Bishop says ‘true reconciliation is a gift from God’
As National Sorry Day (Sunday 26 May) and Reconciliation Week (27 May – 3 June) approaches, LCA Bishop Henderson encourages all Australians to recognise our common humanity and show each other Jesus’ reconciling love.
In a Heartland eNews issued on 21 May, he said, ‘To be “a truly successful society” we need to courageously confront those parts of our national character and our history that hold us back from fully being a free and generous people’.
He said genuine reconciliation requires ‘truth-telling, mutual understanding and agreement’.
‘Christians know that true reconciliation is a gift from God. God has generously forgiven and reconciled us through faith in Christ. That same faith leads us to seek reconciliation with one another wherever it is needed (see Matthew 18:23–35). That includes working with other fair-minded people for a just and generous society.’
He called on members of the LCA/NZ to pray for ‘a fuller and more accurate picture of Australian history, for positive race relations, for equal rights and fair treatment for all, and a shared sense of “Australian-ness”’. He also encouraged people to pray for ‘institutional support for reconciliation right around Australia’.
Read Bishop Henderson’s full Heartland message.
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