Check out these messaging principles and FAQ guides, video and other resources created to assist clergy, lay leaders and Christian communications professionals, so they can more effectively engage their congregations and wider communities about the Uluru Statement, including constitutional recognition through an Indigenous Voice to Parliament
Find out how to have your say on the proposals for an ‘Indigenous Voice’ in Federal Parliament and at local levels and help provide a way for our First Nations peoples to provide advice and input on matters that are important to improving their lives
At the recent Garma Festival, held annually in Gulkula in the Northern Territory, the movement for a referendum on an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament took a huge step forward
“Inspired by the Uluru Statement From the Heart, the Anglican Church Southern Queensland has made a submission in support of the call for a First Nations Voice enshrined in the Australian Constitution,” says The Rev’d Canon Bruce Boase, Chair of our Diocesan Reconciliation Action Plan Working Group
Over 300 community leaders recently gathered in St John’s Cathedral for a Queensland Community Alliance assembly in support of constitutional recognition of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples through a Voice to Parliament
“The ability to hear the small voice is something that was at the heart of the ministry of Jesus. The ignored and marginalised found someone who listened to them. There are numerous occasions when Jesus stopped to listen. Jesus’ acts of recognition are often set in contrast to those who could neither hear what was being said or see the people who were speaking,” says Bishop Chris McLeod
“I think the Voice will help to engage with complex and systemic issues and will help to ‘close the gap’ that exists in so many ways, particularly in health and life expectancy. Powerfully, this has been suggested and offered to us as a way forward by significant Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leadership…and in this there is both grace and gift,” says Bishop Cam Venables
“I’m always astounded by the resilience and faith of our Aboriginal Christian leaders. They remind me of the impossibility of justice or restoration without relationship to Creator, the resurrecting power of Jesus, and guiding inspiration of the Holy Spirit”
“The forthcoming referendum about recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the Constitution through a pragmatic Voice to Parliament builds on the remarkable legacy of the 1967 referendum. I am hopeful that this year’s referendum will be a success and I look forward to seeking to contribute my views as Parliament consults with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples about the model,” says Aunty Dr Rose Elu
“I love waking early, lying in bed and hearing the birds in the garden and, when I can get away camping, hearing the morning chorus. It makes a great start to the day. On my daily walk in the late afternoon I often hear the birds, insects and frogs marking the end of the day. These experiences help connect me to nature. Whether I am in suburbia or in the bush – it is the same voice of creation that I hear,” says The Rev’d Peter Moore, Chair of Angligreen
