Australia Day – Kingdom living – Matthew 5:1-12
“Our meeting is being held on the traditional lands of the Ramindjeri People and I wish to acknowledge them as Traditional Custodians of the land on which we live and worship. I would also like to pay my respects to their Elders, past and present, and acknowledge Aboriginal peoples are hurting and mourning as the result of a day many celebrate.”
… not a statement for political correctness. I say this because this week was Australia Day, and whilst some would refer to it as Invasion day, I believe we need to do what we can to lessen the divide between our first Australians and those of us who are migrants or descendants of migrants.
Australia Day claims to be about unifying all Australians, and yet ironically, it’s increasingly divisive for some people.
The negative effects of colonisation continue to have very real impact on the lives of many Indigenous Australians in the form of intergenerational trauma, generational poverty, health disparity, disconnection from culture, disappearance of language, family separation, social discrimination and more.