Sunday, October 29, 2006
Make Poverty History Concert, Festival & Forum
Click the logo to find out details to this concert, and look below for info on the Festival & Forum.
MAKEPOVERTYHISTORY Festival
When: Saturday 18 November, 10am to 8pm
Where: Alexandra Gardens, Melbourne
Free all-ages daytime community education festival
Bands, Fair Trade & Sustainable Living Stalls, Workshops, Global Beats Chill Zone, Speakers, Roving Performers, MPH info stalls, International Food, Children's Activities.
Come along to sample Fair-Trade products, be inspired, participate in workshops or just lay back and enjoy the entertainment.
Workshops lead by inspiring international activists, topics include: "How can we Make Poverty History?", "Transforming & Empowering Communities," Climate Change & Poverty, "Fair Trade and a sustainable world for all," "Understanding Globalisation & Our Economy," "Religion, Non violence & Poverty - a Multi Faith Panel".
Also interactive panels, discussions and debates on "Creative Campaigning Skills", "Lobbying Know How" and creative ways to MAKEPOVERTYHISTORY.
Band stage: starts at 11am
Global Beats Chill Zone: starts at 10am
World and acoustic music by:
David Bridie & Telek
Bad Boys Batucada
South of the River Gospel Choir
Vox Congo
+Special Guests
Global Beats Chill Zone DJs:
Antedeluvian Rocking Horse (PBS FM)
Andrew Till (Psy-harmonics)
DJ Daggers (Barmah Beats)
Dom Hogan (PBS FM)
Otto Q
Swytek
Systa BB (RRR FM)
Speakers include:
Tim Costello (World Vision)
The Archbishop Ndungane of Cape Town
Kumi Naidoo (GCAP)
Irene Banda (Zambia)
Dorothy Magaza (Zambia)
This November, world leaders will meet in Melbourne for the G-20 Summit, and we're calling on them to meet their promises in reducing global poverty. The G-20 meeting of the leaders of the world economy is a great opportunity for Melbourne to support the next step in the fight to MAKEPOVERTYHISTORY.
Friday, October 27, 2006
Must-Watch-Movie-Tip: An Inconvenient Truth
'I've made a far stronger contributor to humanity by doing this than being president of the United States.' - Jimmy Carter, International President of Habitat for Humanity (formerly US president 1976-1980)
Perhaps following in the footsteps of Carter is former Presidential candidate-cum-modern day prophet Al Gore has stumped America for the last several years delivering what's been called the 'best PowerPoint ever'!
Gore takes the viewer who previously has a basic understanding that 'something isn't quite right with the environment' through a bare-bones explanation of worldwide pictures documenting the impact of global warming, data and scientific sampling that leads the viewer to a place where they can identify not only is there a problem with the world's climate and pollution levels - but there are REAL simple ways of fixing it.
Linking this discussion with significant turning points in his life including the death of his sister to cancer, the tragic event of the car crash that almost claimed the life of his son and of course, experiencing the 'theft' of his presidential destiny has personalised an issue that is seemingly unchangeable for the 'common person'. What's most interesting with this film is perhaps Gore's challenge that the climate crisis we are facing is not simply an ecological one - it's a (quote) 'moral imperative!'
This is even more powerful considering the political implications of this alongside the recent cries of protest over the Far-Right's stranglehold over 'Christian moral values'.(See Jim Wallis' God's Politics: Why the Right Gets It Wrong and the Left Doesn't Get It - which discusses the Right's effectiveness of stifling anyone with the opinion that there is more to Christian moral issues than homosexuality & abortion. Eg. poverty, ecological sustainability, etc.) There are several moments of incredulity, even outrage, when Gore exposes downright corrupt, cynical and exploitative practices of those in the very industries and levels of government that are denying or obsfuscating the existence at all of the reality and impact of global warming.
By linking his own personal story - he demonstrates the capacity of people to change their own mindsets in response to such obvious realities - no matter how revolutionary the thinking and changes that need to be made may need to be.
The film's producers were once 'in the crowd' during one of Gore's presentations, and in response to their astonishment that the urgency of the planet's climate crisis wasn't well-known, simply went up afterwards and offered to Gore the opportunity to film his next presentation - this led to the film. Subsequently, Millions of Americans who have seen this movie have openly commented on 'what if he hadn't have had the presidency stolen from him!' However, he might not have had the same level of impact if he had've been president, and not made this film. (Interesting lesson on prophets - change can only occur from the outside - not from within...)
Check out the link on the right sidebar for everyday, common resources and practices that an individual and family can contribute to depleting the amount of carbon emmissions that we release every day into the Earth's atmosphere.
This film is a must see for any Christian who believes ecological sustainability is a concept restricted to some left-wing radical agenda. It affects all of us - and as believers we have a moral responsibility to support any efforts that prophetically challenge this status quo of environment irresponsibility.
RATING: 6 & 1/2 stars - one for each year of what could've been an amazing presidency...
Tuesday, October 10, 2006
The Emerging Church
by Rev. Mark Brouwer
The emerging church has become the Rorschach test among Christians in this country. In the Rorschach test people look at various inkblot shapes and are asked what they see. Not surprisingly, people see different things. So it is with the emerging church. Some see it as a passing fad, others as the Next Big Thing; some see it as thoughtful and helpful, others as dangerous...
Check out the rest of this article here.
Monday, October 09, 2006
Voices. Sometimes lost....and finding them again.
The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,
for he has appointed me to preach Good News to the poor.
that the downtrodden will be freed from their oppressors,
I speak in the name of those who have no voice
Here are some questions we MUST ask ourselves:
What is our justice issue?
What is my justice issue?
What do I need to say?
Have I lost my voice?
What must I do to get it back?
God, restore my voice.
Give me eyes to see, and ears to hear
That which breaks your own heart, and rework my own heart
Let me experience the full power that created,
and through the resurrection,
is recreating this beautiful world,
and all which is in it.
Amen.