Naidoc Week
We Gather
Acknowledgement of Country
The love of God flows through the land on which we gather today, let us pause in silence and acknowledge the traditional owners who have cared for this land for generations. Let us honour those elders past, present and emerging whose sacred connection with this country is a gift to us all.
Opening Prayer
Leader: Let us pray for our Aboriginal brothers and sisters, asking God to bless
our Indigenous races with new hope ...
All: Father of all, You gave our Aboriginal People the Dreaming
You have spoken to them through their beliefs,
You then made your love clear to them in the person of Jesus.
We thank you for your care of these people.
You own them. You are their hope.
Make them strong as they face the problems of change
We ask you to help us, the people of Australia,
To listen to them and respect their culture.
Make the knowledge of you grow strong in all people
So that you can be at home in all of us,
And so that we can make a home for everyone in our land.
Amen.
(Adapted from the Prayer prepared by the Aboriginal People for Pope John Paul II's visit to Alice Springs 1986 http://www.natsicc.org.au/assets/resource_booklet_a4_v7_web.pdf)
We Listen
A reading from the Prophet Isaiah (Is 62: 4)
Reader:
No more will you be known as ‘Forsaken’ or your country be known as ‘Desolation’;
instead, you will be called ‘My Delight in Her’
and your country ‘The Wedded’;
for Yahweh will take delight in you
and your country will have its wedding.
Reader: The Word of the Lord
All: Thanks be to God
We Respond
Leader: Let us pray a special Prayer for Reconciliation
Left Side:
Holy Father, God of Love,
You are the creator of this land and of all good things.
We acknowledge the pain and shame of our history
and the suffering of our peoples – especially the grief of those who were taken
as children from their homes and families,
taken from all they knew and loved.
We ask your forgiveness.
Right Side:
We thank you for the survival of Indigenous cultures.
Our hope is in you because you gave your son Jesus to reconcile the world to you.
We pray for your strength and grace to forgive, accept and love one another
as you love, forgive and accept us.
Give us the courage to acknowledge the realities of our history
so that we may build a better future for our nation.
Left Side: Teach us to respect all cultures.
Teach us to care for our land and waters.
Help us to share justly the resources of this land.
Help us to bring about spiritual and social change
to improve the quality of life for all groups in our communities,
especially the disadvantaged.
Right Side: Help young people to find true dignity and
self-esteem in the ways of your Spirit.
May your power and love be the foundations on
which we build our families,
our communities and our nation.
Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Adapted from a Prayer prepared by Wontulp Bi-Buya Indigenous Theology Working Group 13th March, 1997, Brisbane QLD
We Go
Blessing
Leader: May the God of the Dreaming bless all Australians in the name of the Father,
+ and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
All: Amen
Leader: Go, with deeper wisdom and renewed understanding,
to build a community where equality and respect will flourish among all races.
All: Thanks be to God
Context/Background
On Australia Day, 1938, protestors marched through the streets of Sydney, followed by a congress attended by over a thousand people.
One of the first major civil rights gatherings in the world, it was known as the Day of Mourning.
After the Day of Mourning, there was a growing feeling that it should be a regular event.
In 1939 William Cooper wrote to the National Missionary Council of Australia to seek their assistance in supporting and promoting an annual event.
1940 – 1955 Day of mourning was held annually on the Sunday before Australia Day
1955 this was shifted to the first Sunday in July and it was decided the day should be not just a day of protest but also one of celebration
1956 – 1990 Formation of National Aborigines Day Observance Committee (NADOC). Second Sunday in July became a day of remembrance for Aboriginal people and their heritage
1991 – Present NADOC was expanded to recognise Torres Strait Islander people and their culture. The committee became known as National Aborigines and Islanders Day Observance Committee (NAIDOC). This new name has become the title for the whole week, not just the day.
Each year, a theme is chosen to reflect the important issues and events for NAIDOC Week.
Indigenous Oral Culture
- 250 distinct language groups in Australia at first European contact (18th) Century
- Most languages also had dialects so the variety of languages would have been several hundred.
- Currently there are approximately 120 languages still spoken but many are at risk of being lost
- Rivers, creeks, mountains, hills etc were natural borders of different family groups and therefore different languages
- There are discrepancies in recording/spelling/language groups areas as this was an oral history