"What is most inspiring about the Justice League is that these heroes continuously left their egos and self-interest at the door, trusting and work alongside one another " (The Rev'd Cameron Freese)

Reflections

Lessons in collaboration from a vintage cartoon

“Ultimately Justice League is a story about finding collective strength through helping others and receiving help from others. The specific, often curious, vulnerabilities of the Super Friends characters show that we all need help sometimes,” says The Rev’d Cameron Freese from East Redland Anglicans

Reflections

My memories of Queen Elizabeth II

“After Queen Elizabeth passed away, I heard Former High Commissioner to the UK, Alexander Downer, on the radio say that anyone who can remember her father, King George VI, must be very old. Later I was talking to my daughter-in-law Leanne, who works for Anglicare Southern Queensland, and I told her that I remember the abdication of Edward VIII in 1936, so I must be very, very old,” says Pam Wood from The Parish of Sunnybank

Reflections

Tough Questions: What does it mean to grieve the Holy Spirit?

“When we, deliberately or inadvertently, behave in a way that is inimical to our spiritual improvement it grieves the Holy Spirit; in the same way that a loving parent is grieved when his or her child behaves in a self-destructive manner,” says The Rev’d Charlie Lacey

Reflections

Shifting the conversation from “decline” to “possibility”

“This sense of freedom that emerged from being encouraged and resourced to give something a go helped change the narrative in our church. It shifted the conversation from ‘struggle’ and ‘decline’ to ‘opportunity’ and ‘possibility’. This narrative shift is the most valuable outcome of our Adapting Ministry in Complex Times pilot participation,” says The Rev’d Rosemary Gardiner

Reflections

Clergy Conference highlights and learnings

Four chaplains and parish priests from our Northern and Southern Regions share about what they will take away from the recently held clergy conferences and how they will implement these insights into their ministries

Reflections

“Sharing our stories was like watering each other’s trees”

“Our group facilitator, Kate Venables, led us in the conversation, asking the group how we experienced lions in our lives. So I translated the stories of two Dinka women in our group from the same village who said that when they were young girls, they used to look after the cows. One of the Bishops’ wives shared about how she protected a cow from being eaten by a lion as a young girl. The lion jumped from a tree onto the back of a cow,” says Rachel Jimma from St Bart’s, Toowoomba

Reflections

“It was definitely unifying and uplifting”

“Stewards were run off their feet during the conference, but we were able to join in the worship, even if that meant singing and dancing from our fire exit posts. Every morning service was a joyous pick-me-up. Services were said and sung in different languages,” says Stacey McCowan from the Community of The Way

Reflections

“It has been a unique privilege to serve as your Archbishop”

“Thank you for your support, prayers and collegiality as we have furthered Christ’s mission in our Diocese and beyond. Some of this ministry has been difficult, painful and demanding. At other times, we have been filled with peace and joy in Christ’s service. In it all there has been a pervading sense of God’s grace,” says Archbishop Phillip Aspinall AC as he announces his resignation

Reflections

Protest songs, country, religious rock, disco and folk: inspiring music of the 70s

“As part of a world-wide campaign to end the Vietnam War, musicians wrote and released songs that resonated with listeners. Many of these songs still do. John Lennon’s ‘Imagine’ is a classic – it is often sung at big international charity events…And, Jimmy Cliff’s ‘Vietnam’ was hailed by Bob Dylan as the ‘the greatest protest song ever written’,” says Bob Randle from Holy Hermits Online, as he reminisces on iconic music of the 1970s