The Community seeks to promote cooperation and sharing of truths, learning to live beside those of other faiths in trusting relationships.

Three theological affirmations for Christians engaging in inter-faith dialogue:

1. God delights in diversity and seeks unity.

2. The Spirit is present in all of life

3. The centrality of Jesus Christ in Christian believing is not to be compromised.

Dialogue is a two-way process, not a one-way street where we impose our faith on others. However, questions arise for most of us:

• what about the faith we hold so dearly in Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour: 'I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father but by me' (John 14:6)?

• what about the Christian Church's mission to spread the gospel throughout the world?

In dialogue, everyone remains true to their own spiritual beliefs. Thus, the centrality of Jesus Christ for Christians is not to be compromised. Our confession of Christ is not something to be argued but something to be affirmed as the foundation on which our life is built.

A better starting point is an appreciation of the work of the Spirit, the presence of God active in every area of life and in every person. The goal of inter-faith dialogue is not to gather all on earth in the one 'super-faith', but, open to the Holy Spirit, to have an environment where diversity is held within a framework of mutual appreciation, common exploration and a shared search for the peaceable Kingdom.

29 September 2025

Dear Friends,

Greetings to you all as we conclude the celebration of the Season of Creation 2025 in this coming week.                                                                 

In my home city (Newcastle), ARRCC members have arranged an Interfaith gathering in the grounds of Christ Church Cathedral Newcastle on the evening of Sunday 5th October to mark the Feast of St Francis and St Clare and to give thanks for God's marvellous creation. Representatives of various faiths will participate.

You may not be able to join us then but there is an opportunity for each of you to join the NCCA for prayers at aCelebration of the end of the Season of Creation on Wednesday 1 October, Time: 12:30 -1:20 pm (AEST) Register to participate: on Trybooking here 

The horror of the war in Gaza and the relentless seizure of land, with the latest bulldozing in the West Bank of centuries-old olive trees which are the livelihood of the Palestinian residents, in order to enable the expansion of illegal Israeli settlements, continues unabated. As part of the Week of Prayer for Peace, held world-wide last week,  the Christians in Jerusalem gathered in the Melkite Catholic Church to keep alive their hope of a peaceful resolution. You can read a report of these prayers at this link to the WCC News item: Prayers ring during World Week for Peace in Palestine and Israel | World Council of Churches.

The WCC News also carried a report on the campaign Stand Up for Children in War, which received no mention that I saw in our media.  Details are in this report: Standing up for children in war means tackling root causes | World Council of Churches

West Papua: I am grateful for the publicity the WCC is giving to the desperate situation of the people of Province of West Papua, who continue to be victimised by the Indonesian government, by the continuing transmigration of settlers from overcrowded islands in the rest of the country,  the denudation of their essential forests for growing cash crops, and the cruel suppression of the leaders in their movement for independence. We have followed the suffering of the Melanesian people in West Papua ever since we hosted the chaplain of Jayapura University, Rev Paris Menai, for several months while he studied in Sydney at the United Theological College in the 1980's. Following their complicity in the transfer of West Papua from Australia to Indonesia in the 1960's our political leaders have been silent on the suffering of West Papuans, who are predominantly Christian. Even our church leaders hesitate to speak out in their support to avoid criticism of Indonesia. The plight of the people of West Papua has been the topic of a session at the United Nations Human Rights Council in New York in the past week. See a background paper and a report of the presentation at which WCC staff spoke in the first attachment.

Anti-Poverty Week 12 to 18 October: several church agencies have combined to produce resources for use during this week. They can be found at the link: Promotional Kit - Anti-Poverty Week 

With the difficulty the Christian churches in Jerusalem have in telling their story through international media outlets, because of the censorship of any criticism of Israel, I rely on news from the Friends of Sabeel North America (FOSNA), whose emails I receive regularly. They support Sabeel, the very active theological centre in East Jerusalem, which produces many of the powerful statements on behalf of the Christian Churches in Palestine. I have visited it each time I have been in Jerusalem and listened in awe to its leaders, who retain their hope for eventual peace in the Holy Land. See the second attachment for a statement by FOSNA's Jonathan Kuttab, who gives his explanation of the meaning of Antisemitism.

We continue to pray constantly for peace across the world and know that we share those concerns with many people of different faiths. I bring you peaceful greetings in many languages: 

Ki'nh chào, Namaste, Shalom, Salaam, Om Shanti, Peace, سَلَامٌ,  和平, Paz, शांति, صلح,  สันติภาพ 

Doug Hewitt

Wellspring Community Contact Person for Ecumenism and Interfaith