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UPCOMING
COMMISSION SPONSORED EVENTS (Click on listed events to
get more details)
OTHER UPCOMING
EVENTS (Click
here to see other events on the Newsblog)
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
JCMA
Conference (6-9 July 2009)
Sixth Residential Conference of Jews,
Christians and Muslims in Australia
Monday 6 th – Thursday 9 th
July 2009
To be held at the Conference
Centre, Pallotti College, 80 McNamaras Rd, Millgrove [Melways
ref: Map 289 A2] (75 km NE of the Melbourne
CBD)
Theme: BUILDING A BETTER
AUSTRALIA: people of faith in a secular society
Organised and hosted by the
Jewish-Christian-Muslim Association of Australia
GPO Box 598 Melbourne VIC 3001
(03) 9650 3294 jcmavic@yahoo.com.auWebsite:
www.JCMA.org.au
The Program: four days
of …
reflections on the
theme questions
exploring what
brings people of faith together in spite of different cultural
heritage and religious belief
information
about each faith and their patterns of daily life through
personal experiences
engaging group
discussions with frank and open personal conversations,
stories, experiences and insights
opportunities to
observe or participate in prayer according to the three
traditions
Registration
& selection procedure
The number
of participants in JCMA 2009 is limited. An appropriate balance
of participants from all three faith traditions will be sought
as well as a balance between religious professionals
and lay men and women. Gender and age distribution balance
will also be sought.
Family accommodation
and child care are available, and families are encouraged
to apply.
Previous applicants
are encouraged to apply.
Application forms
are available from the JCMA Secretary (0419 390 650) or from
the JCMA website ( www.jcma.org.au
). A $50 refundable deposit is required with the application.
Deposits will be refunded to unsuccessful applicants &
are also refundable for cancellations until 15 June 2009.
Applications
are requested by Friday 29 th May 2009. Initial places
will be allocated and applicants notified in the first week
of June,
Successful
applicants will be required to confirm their registration
by payment of the registration fee within 14 days of notification.
If the fee is not received within this time the
place may be offered to other applicants. Late offers of places
may therefore be issued to those who were unsuccessful on
the first application.
If there are still places available after
the first round of offers, late applications will be considered
.
JCMA aims to enable people of faith to deepen
their understanding of Judaism, Christianity and Islam in
Australia today by meeting, engaging with and learning from
Jews, Christians and Muslims.
The conference centre is set in expansive
grounds with views across the Yarra Valley. It provides a
relaxing environment conducive to both personal reflection
and warm, open meetings and discussions. Most accommodation
will be in single rooms, although there will be some shared
accommodation. All rooms have basins.
All-inclusive Conference Fees:
Shared room: $350 per person,
Couple : $600
Children 13-16 yo: $60 per person Children
under 13 free
A concessional rate may be available
Participants are responsible for their own
transport to and from the conference; however, there will
be a coach pickup and return service available from Melbourne
Airport, Southern Cross Station, or Leo Baeck Centre in East
Kew (where you can park your car) for $30 per person. Public
transport is available – train to Lilydale, then the 683 bus;
we will collect you from the bus stop.
Download
Registration form
Download
Leaflet
Download
Poster
JCMA aims…
to enable people of the Abrahamic faiths to build relationships
and understanding through experience, and to provide opportunities
and programs for people of the Abrahamic faiths to explore
interfaith dialogue within Australia’s multicultural
community. The programs are complemented by deepened understanding
of faith gained through engagement and learning from each
other.
(Back to Commission
Events listing)
________________________________________________________________________________
REPORTS OF PAST EVENTS
VII International Abraham Conference (Sunday
19 October 2008)
Theme: AFTER SORROW: Reconciliation, Responsibility and the
Abrahamic Tradition
About 100 people from the Christian, Jewish, Muslim and other
religious communities of Melbourne attended the seventh Abraham
Conference at the Australian Catholic University's Central
Hall in Fitzroy on Sunday 19th October, 2008. This event was
co-sponsored by The Ecumenical and Interfaith Commission,
the Australian Intercultural Society, The Australian Catholic
University, Monash University, The Selimiye Foundation, The
Anti-Defamation Commission, and B'nai B'rith Victoria.
The keynote speaker was well know Australian
indigenous activist, Mr Pat Dodson, currently chairperson
of the Kimberly Development Commission and of the Lingiari
Foundation. Earlier this year, the Australian Government declared
an apology to the "stolen generation" of Aboriginal
Australians on behalf of Australia. Pat's paper acknowledged
how much still needs to be done even after this landmark event.
His paper highlighted the significant connections between
the issue of reconciliation between indigenous and non-indigenous
peoples of our nation and the reconciliation which the interfaith
movement is seeking to encourage between the Abrahamic faiths
of Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
As Pat is a member of the Catholic community, the two respondents
spoke from the perspectives of the Jewish and Muslim communities.
They were Dr Mark Leibler AC, the Co-Chair of Reconciliation
Australia, and Mrs Zuleyha Keskin, Vice-President and Team
Executive Manager of Affinity Intercultural Foundation in
Sydney.
The entire event was chaired by Professor Raymond Canning
of the Australian Catholic University.
Click
here for Pat Dodson's Paper
Click
here for photographs of the event
AIS / EIC Iftar Dinner (Sept 9, 2008)
For the first time since 2005, the Archdiocese
hosted an Iftar Dinner during Ramadan. This year the event
was specifically conducted and jointly hosted with the Australian
Intercultural Society under our Memorandum
of Agreement.
The dinner was held at the Cardinal Knox
Centre. About 50 people from the local Muslim community gathered
with an equal number of folk from the agencies and parishes
of the Archdiocese just before sunset for the traditional
breaking of the fast with a date and a glass of water. After
the Muslim prayers and Christian grace (the latter prayed
by Bishop Christopher Prowse), we helped ourselves to the
delicious Turkish cuisine provided by the AIS. After the main
course, we listened to music by the Australian Sufi Ensemble
before hearing a passage from the Koran recited by Hafiz Muhammed
Sezgin and a reading from St Paul's letter to the Ephesians
by David Schütz.
Then we settled down to hear two excellent
speakers, Professor Ismail Albayrak of the Australian Catholic
University to speak on fasting in the Islamic tradition, and
Bishop
Michael Putney speaking on interfaith relations in Australia,
with special reference to Muslim-Catholic relations and the
important place that joint witness to faith has in "the
public square".
Coffee and sweets, thankyous and gift giving,
and prayers of thanksgiving by Emre Celik and Monsignor Peter
Kenny completed an evening in which our relationship was strengthened
through face to face encounter and the universal joy of sharing
a meal together.
Conversation with the Australian Intercultural
Society (August 9, 2008)
The relationship between Catholics and Muslims continue
to strengthen with various joint projects and activities.
As part of the Memorandum Of Understanding between the Australian
Intercultural Society and Catholic Interfaith Commission,
Melbourne Catholic Archdiocese, a conversation was held between
Muslims and Catholics on the theme of 'Sacrifice of Abraham'.
The Speakers at the event were Fr John Dupuche, CIC and Prof
Ismail Albayrak who holds the Fethullah Gulen Chair in the
Study of Islam and Muslim-Catholic relations.
For
more information, click here.
Interfaith Youth Pilgrimage (July 13 2008)
On Sunday 13th July, a significant interfaith
event took place in Melbourne. To coincide with the visit
to Melbourne of 25,000 international pilgrims en route to
World Youth Day in Sydney, the youth of various religious
communities in Melbourne came together "on pilgrimage to one
another" in order to make a joint committment to peace.
Twelve communities were represented in this event: Baha'i,
Christian (Protestant and Catholic), Muslim (both ICV and
AIS), Jewish, Hindu, Buddhist, Brahma Kumaris, Sathya Sai,
Sikh and Indigenous. The event was jointly planned by young
people from these communities.
Early in the afternoon, each community group met together
in their own locations in various places around the city of
Melbourne, in order to discuss together the themes of peace,
pilgrimage and interfaith relations from their own faith perspective.
The Catholic pilgrims gathered in St Patrick's Cathedral where
they were addressed by Bishop Christopher Prowse.
Each group then journeyed "on pilgrimage" to Federation Square,
walking behind specially made banners which, upon arrival
at the square, were used as the backdrop for the gathering
space. In all, about five hundred young people were gathered
for the event. A break in the weather meant there were plenty
of passersby also attracted by the event.
As we came together, we walked through smoking eucalyptus
leaves - a local indigenous ceremony of purification and welcome.
Our MCs were Br Gautam Chaitanya of the Hindu faith and Ms
Inaz Janif of the Muslim faith. The program was in two sections.
After a welcome to the land by local indigenous elder, Aunty
Di Kerr, the first section consisted of chants in original
languages from the sacred writings of four groups relevant
to the theme of peace. Deepna Benoit chanted in Sanskrit from
the Hindu tradition, Freeman Trebilcock chanted the Buddhist
"Four immeasurables" in Tibetan, Caroline Mense and Ms Lipson
read the "Sim Shalom" and other prayers from the Jewish prayer
book, and Hafiz Muhammed Sezgin chanted from the Koran.
Before the second section commenced, we were addressed by
our guest speaker, Cardinal Oscar Rodriguez, the Catholic
Archbishop of Tegucigalpa in the Honduras and the president
of Caritas International. Following the Cardinal's address,
Shyamini Naidu, a young Hindu Year 12 student, sang "You Raise
Me Up". Many of the pilgrims in the assembly joined in singing
this well known and stirring song.
The second half of the program consisted in the presentation
of four "intentions for Peace". Jag Shergill, from the Sikh
community, presented an "Intention for Love"; Amelia Ghofrany
and Kylie Payman from the Baha'i community presented an "Intention
for Unity"; Anish from the Mar Thoma Christian community presented
an "Intention for Forgiveness", and Tristan Mungatopi of the
Indigenous community presented an "Intention for Reconciliation".
In response to each intention, the Crowd responded enthusiastically
with the refrain "For the Sake of Peace!"
The event concluded with the speakers and readers taking branches
of gum leaves into the crowd, where everyone took a leaf as
a reminder of their involvement in the pilgrimage and of their
own committment to peace.
For the complete
service order of the catechesis in St Patrick's Cathedral
and the text of Bishop Prowse's address, for the powerpoint
presentation containing the full program and script at Federation
Square, and for access to photos and video of the event,
please click here .
Pathways to Peace: the Ideals. JCMA Seminar(13
April 2008)
What do the three Abrahamic monotheistic faiths mean
when they talk about peace? A panel presentation followed
by small group meetings and discussion, held at the Sidney
Myer Asia Centre under the auspices of the University of Melbourne.
Click
here for presentation by Bishop Christopher Prowse
Click
here for presentation by Rabbi Jonathan Keren Black
Click
here for presentation by Professor Abdullah Saeed
Commemoration of the Noble Birth of the
Prophet (15 March 2008)
Click here for the report and
photographs of the occasion
Catholic Muslim Youth Friendship night
(9 March 2008)
Click here for the report and
photographs of the occasion.
Report of the JCMA Women's Conference
February 2008
Click
here to download a report of the 2008 Jewish Christian and
Muslim Conference for women.
Sixth International Abraham Conference,
Melbourne University, August 26, 2007
Click here to go to
report with pictures and downloadable copies of papers presented.
Launch of "Promoting Interfaith Relations":
Some Guidelines for the parishes and agencies of the Catholic
Archdiocese of Melbourne (August 21, 2007)
Click here to go to
full report with pictures and downloadable copies of the document)
Signing of the Memorandum of Understanding
between the Ecumenical and Interfaith Commission and the Australian
Intercultural Society (July 29, 2007)
Click here to go to full report
with pictures and downloadable copy of the Memorandum
Australian Intercultural
Society Intercultural Study Tour of Turkey (20 April - 4 May
2007)
Our Executive Officer, David Schutz, had the opportunity
of travelling with the Australian Intercultural Society to
Turkey for an Intercultural Study Tour in April/May of 2007.
Read more here:
Download David's
Travel Diary (Word Document)
Download
David's Report of the Benefits of the Tour (Word Document)
View
David's Photos (link to Flickr site)
The Inaugural JCMA Women’s Conference
February 12-14, 2007
Last week 44 women from many different backgrounds,
Jews, Christians and Muslims, came together for 3 days and
2 nights to learn about each other’s faiths and to tell
each other their own personal stories. Bonds of friendship
were instantly formed, with stereotypes and preconceived ideas
being shattered as we came to know each other and understand
each other’s traditions and cultures. Conversations
have begun and, as the theme of the conference, Continuing
Conversations, suggests, they will go on as the thirst to
learn more and get to know each other is strong. As women
of the Abrahamic faiths we sang together, we danced together,
we ate together and we shared artefacts relating to our personal
faith journeys. We are all keen to continue our interfaith
conversations in monthly discussion groups and an annual conference.
A truly inspirational event.
Some comments from participants that were sent to the committee
afterwards demonstrate the remarkable effect on us all.
“I watched with joy as the women, myself included, grew
in the warmth of such love and commitment to the recognition
of what was shared and how we can move forward together. What
a privilege it was to be part of this.”
“I feel truly honoured to have been able to share in
your goodness and spiritual searching.”
“One of my best experiences of working with others,
out of a sense of vision and passion to create a difference.”
“I had a wonderful time and walk with a deeper sense
of connectedness to other women and to people of other faiths.”
The conference was run by JCMA, Jewish Christian Muslim Association
of Australia. Enquiries: Di Hirsh dhirsh1@bigpond.net.au
.
Read
a report on the ABC Encounter here or download
the audio of the program here.
Archbishop Hart addresses Melbourne imams
at Australian intercultural Society
2 November, 2006
Archbishop's
Statement
Report
by David
Report
by AIS
Photographs
18 November 2005 12noon-2:30pm
Inaugural Meeting of the Dialogue between Catholics and
Christians from Pentecostal and Evangelical Communities
Read here about this event
13 Nov 2005 2pm – 5pm.
10 In our times: Vatican II and Other Faiths
Thomas Carr Centre, 278 Victoria Pde, East Melbourne
Read here about this event
"One
Church and One Church only"?
An Ecumenical Reflection on the 40 years
since the Vatican II Decree on Ecumenism
Sunday, November 28
This seminar, held in the Knox Room at the Thomas Carr Centre
in East Melbourne, attracted an audience of 50 people highly
involved in ecumenical relations in Melbourne. Fr Peter Cross
gave the key note address on the Decree, asking the questions
"What difference has it made?" and "What still
needs to be done?". Other speakers included Most Rev.
Frank Little, Archdeacon Philip Newman, Rev. Prof. Norman
Young and Ms Maureen Postma.
Fr
Peter Cross' Keynote Address
Rev Prof.
Norman Young's response
Most
Rev. Frank Little's reflection
How
are we saved? Young Catholics and Lutherans Discuss the Doctrine
of Justification
A report of the gathering of Lutherans and Catholics on
October 17 2004 for a joint service to mark the 5th anniversary
of the signing, in Augsburg, Germany, of a joint declaration
on the doctrine of Justification. Another meeting will be
hosted by the Catholic Youth at the Cathedral later this year.
Proposed topic is "Eucharist".
Report
and Photographs
On Sunday, 8 August 2004 at the Yarra Theological
Union, Box Hill, Bishop Christopher Prowse opened the Second
Interfaith Symposium which was sponsored by the Catholic Interfaith
Committee of the Archdiocese. The theme of the Symposium was
‘Forgiveness’, particularly appropriate at this
juncture in history where a world of conflict and division
calls all to forgive and to accept forgiveness.
The speakers shared the teaching and experience of forgiveness
within their different religious traditions. They were Melissa
Brickell (NATSICC); Rabbi Ralph Genende (College Rabbi at
Mt Scopus and Congregational Rabbi of Beit Haron); Venerable
Phuoc Tan (of the Quang Minh Buddhist Temple, Braybrook);
Sheik Isse Musse (Imam of the West Melbourne Mosque). Fr John
Dupuche, Chair of the
Catholic Interfaith Committee, led the Symposium, presided.
About 80 people attended the Symposium which was notable for
the sense of vitality. The interfaith gatherings are a sign
of hope for the future harmony of our community.
"The
Passion of the Christ" Discussion Nights
This link will take you to the reports on the two events held
in conjunction with Catholic Adult Education Melbourne.
"To the Wellsprings
of Joy" : Visit of Brother Ghislain from Taize
Report and photographs.
Shoah Memorial Service
Report and photographs.
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