UnitingWorld
“I lift up my eyes to the hills…. Where does my help come from? It comes from God, the maker of heaven and earth.” PSALM 121:1
UPDATE ISSUE 1 2021
UnitingWorld is the international aid and partnerships agency of the Uniting Church in Australia. Together we work for a world where lives are whole and hopeful, free from poverty and injustice. Because every person matters.
SO MUCH TO CELEBRATE! As Easter approaches, we’re excited to let you know about a new initiative: Seven Days of Solidarity. Beginning April 18, Seven Days of Solidarity is inspired by the work of our partner churches, celebrating where the risen Christ is at work changing lives. Celebrating the good things God is doing seems important after a year of strain and struggle to adapt to a pandemic that is still the source of pain for millions of people. COVID-19 continues to make life so incredibly difficult for our partners, but through it all, God is faithful. Their incredible lives remind us that we’re surrounded by a cloud of witnesses who keep the faith, and giving up is not an option. UnitingWorld holds these partnerships on behalf of the people of the Uniting Church, and we wanted to take the opportunity to share some of their stories and inspire you in faith and action. In the weeks immediately after Easter, when we celebrate resurrection life and the birth of the Church this is an opportunity to bear witness to where the risen Christ is at work. Join us to celebrate our partners, give thanks, and share resources to keep this mission alive. Find everything you need to sign up your church for Seven Days of Solidarity at www.sevendaysofsolidarity.com.au You can order copies of the Seven Stories of Inspiration or download online, as well as access the videos and worship resources.
for your church These great resources include everything you need to take part:
NOTE: You and your congregation can run Seven Days of Solidarity at any time during the year that suits you. Just register to get the resources, convince your friends and plan your event!
FOR YOU
Seven Days of Solidarity is your chance to learn about the work of God’s more people around the world, and to play your part in action, prayer and giving.
Join us for Seven Days of Solidarity with:
Please visit www.sevenday sofsolidarity.com.au watch our videos and to learn more. Make a gift to stand in solidarity with our global neighbours and our in building God’s kingdom. shared work
• Seven powerful stories from among our partners in the Solomon Islands, Zimbabwe, Sri Lanka, Vanuatu, India, • An inspirational video to launch your week on April 18. Timor-Leste and South Sudan – one for each day of the • Celebration Sunday resources for April 25 include week. Each day gives you a glimpse of what God is everything you need for a service: doing in our partner church, through the eyes of a – A complete liturgy for all the parts of the service. local Christian. You get highlights of the ministry of our partner – A call-to-action video (four minutes in length). churches, prayer requests for them and a daily action you can take – A sermon on video from UCA President in solidarity. Dr Deidre Palmer (full text also available). • A Celebration for Sunday April 25. There’s a complete liturgy for you to – Music – options from Together in Song and also use as a congregation or community. But if you’re doing it on your own – in video form. it has beautiful prayers and music and a sermon, as well as a call-to-action – Prayers. video that can all be enjoyed in your own devotional time. – Giving envelopes to support the mission of our rity.com.au Downloa w w.sevendaysofsolida partners. d /request resources at w UnitingWorld is the international aid and partnerships agency Uniting Church in Australia of the (UCA). We connect the people of the UCA collaboration with churches in missional overseas to address the causes and consequences poverty, violence and of injustice.
A celebration of our global neighbours
Standing Strong A huge thank you to everyone who has taken part in Lent Event and donated to projects that are helping our global neighbours stand strong against COVID-19. Over just the past few weeks, we’ve received $95,700; almost 30% of our critical funding target of $330,000. Thank you! People like Wayan and his wife, who benefited from funding you’ve helped provide to our partners to supply goats and livelihood training, are desperately trying to avoid a return to the challenges they faced a few years ago.
“The food situation for my family is not too bad right now, but my wife has been sick for two weeks now and we have no money for the medicine,” Wayan told us.“14 people in my village area have been diagnosed with COVID-19 and we are really worried, not just because we don’t know how long the pandemic will last, but because we need to be able to keep working. Thank you for giving us a chance in the past, and my dream is that I will once again be able to earn a daily living and provide for my family.” 2
UNITINGWORLD UPDATE
“Thank you for giving me a chance in the past – my dream is that I will once again be able to earn a daily living to provide for my family.” Wayan, Bali.
These are the people for whom your gifts continue to provide hope. Thank you so much! To make a donation, visit www.lentevent.com.au or call us on 1800 998 122.
THE WAR ON INFORMATION
How our partners are dealing with misinformation about COVID-19 Just like here in Australia, misinformation and scepticism about COVID-19 and vaccinations is a serious concern in the communities of our overseas partners. In Indonesia, where more than 1.4 million people have contracted COVID-19 to date, a recent poll suggests only 37% of people will take the vaccine voluntarily, with 40% undecided. Alongside an extensive education campaign to help improve knowledge and confidence, the Indonesian Government will implement fines and restrict access to social services in some regions for those who refuse vaccination. They have an ambitious plan to vaccinate 181.5 million people in the next five months. Rev Mery Kolimon, Moderator of our partner Church in West Timor, was contacted by government officials to be among the first to take the vaccine in her province.
“To be honest, I was happy to receive a shot at the start of vaccination in Nusa Tenggara Timur (West Timor). This is part of the struggle against COVID-19 which threatens human life,” Rev Kolimon says.
“I have also been worried about the side effects, because I had heard some skewed information about vaccines. I am grateful to have received tremendous support from an epidemiologist, a doctor friend in Maumere, as well as doctors in Kupang and in Denpasar. I also received strong support from my fellow church leaders in Jakarta, as well as from my sister who is a nurse.” In an article you can read on our website, Rev Kolimon describes her factfinding mission
Rev Mery Kolimon is among influential church leaders receiving the COVID-19 vaccination and helping educate others.
about the vaccine, the feeling of waking up the morning after the shot, and her conviction that the church has an important role to play in helping people understand not only the science of disease, but the role of God in suffering.
Another source of theology is the conscience of every believer, as well as from the revelation of God in history, in culture, science, and in the experience of human life, including the experience of suffering.”
“We entered the beginning of the year with too many wounds. Facebook pages are full of sad news that drains inner energy. The young and old are dying every day. The threat is now so close. We all ask: When will this end?” she writes.
Her words are powerful. In a culture unfamiliar with routine vaccinations, Rev Kolimon plays a critical role helping her community move forward into an uncertain future.
“It is very important for us to train ourselves to find information from reliable sources. God gave us the intellect to test all news and information, to test all voices that claim to hear God’s voice. The church learns to understand God’s voice (theology) first and foremost from the Bible.
“I believe that in all situations, our God is Immanuel; He is with us. He has given humans the power to work together to fight the power of pain and death amidst the current threat of the COVID-19 pandemic,” she declares. “The vaccine is part of God’s gift to us.”
COFFEE TO FIGHT POVERTY As part of their commitment to creating a more just world, Brisbane-based coffee company Blackstar Coffee Roasters has agreed to donate 10% from each coffee subscription towards our projects in Timor-Leste! UnitingWorld supporters can also enjoy free delivery as well as a 10% personal discount on subscriptions. Visit www.blackstarcoffee.com.au/pages/uw-offer and use the code: UWC4TIMOR to order a subscription or sample pack with the discount. Or scan the code on the left with a camera phone.
ISSUE 1 2021
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UPDATE FROM SOUTH SUDAN
COVID-19 RESPONSE AND PEACEBUILDING We were absolutely delighted with your response in helping us raise $121,934 to support the COVID-19 response and peacebuilding work carried out by our partners in South Sudan and beyond. We’re so grateful!
Just this week, South Sudan has re-entered a lockdown period due to a spike in cases in Juba. Schools, churches and colleges, including the Nile Theological College, are all closed. Our partners are concentrating on helping educate people about the seriousness of the disease. 43 leaders from communities attended a workshop you helped fund, to learn about the pandemic, its symptoms and the precautions to take.
“Corona virus is a real threat to humanity around the whole world,” the Presbyterian Church of South Sudan writes to us.“South Sudan is
not exceptional. The Bible says, ‘my people are destroyed from lack of knowledge’ and we find this to be true. Although all the countries right now are aware of the Coronavirus pandemic, the majority of South Sudanese are still not aware of it... In Juba city itself, people do not observe safety rules. Wearing of face masks and social distancing are not seriously followed… We thank God our partners are always standing on our side to fight the pandemic together in South Sudan.”
Your gifts are being used to: Support COVID-19 workshops with information about handwashing, hygiene and physical distancing, as well as providing access to face masks, sanitisers, soap and buckets. Hold two peace and reconciliation workshops in Juba, supporting church leaders and community members. This is especially important timing: extreme violence and attacks involving thousands of fighters have engulfed more than three-quarters of South Sudan, with bloodshed faced by civilians the worst recorded since the country’s civil war began in 2013.
Your gifts are at work among our partners in South Sudan to continue critical COVID-19 response and peace work.
Help us support additional partners responding to COVID-19 where need is greatest across the Pacific, Asia and Africa. Thank you!
NOTES FROM THE NATIONAL DIRECTOR Heroes and heroines of the faith I came across a music video recently titled “Jesus is my superhero!” Against a backdrop of fluffy white clouds, a muscular man with a perfectly groomed ‘Jesus’ beard flashed the iconic ‘S’ and extended his fist as a red cape billowed from his shoulders. I was a bit bemused. I understand that it’s for children but putting Christ into a pair of tights seemed a bit much. It might also miss the point. The Jesus of our faith lived his thirty-three years entirely immersed in our human experience – hungry, thirsty, foot-sore. He sat with children and dogs; attended weddings and told stories. He died virtually alone on a rubbish heap. In Jesus, God conquered death, but not with a display of force. Jesus’ resurrection is born of suffering and the redemptive power of love – no superpower, but a long slow process of service and witness. Over the past two
centuries, we’ve seen that love at work in the ‘great cloud of witnesses’ mentioned by the writer of Hebrews:
“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us…” Hebrews 12:1-2 I meet so many men and women through our partners in places where redemptive muscle is desperately needed. They’re ordinary people like you and I, not imbued with superpowers of any kind. And that’s the point. Like you and I, they worry, muse, pray, plan and act without the safety net of a cape and tights. Instead, they draw on the same reserves of faith we all share: the love of our communities, prayer, scripture and worship. These are my heroes and heroines of faith, and they encourage me to persevere. And as
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members of one global family, they need us to be local heroes and heroines of faith too. Our prayer, our sharing of the resources we’ve been blessed to receive, our words of encouragement: these are the only superpowers we have. Thank you, once again, for sharing them with our global family of faith. We are so very grateful.
Dr Sureka Goringe, National Director, UnitingWorld
This newsletter was printed using vegetable-based inks on paper that was sustainably sourced from plantation forests. UnitingWorld PO Box A2266, Sydney South NSW 1235 ABN 47 817 183 926 Telephone 1800 998 122
info@unitingworld.org.au www.unitingworld.org.au