Two Australian Anglicans – a young woman with autism and the parent of a child with autism – share their stories of inclusion and respect in parishes: “The overwhelming impression I got was that the parish community members were there for the common good rather than for their individual needs. As a result of their experience, both my primary-aged children understand church and want to go to church”
“In his ministry, Jesus used narrative to share knowledge, initiate discussions and connect with people. This is why personal stories centred on specific parish experiences have been sourced to form the backbone of the new Parishes and other Mission Agencies Commission resource,” says Dr Stephen Harrison
“In my culture people have a collective consciousness. This means that I can’t make important decisions impacting my community alone. Just as I couldn’t refuse the role as Bishop, I couldn’t decide as an individual to resign from the role. In order to hand back the role of Bishop, I needed to travel to South Sudan for three months earlier this year so I could consult,” says Resource Church specialist Bishop Daniel Abot
“I first encountered a talking circle at a Quaker Sunday service in a circular room on a rainforested hill in the Brisbane suburb of Kelvin Grove. I entered the room to find people sitting in silence in a circle of chairs around a small central table…With the recent shift back to in-person gatherings, talking circles are a great way to foster dialogue, with hybrid in-person/digital options also possible. Here are eight tips to make your talking circle space suited for dialogue that matters,” says The Rev’d Tim Booth, Ministry Development Officer from the Parishes and Other Mission Agencies Commission
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