Two new Deacons in the Uniting Church in Australia

Rev Lyn Leane and Rev Albert Patrizi were ordained as Deacons in the Uniting Church in Australia on September 8th, 2013, in Adelaide. Some Deacons were on hand to congratulate them - Sandy Boyce, Bill Harris, Cogs Smith, Sue Langhans, Naomi Rosenberg, Christa Megaw and Judy Knowling.

Deaconess Meresiana - Methodist Church in Fiji and Rotuma

Deaconess Meresiana Kuricava

The Conference of the Methodist Church in Fiji and Rotuma in August 2013 endorsed Deaconess Meresiana Kuricava as the Administrator of the Deaconess Order of the Methodist Church in Fiji, a role she has held previously. Congratulations, Meresiana! Please continue to pray for the deaconess ministry in Fiji, especially in the challenging physical, social, economic and political context in which ministry is offered.

UMC Peace Conference for Clergy and Lay Women in Manila

Deaconess Emma Cantor (President, DAP) has been part of the group meeting for the UMW Peace Conference in the Philippines attended by 38 Indonesian and Filipino Clergy and Lay Women.
 
There are significant Issues for ministry in Indonesia and the Philippines, and some were discussed at the conference including:

* the Asian situation on peace and migration
* unpeace and peace in Asia
* Ecofeminism and advocacy for a peaceful earth
* sharing of the struggles and joys of women in the ministries of the church
* Biblico theological reflections on the perspectives and resolution of peace and unpeace in the churches
* empowering the churches towards building peaceful communities
* advocacy and engagement for peace in all levels.

As well, there was a separate seminar on early childhood education for the participants as part of engagement to peace and a visit to preschools and poor children's communities.

Please remember these women in your prayers. 

Participants in the UMC Peace Conference in Manila

Meg Evans retiring from ministry

In April, 2013, hundreds gathered in the Midlands of Tasmania on Sunday to farewell Patrol Minister Rev Meg Evans who has finished up after 10 years. Meg’s final service at the Oatlands Uniting Church was a wonderful celebration of her ministry, with many warm wishes extended for her retirement. Meg was the first minister appointed to the Midlands Patrol when it was established in 2003. Extending across the Midlands and Central Highlands of Tasmania, the Patrol covers the small towns of Oatlands, Ross, Bothwell and Campbell Town and the isolated properties in between.

Looking back on her time in the Midlands, Meg reflected on her work as a “ministry of presence”.

Frontier Services family (Left-Right) Judy Knowling (formerly Pilbara Patrol), West Coast Patrol Minister Gay Loftus, Rosemary Young, Colleen Grieve (formerly West Coast Patrol) and Meg Evans.

“As more and more services leave these rural areas, the presence of the church is really significant,” she said. “It’s important just to be there. It has been such a privilege to be a part of people’s lives, to have people trust you, and to share in the hard times and the good times.”

As the Midlands Patrol Minister, Meg has led 114 funerals, 33 weddings and 35 baptisms. She has walked alongside generations of families through their highs and lows. In her final week, she conducted a baptism for a family she had come to know well. Meg buried the grandfather, married the children and now welcomed their grandchildren, touching four generations in one family!

For many, Meg has been more than a church minister. She has been a welcome visitor in isolated places, an advocate for the community and a trusted friend. Always, she has been a visible sign of the church’s presence in the community.

Diakonia Sisterhood in Korea

The Diakonia Sisterhood in Korea has been a member of DIAKONIA World Federation since 1983.

IKADIWA HKBP - Deaconess Association in Indonesia

Board of IKADIWA HKBP

IKADIWA HKBP group photo

IKADIWA HKBP - Indonesia with sisters from Germany and Philippines

IKADIWA HKBP - community building activity

IKADIWA HKBP welcomes 5 new members

DAP Regional Conference 2012

Delegates gathered in Manila in October 2012 for 2012 DAP Regional Conference, organized by the DAP Executive. 

Rev Sandy Boyce (Australia), Deaconess Emma Cantor (Philippines) and Ristua Sirait (Indonesia)

Church's role in the fight against gender based violence

Tuesday 5th March
HONIARA, Solomon Islands
Churches must take active roles in the fight against gender-based violence, a regional workshop has been told. 
Women delegates at the Pacific Conference of Churches 10th General Assembly in Honiara, the Solomon Islands, resolved that all theological colleges in the region must teach students about violence against women and children.
Deaconess Sala Naucabalavu of the Methodist Church in Fiji said training in the ills of gender-based violence must be made compulsory.
“We should also have training in gender equality,” Deaconess Sala said.
“I think men fear the strength of women and they are not opening doors to allow discussions which involve or include women.”
Her comments were part of discussions at a women’s pre-assembly symposium and will form part of submissions to the main meeting at St Barnabas Cathedral beginning today.
PCC Secretariat member Peter Emberson said it was important that children were taught to respect women and children.
“Justice is taught in the home and it is imperative that respect for women is taught in this setting. That is where it all starts,” Emberson said.
“If we can change the dynamics of how men treat women and children we will have taken a huge step towards the elimination of gender-based violence.”
More than 30 women from the Pacific region attended the pre-assembly event.
Asena Naisara of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Suva warned women to learn from the past.
“Some of us have grown up with violence against women in the home and it’s time to break that cycle,” Naisara said.
“If we don’t stop the violence our grandchildren will sit here 30 years from now addressing the same issue.”
Source: http://www.islandsbusiness.com/news/solomon-islands/483/churchs-role-in-the-fight-against-gender-based-vio/