Weekend away with Solace

 

This weekend we have been away to Solace church camp at Sorrento. Its a community which Christina and I certainly identify with. The last few days confirmed why. The whole idea of accepting people be it with health issues, sexual orientation, or unorthodox beliefs. It is a safe community where the centre set model of which I loved talking about in the Vineyard Church actually exists!

We finished up the weekend with 'Clean up Australia' day down on the Serreneto foreshore. The environment and God is certainly high on my agenda as a Christian.

After the Vineyard there was for us a bit of a feeling that we had left home, through moving in a different direction. Now traveling with Solace for well over a year I think we have found a new home.

 

 

Solace

This weekend we went to Solace in Melbourne. For us it is Church that as a family we all participate in as we like the theology, and expression. The discussion was based around the Ted talk by Karen Armstrong.

A few things I liked about the discussion that followed::

• Belief as we know it and most Churches today practice it was only really a modern phenomena. (I'm pretty sure Marcus Borg has a chapter on in in his book, "The heart of Christianity")
• I liked Armstrongs idea that Orthodoxy should come out of practice. There was much discusion about this. My observation is that for most churches the practice of compassion comes from doctrine first.
• The major religions all have an underlying theme of treating the poor/outcast etc as we would ourselves. Interestingly Armstrong mentioned that Confusious spoke about this 500 years pior the Christ.

It was good to morning. Solace is particularly good at giving voice to which most Churches would not. Pluralism was well respected this morning.

One of the thing that constantly stikes me as I have gone is the acknoweldgment of the aboriginals who were the traditional custodians of the land. Its the right thing for a Church to do...

 

Solace

One of this years resolutions for us is monthly heading to Melbourne to go to a Church called Solace. For a few reasons, the girls to know that there are other children who go to Church, for ourselves to continue to engage with Churches which are a bit out there. Also for all of us, a filling up Spiritually. (I like the Uniting Church, but we are definitely the youngest, and this in itself is problematic in many ways)

Yesterday there was a bit of a write up in The Age on Solace. It seemed a pretty reasonable article. I liked Olivia's comment that the Church is based on 'Jesus Centered Spirituality'; which can have a lot of meanings. I like the ambiguity. Not the typical 'We believe'.

The article did leave me with some questions, Why did they leave the Anglican Church. Or maybe they didn't leave...