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In a
historic move, the third largest Church in Australia has
voted for a new preamble to its constitution,
acknowledging the Aboriginals as the ‘First Peoples of
Australia’ and the troubled history of their
relationship with the Christian Church.
The new preamble was approved by the Uniting Church’s
12th Triennial Assembly, meeting at the University of
New South Wales from 15-21 July and it has been hailed
as a “revolutionary” change.
Though some churches have already apologised to
Aboriginal Australians for the past misdeeds of their
missionary flock, it’s the first time one has officially
conceded any theological territory.
The language of the preamble was drafted by a special
task group in consultation with the Uniting Aboriginal
and Islander Christian Congress and the general
secretaries of each state-based synod and the Assembly.
The Rev. Dr Chris Budden, chair of the task group,
recalled the comment of a Congress chairperson who said,
“Growing up in a nation that doesn’t recognise you makes
it impossible to dream.”
Dr Budden said the new preamble sought to move the
Uniting Church in Australia, the third largest Christian
denomination beyond the story of the three denominations
- Congregational, Presbyterian and Methodist that came
into union in 1977.
“The present preamble tells how we became ‘Uniting’,” he
said. “The new preamble tells what it means to be ‘in
Australia’.”
The new document was the result of a two years
consultation across synods and presbyteries, and
extensive theological input, he said.
“We have started to talk about ourselves and our history
in a more honest way. In owning your history you own
your relationships more hopefully and helpfully.”
In a nation where claims that indigenous Australians had
no religion were common, the Uniting Church’s Reverend
Murray Muirhead, a resource worker with its Aboriginal
wing in central Australia’s Alice Springs, says the
“change is revolutionary.”
“Aboriginal theologians are asking the church to give
them the same freedom that was given in the Reformation
in the 16th century when the Protestant church said to
the Catholic church we have the freedom to go back and
interpret the scriptures for ourselves,” Muirhead told
the Guardian newspaper in UK.
Christianity is stronger in the Aboriginal community
than in the non-indigenous community. Around 73 percent
of Aboriginal people identify as Christians compared to
around 63 percent of non-indigenous Australians.
Uniting Church is the third largest Christian
denomination in Australia after Roman Catholics and
Anglicans.
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