How can we make peace between estranged people? Particularly with a long history of conflict? Our speaker last week, Dr Seblewengel Daniel, lives in Ethiopia, a country at war with itself. We discussed her sense of what will bring peace to her nation. The summary of the conversation is bringing peace requires conflicted people working together, to do this they need trust. To build trust, people want to be understood. They reconcile by sharing the truth of their troubled history and addressing the hurts with justice and forgiveness. Three words stood out: Together, Trust, and Truth. Dr Daniels believes the churches in Ethiopia are essential for this peacemaking. Reconciled through Jesus Christ, Ethiopian Christians can work together, across the divisions, for peace.
Australia is on its own journey of finding peace with our First Nations people. We want to build a better future for all. The Yolngu call this journey ‘Makarrata’, a ”coming together after a struggle”. To walk together, we need trust, so we must share the truth of our troubled history and address the hurts. The churches in Australia can contribute to this journey. Indigenous and non-indigenous Christians are reconciled through Jesus Christ. Through Christ, we together build trust and face the truth of our history. We can work together for the good of our First Nations people and all Australians. By partnering with the Aboriginal Berean Community Church our church puts this into practice. Our May Mission Project supports this partnership. Read here for more information. You can put this into practice by understanding our shared history, and by building relationships with Aboriginal people. These are important times when the church and our contributions can build a better future for all.
In Him,
Jason
Image: Aboriginal Berean Community Church