Weapons) t-shirts for you to wear and flyers to hand out.

***IF YOU CAN, PLEASE BRING A BLACK UMBRELLA!!! WE’LL HAVE RADIATION SYMBOLS TO STICKY-TAPE TO IT.***

Want more Info

http://icanw.org/files/Nuclear_Dangers_Solutions.pdf

http://icanw.org/files/Case_Against_Nuclear_Weapons.pdf

Learnings from the Locals

November 14, 2008

to

November 15, 2008

A 2 Day interactive workshop focusing on mission and the Aussie Church

What’s it all about?
In Churches today there is a lot of talk about incarnational mission, engaging with the community and seeing the Kingdom come. But how do you do it? Learnings from the Locals is a 2 day interactive workshop bringing together practitioners who are experimenting with different expressions of mission and church, right here in Melbourne.
Speakers will include people working in traditional church settings, emerging church and missional communities. We’ll also hear from Aboriginal Christian leaders,     who have a unique perspective on the Aussie Church.

Most importantly you’ll have the chance to do some planning towards your own Kingdom dream, for your community.
Learnings from the Locals is facilitated by Big House Communities, a grass roots missionary movement working with the communities of Pakenham and Dandenong. For more information or to register please don’t hesitate to call Andre Van Eymeren on 0400 002 172 or email bighouse.admin@optusnet.com.au

The Details
When: Friday 14 – Saturday 15 November 2008, starting at 9am
Where: Dandenong Christian Reformed Church
(Cnr Gladstone Rd & Outlook Dr Dandenong North)
Cost: $40 (including morning, afternoon tea and lunch on both days
Please - RSVP by 7th November for catering.

Speakers Include
John Rietveld – Victorian Co-ordinator of ACOM’s Local Net
Adrian Greenwood – Discipleship Educator Young Adults (Uniting Church, Victoria)
Lindy Croucher – Urban Neighbours Of Hope
Andre Van Eymeren – Big House Communities
Indigenous Leaders – yet to be finalised
And most importantly a bunch of local heroes who are working on being salt and light in their communities

UpperRoom - Development

October 6, 2008
6:00 pm	to	9:00 pm

The Upper Room Project meets the first Monday of each month (6-8:30pm) to engage with spirituality and justice as struggled with and fought for by the Prophets and Jesus. We meet upstairs in the Shine Café/Bar (74 Kingsway Glen Waverley) with gallery space, discussion corners, opportunity for practical response and pondering space.

We hope the upper room will be

• Space to rest/relax with your tribe
• Be challenged by the prophetic call of compassion
• Connect with heartbeats for living

There will be food, wine and friends plus

• a gallery space for photos and other art.
• activist space - activities, information and people deeply into that topic to meet
• conversational space - multimedia and communally led (an interview, music, texts, a place to chat)

Please bring your friends - all are welcome

This month we will be thinking about the aid and development options. We will have the info, resources and a discussion with Jill from J.I.M. Plus an online game where you can try to match your understanding of the issues against poverty in 3rd world farmer. Should be educational and slightly addictive.

Cya there.

Thriving Youth Conversations - Resilience Survey

October 25, 2008
10:00 am	to	4:00 pm

You are invited to a Thriving Youth Australia event
Why are young people leaving the church and why are some staying?
with Rod Dungan

The purpose of this day is to help faith communities and congregations mine the opportunities to listen to young people about mission, worship, discipleship and justice.

This is a time for church leaders to listen to young people and hear why they are still hanging in with the church, and why some of their friends are not.

The day will help faith communities and congregations mine the opportunities to connect with young people in mission, worship, discipleship and justice.  Church leaders will have the opportunity to work on creating responses and local strategies to youth engagement in their communities.  There will be opportunities to start a monthly Support group to look at creating/sustaining young people within their faith communities.

Outline of the Day
Morning
•    9-30amRegistration and Refreshments
Afternoon
•    1-45 to 3-45pm  Workshops lead by young people
•    10am to 11am  Introduction to research to set the scene
•    3-45pm  Finishing Conversation and introduction to Resilience Survey
•    11am to 12-30pm  Conversations with young people

Where:        Centre for Theology and Ministry

When:        25th October, 2008
10.00am – 4.00pm

Cost:        $20

Book now with
Steve Goldsmith
at Thriving Youth Australia,
thrivingyouth@optusnet.com.au.

“talkin bout the revolution”

September 20, 2008

Our morepraxis gathering will now take place at the Greenwood retreat centre. Our home in Wantirna.

I invite you all to our house. Sat 20 10:30am-till late
An open house day with times and places to build a movement.

I’m happy to billet people traveling a distance and ask that others in the East offer a bed/floor to people traveling (maybe the westside peeps so they can stay late )

Bring stuff to share

Program (draft and needs some more work)

morning 10:30am

• Prayer Labyrinth (I have a little one out the back)
• Conversations about Prayer and Spiritual Direction - Joan
• Bible Chat - Age

Shared Lunch

Afternoon

2pm

• a mini art workshop - Lynd?
• Conversation about arrestable Christianity  -  Age, Jess & Paul
• Tech stuff - Rus & Mike?

3pm

• Walk to a Playground -
• Building a movement  - planning/starting various morepraxis hubs

Hubs: I am keen to see a few hubs get traction this year.
Reflect Hubs - spirituality/worship hubs (upperroom, alt worship or whatever) - Alannee?
Think Hubs - Discipleship groups (bible studies, gatherings) -  Age
Act Hubs - A prophet corner - Mentoring new young leaders to make a difference in our communities. Bring the young person you think has potential. - Rod?

Dinner - Hospitality of the Slum - Cara (she will need helpers)

Evening

An outside fire, couches, wine, coffee, music - conversations

If you are looking for something to fill your Sunday with great content and people ….

go to this http://morepraxis.org.au/nonviolent-direct-action-workshop

Nonviolent Direct Action Workshop

September 21, 2008
2:00 pm	to	9:00 pm

Preparing for Nonviolent Direct Action:
a workshop for faith based activists thinking about or preparing to engage in nonviolent direct action

Are you concerned about injustice, militarism and climate change? Do you think there is more to following Jesus than personal piety and private prayer? Do you long for a Church that recovers the call to resist the powers? Do feel personally called to take nonviolent direct action to transform injustice? If the answer is yes, this workshop is for you!

Jesus’ command to “love our enemies” is at the heart of the Christian life.  Often marginalised, misunderstood, dismissed, or seen as unrealistic, a life of transforming love and nonviolent resistance has been faithfully lived out by Christians throughout the ages.

Join four experienced trainers and activists to explore nonviolent direct action. This hands-on workshop will explore the tactics of direct action, create space to discuss and work through fears, and locate direct action in the context of the gospels. Not to be missed by anyone searching for God’s path to peace and alternatives to war-making. While the workshop will explicitly explore questions of faith, all people are welcome, irrespective of their religious beliefs or not.

The workshop will be facilitated by Jason MacLeod and Pru Gell from the Change Agency, Rev. Simon Moyle from Urban Seed and Jessica Morrison, a Christian activist. This public workshop is part of tCA’s commitment to resourcing social movements. All welcome. For more information or to book your place, contact Simon Moyle or smoyle@gmail.com.

The Den: 116 Little Burke St Melbourne

EDUCATION AT THE EDGES

EDUCATION AT THE EDGES

University of Melbourne Chaplain, Wes Campbell, in association with the Justice and International Mission Unit of the Uniting Church in Victoria and Tasmania, presents:

EDUCATION AT THE EDGES

Tues 14 Oct (5-8pm), University of Melbourne – 1st Floor, Alan Gilbert Building (Executive Lounge)

Bob Maguire (JJJ and SBS) - MC (pictured)

[Read more]

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