serving the faith communities of the Goulburn Valley
The University of Melbourne, Department of Rural Health, University of Melbourne, invites you to an International Women’s Day event featuring Victoria’s Chief Health Officer, Dr Clare Looker. This is a hybrid event, held at Graham St Shepparton and online on 5 March 2023, at 5:30 PM.
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On Sunday 25 February, Mosques across Victoria will open their doors to all Victorians interested in exploring and celebrating the diverse cultural and religious tapestry that defines our state. Shepparton Albanian Mosque – Victoria’s first Mosque – will be participating.
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Australia goes beyond just being a country, and Australia Day goes beyond a mere commemoration; for immigrants, it becomes a symbol of hope and safety, a place of refuge from difficult journeys across seas and deserts and the dangers of human trafficking. It’s not just a piece of land; it’s a sanctuary full of opportunities where immigrants, after facing challenges, find comfort and the promise of a better life. Here, one person granted citizenship writes on the importance of Australia Day and what Australia has to offer.
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Ayodhya, India CNN — Half a million people entered the new Ram Mandir on Tuesday, a controversial Hindu temple in the holy town of Ayodhya that is built on the ruins of a destroyed 16th century mosque.
Huge crowds of devotees queued outside the temple in the early hours of the morning carrying saffron flags and religious offerings on the first day the large complex was open to the public.
A day earlier Prime Minister Narendra Modi unveiled a statue of Lord Ram, one of Hinduism’s most revered deities, in the building’s inner sanctum in a ceremony widely seen as a landmark departure from India’s secular foundations post-independence.
According to some major religions, work is a crucial arena for spiritual connection. The average person will spend 90,000 hours – about 20% of their waking life – at work. The French philosopher Simone Weil calls work “part of an ever-renewing rhythm of human existence”. Work is my everyday existence. How can it also be the site of my spirituality?
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The University of Divinity will join The School of Indigenous Studies to host a 4-day conference in February 2024 – Raising our Tribal Voice for Justice: An Indigenous Theological Revolution.
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Most special days in Buddhist Practices tend to align on lunar calendars. Buddha’s birthday, for example, varies on the Western calendar year-to-year. Losar, or Tibetan New Year, is celebrated on the Lunar calendar. The most important days of the entire year are typically the “Buddha Days” at the beginning … here we present Lunar Dharma Dates for 2024: Buddha Days, Recurring Puja Days, Annual Celebrations in Three Buddhist Traditions
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THIS Christmas, no one in Shepparton needs to celebrate alone, thanks to the “Christmas for Those Alone Lunch”. The event, scheduled for the 25th of December at the Macintosh Centre Shepparton Showgrounds, aims to provide a warm and joyous Christmas experience for those who might otherwise spend the holiday season in solitude.
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In emphasizing the church’s love for all, including people in LGBTQ+ relationships, Pope Francis has sidestepped thorny doctrinal issues.
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In a departure from the traditional festive decorations and Christmas tree lighting, the Bethlehem Municipality has chosen to cancel Christmas festivities due to thousands killed and in a prayer for peace. Amidst the rubble and ruins, a poignant voice rises to declare that the light of hope will persist in the small West Bank town where the Christmas story unfolded.
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Christmas has a more seriously troubling side to it. For many people it’s a reminder of how things might have been; of disappointment and loss. Perhaps it brings into sharp relief the strained or shattered relationships that are part of life for so many.
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Inspired by the Interfaith Statement signed by Pope Francis, Ahmed El-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of Al Azhar, and around 30 religious leaders and representatives from a range of traditions, launched on December 3, the Faith Pavilion at COP28 puts forth this Call to Action.
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The Christmas for Those Alone committee members held an open meeting on Wednesday night to discuss saving their annual Christmas luncheon, and we are happy to report that Christmas lunch will be going ahead.
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The Department of Home Affairs outlines visa conditions for those affected overseas by the conflict in Gaza. Support for communities in Australia affected by this conflict is also outlined.
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The Australian Catholic Anti-slavery Network has welcomed the introduction of legislation by Attorney-General Mark Dreyfus to establish an Anti-Slavery Commissioner. The World Council of Churches also supports this appointment.
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Little is known of consecrated, religious life and prolonged silent prayer. Praying for several hours per day goes by unrecognised in this noisy world of vehicles, pollution, social media, struggle and exhaustion. What brings peace, that inner reservoir we may return to at any time, within? Here, the reflections of a consecrated woman on her experience of silent, prolonged prayer.
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A Joint Interfaith Statement – signed by 115 faith bodies and organisations – has been provided addressing the issues of nuclear weapons, their economic and planetary life impact on all, and the works taken up by people of faith. We know that there is no true safety, security and peace for any of us until there is safety, security and peace for all of us.
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The Seventh Buddhist-Christian Colloquium in Thailand Calls for Compassion and Joint Action. Approximately 150 Christian and Buddhist representatives from 12 Asian nations, the United Kingdom, and the Holy See assembled in Bangkok from 13–16 November for the seventh Buddhist-Christian Colloquium. The theme of the Colloquium was Karuṇā and Agape in Dialogue for Healing a Wounded Humanity and the Earth.
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In the wake of the tragic car accident in Mansfield where four young Samoan men, working with Flavorite in the PALM Scheme, were killed when the car hit a tree and was burnt out – there will be a Candlelight Prayer Service at the Shepparton Uniting Church on Saturday 25 November from 4PM. Anyone may attend.
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