By Andrew Humphries
As today marks the 30th anniversary of the Covenant between the UCA and Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian congress, a recent gathering in Tasmania provided an opportunity to reflect on the occasion.
The signing of the Covenant in 1994 marked a new chapter in the relationship between First and Second Peoples within the Uniting Church.
Another significant event occurred in 2009, with the adoption of the revised Preamble to the Constitution, which affirmed that First Peoples had encountered the Creator God in these lands prior to the arrival of the colonisers.
As the Covenant anniversary approached recently, Moderator Rev David Fotheringham and UAICC members were part of a Walking Together in Covenant committee gathering in Tasmania hosted by UAICC Tasmania Leprena.
David said the gathering offered a wonderful opportunity to reflect on what the Covenant means in the life of the Church.
While in Tasmania, the committee took the opportunity to visit indigenous elder Fanny Cochrane Smith’s church in Nicholls Rivulet and learn more about her remarkable story of faith and resilience.
“It was a fantastic time of deep sharing and conversation,” David said.
“We acknowledged and sensed the presence of the elders, as we talked through significant personal stories around Leprena, and stories of Fanny Cochrane Smith, her faith and her strength in proclaiming and maintaining cultural identity.
“Being called into a Covenant with the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress has led the Uniting Church to recognise its history with First Peoples, setting us on a journey of recognition and work towards reconciliation and justice.
“That journey has included a revision of the Preamble to the Constitution which profoundly recognises God’s work in this place, the complicity of the Church in colonisation, and the Church’s failure to recognise the wisdom and spiritual gifts of First Peoples.
“I urge anyone who has not encountered the Covenanting Statement, or the Preamble to the Constitution, to look them up and consider what it means for us as an Australian church proclaiming the gospel in these lands.”
UAICC National Chairperson Rev Mark Kickett said today’s anniversary offers Uniting Church members an opportunity to reflect on their relationship with First Peoples.
“It’s a significant milestone, and the UAICC does acknowledge that,” he said.
“It brings a sense of joy around the theme of the whole Church standing together in unison and that the UAICC is not a blight or a curse on the landscape of the Uniting Church.
“But the UAICC must be the gem that sits in the centre of the Uniting Church’s crown, and we have to find ways and means to ensure that happens.
“We need that continual groundswell of support that rallies people together to say that for us to be the Church that we want to be, let’s celebrate the First Nations People who are a part of it and take us into a new relationship journey.”
When UAICC Tasmania Leprena manager Alison Overeem reflects on the Covenant, a number of hard questions spring to mind.
“Are the fires of the Covenant still burning?” asks Alison.
“Why, 30 years after it came into being, is the Covenant not our Church’s compass across all areas?
“As we mark the 30th anniversary, what is our call to others?”
Alison hopes today’s anniversary reaffirms the importance of the Covenant in the life of the Uniting Church.
“The Covenant is, and should be, about people, place and community,” she said.
“It should be about cultural safety in abundance across the life of the Church.
“It’s not an option, it’s a call.
“It’s not (just) a good idea, it’s central to who we are as a Church.
“It’s not an extra, it’s a connector, and it’s not a part of the Church, it’s the heart of it.”
UAICC Victoria’s Rev Will Pickett said the Covenant continued to represent an opportunity for First and Second Peoples within the Uniting Church to come together.
“Since its inception, Covenanting between First and Second Peoples within the life of the Uniting Church nationally and within each Synod throughout Australia has been so important,” he said.
“As we prepare to acknowledge the anniversary, it’s important that all people continue this great concept.
“Covenanting is also about deepening the relationship with God, and his people in the Uniting Church and beyond.
“Equally important is that we First and Second Peoples also embark on a relational journey as we seek to do God’s will here on earth.
“Jesus said, ‘we are to love as he did’, and when we express this love in a Covenanting relationship that is not tokenistic, but respectful, transparent and genuinely real in every way possible we will see God move in a dynamic way, causing a greater transformation not only in our Church, but even in wider communities throughout Australia.
“So let us all together endeavour to strengthen our relationships through Covenanting.”
A short video, featuring Alison Overeem, marking the Covenant can be found here
Fanny Cochrane Smith’s life and church history can be found here
A resource document prepared by UAICC Tasmania following the Walking Together in Covenant committee gathering can be found here
A reflection on the recent Tasmanian gathering from Social Justice Officer at equipping Leadership for Mission, Tim Molineux, can be read here
The National Assembly’s Covenant page can be found here
A Crosslight magazine feature on the Covenant’s 30th anniversary can be found here