Ecumenical Stories
- around the Presbytery of Mary Burnett
BlackallRange:
We on the Blackall Range have a number of activities that we do ecumenically:
1. Combined Churches youth Group in Maleny. (Baptist, Anglican, Catholic, Uniting, New Life and LutheranChurches.) The leader is a Member of the MalenyUnitingChurch. We commenced last year a once a month combined Churches Youth Group Service in the MalenyUnitingChurch. We have around 50 to 60 in attendance, (Young and Old). This is still early days but we are encouraged, in that we have a Youth Group Band and strong support from the local Churches.
2. There are Ecumenical Men’s and Women’s Breakfasts once a month with between 30 and 40 people attending each month.
3. We recommenced a monthly Saturday Night Service of Worship at Kenilworth. We entered into an agreement with the Catholic Church Community. While they have weekly services led by lay people, they only get a priest around once a month, and so they were pleased for us to conduct Holy Communion each month. The local Catholic Priest in Caloundra has agreed for his people if they attend, to receive Holy Communion at our Services. We have a mixture of people attending with UnitingChurch people, a couple of Catholics and two Pentecostal ladies. We advertise the service on the local community notice board and the CaravanPark. The Catholic Church has listed our Service on their public notice board outside the Church.We have between 15 people regularly attending. Sometimes when Maleny comes to support the Service we then go to the local pub for dinner, and we are well received by the publican and other patrons.
4. All the Churches Ministers on the BlackallRange or their representatives meet once every two weeks at Maple 3 Coffee Shop to dialogue and keep each other informed on what is happening, and to plan joint activities.
5. There are many other activities including combined Churches kids clubs at Maleny and Montville, but given you wanted me to be brief, I have given you too much, sorry.
However there needs to be a working context forecumenical activities and guiding principlesand these come from the Basis of Union, and the document that I have enclosed on what it means to be the Church in rural Queensland. Peter Overton
Glasshouse Country :
Ecumenical work is hard but good work.
On Christmas Eve we had an ecumenical service at Eden (retirement living) inBeerwah. Three things made this service special:
1. Most of the residents who were able attended;
2. Representatives from the 7 churches who make up Glasshouse Country Minister's Fellowship all attended and participated and
3. At the services we used song books "Keep the Faith" which had been bought by the combined churches for the first time.
At the end of the year we are hoping to have a combined churches Christmas/ Carol night in Beerwah. At this stage the UnitingChurch will not have its usual Christmas Festival but will put its energies into this combined event. George Woodward
Isis Congregations:
- Religious Education in Isis High and the Primary Schools in /Childers and surrounding
schools is conducted on an ecumenical basis.
- A Combined Churches’ Garage Sale is planned for August – proceeds to go to the R.E. program in schools.
- Services at Woodgate – led by individual clergy and attended by various denominations. Each year one of the participating churches (Anglican, Lutheran, Catholic, and Uniting) organizes an ecumenical Service of Worship.
Two significant happenings were the
1. The annual Carols by Candlelight which is planned and presented by the local clergy. A feature of the happening for the past couple of years has been the Empty Christmas Tree. Goods (and donations used to purchase goods) have been made into hampers to be distributed through the Neighbourhood Centre to needy families in Childers.
2.Good Friday Service of Worship at Woodgate planned by the UnitingChurch with the Anglican priest participating. Coral Deeth
UnityCollege, Caloundra
My interest in the Ecumenical questions comes especially from my involvement as a Campus Minister (chaplain) at UnityCollege, Caloundra.
UnityCollege, although financed totally by Catholic Education is a jointinitiative of the Catholic and UnitingChurches and is Ecumenical in name only.
My concern is - how do we further the Ecumenical nature of the College? I believe that if the College prides itself on being an EcumenicalCollege, it needs to 'look' different in five year's time to what it 'looks' now.
I'd be interested if the group had any ideas on how this might happen. Presently some teaching is givenin the classroomfrom a UnitingChurch perspective, but I see this as fairly minimal.Also there are about four UnitingChurch people 'on the ground' at present, but they will move on in due course.
I would be prepared to take some responsibility for promoting the Ecumenical nature of the school while I am at Unity and beyond that if the school was agreeable.
Following the June/July school holidays,I am hoping to arrangewith Rudy to have David Fanning and Don Whebell together at the school. I think the Ecumenical question is an important one especially when the school is very top heavy Catholic (and that is no one's fault - it's just how it is because the money comes from Catholic education.) Jan Reid
The Cooroy Pomonachurch does Carols with their Ministers Fellowship
I was part of Gympie Minister's Fraternal. They did two combined services a year - one for Gympie's Gold Rush Festival and Carols in the Park.Religious Education is done ecumenically in both placements - Cooroy Pomona and Gympie. As is support for Scripture Union Chaplaincy in schools.
Gympie also has a Mayoral Prayer Breakfast which is ecumenical.
Linda Hanson
Maryborough:
- Maryborough's QCT folk meet every second month for a fellowship luncheon - thisis mainly Catholics,Anglicans, Lutheran and us UCAagents - it is a lovely time together and enables us all to catch up with various happenings / alsoto arrange combined acts of Worship - e.g. Community Prayer Service for Fire / Flood victims / World Day of Prayer / Harmony Day Celebrations
2. St Stephen's Hospital Chapel Service Monday mornings is advertised as an ecumenical service. Ithas a full roster of clergy (mainly the QCT ones+ many guest Chaplains from the surroundingAged CareRetirement Homes. (includes C of C ) This has been in practice now for over three years.
3. St Stephen's Hospital Pastoral Carers / Accredited Visitors and Trolley Roster (include alsoSSH Ladies Auxiliary) works ecumenically and we have Dedication and Thank You Worship Services twice a year along with an annual Thank You Breakfast (for all Volunteers) every Christmas and in the middle of the Year Ipost every one acard "Thanking God and Thanking You / Each Other." There are over 45 people involved in these various ministries - including some lovely ladies who come and play the Chapel organ.We all tend to support each other's functions - eg Garden Parties and other Fundraisers etc.
TrishMilne
CoolumBeach and Bli Bli:
Ecumenical Stations of the Cross - Good Friday -
On Good Friday morning the churches of Coolum Beach (Anglican, Baptist, Roman Catholic, Salvation Army and UnitingChurches (Christian Family unable to join us this year, but did last year) joined together to share in the Stations of the Cross where young people from each denomination tabloid each Station of the Cross. The young people wore coloured clothes so that there was some constancy eg. Jesus wore purple etc.
This was a moving experience.
Christmas Service - the same thing happened with Coolum Christian Family involved as well where young people from the various denominations took part in developing a nativity scene as the Biblical Christmas story was told. Christmas services have been held now for twenty-three years.
Bli Bli congregation was involved with a combined churches fun day providing afternoon tea for parents of the young people who came to take part in a number of different fun activities. This was followed by Carols and the telling of the Christmas Story. This was held at the BliBliSchool.
Pam Batson
BlueCare Caloundra:
It took about 18 months of back and forth approaches but we were
thrilled to have the year 10 students from UnityCollegebecome part
of the weekly activities at BlueCare at Caloundra Aminya and Waroona
Gardens.
The staff of BlueCare and the School are absolutely thrilled at the
prospect of working together, the students and the residents are
getting along beautifully and are making real the spiritual basis of
both organisations.
The Anglican, Catholic and UnitingChurches of Palmwoods worked
together to honour all the volunteer organisations in the community on
the National Thanksgiving Day (Pentecost). It was a fabulous sign of
the churches working together, offering a real thank you without any
strings and was received extremely positively.
The Churches Together have worked with me over the last 4 years to
offer a Seniors Week Celebration Service and luncheon to which all
seniors in the community are invited and at which seniors share the
stories of their lives and faith. This year it is to be hosted by the
Catholic Community and they are so excited at stepping up and working
with us.
Greg Ross
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