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Two millennia ago Jesus began a movement which is about love, love of God and love of neighbour. This love is always profoundly personal, self-giving and centred on the care and well-being of others.

Peace on earth is more than the absence of conflict, peace is stability. Everyone wants stable employment, health, housing and. personal relationships. A stable political and economic environment is also desired.

“Christmas cannot be shut down by decree,” Bishop Philip Huggins said today, in response to various reports of schools, businesses and local authorities “trying to pretend Christmas is not about the Birth of Jesus.”

Christian group Australian Christian Voices (ACV) today rejected recent statements by conservative pressure group the Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) threatening an electoral “backlash” by Christians over the issue of marriage equality.

The Anglican Church acknowledges and continues to participate in community discussion about altering marriage laws to recognise same sex partnerships and...affirms its commitment to the present definition of marriage in the federal Marriage Act.

The Executive of the Victorian Council of Churches today expressed dismay at the one-sided view of Christianity portrayed in the Australian media.

A week has already passed in one of the world’s biggest talking-shops. Yet the United Nations climate negotiations in Durban have yet to reach decisions on key issues affecting millions of the world’s poorest people.

Bishop Stuart Robinson has announced two ground-breaking appointments as assistant bishops for the Diocese of Canberra and Goulburn.

The concept of a ‘conscience vote’ is affirmed in the Christian tradition. The voice of conscience should guide all our decisions.

Preventing catastrophic loss of life drives the commitment to eliminate nuclear weapons. Re-stating this commitment should be an outcome of the coming weekend’s ALP National Conference, said Bishop Philip Huggins today.

Human welfare needs to be balanced against the need to maintain rivers for future generations, according to the Chair of the Anglican Church’s Environmental Working Group in Australia.

I am surprised and sometimes bewildered at how different life seems in Solomon Islands – the children who have never seen a white person before crying because they think they’ve seen a ghost...

The Home Interaction Program for parents and youngsters (HIPPY) has proven to be an unprecedented success for Australian families, a key report released at Parliament House today found.

All Australians risked becoming socially isolated as they aged, regardless of their social, cultural or financial background, a national forum sponsored by an Anglican agency in Melbourne was warned recently.

Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne, Dr Philip Freier will ordain 20 men and women as Anglican priests at 11am on Saturday 26 November in St Paul’s Cathedral, Melbourne. The media are welcome to attend.

Australia’s only nuclear reactor and scientists on both sides of the continent are contributing to international research into an Anglican Bible in Perth that is more than 450 years old.

Church abuse is the chief obstacle to Australians believing in Christianity, according to a national online survey of more than 1000 people conducted by a Christian media group.

Archbishop Freier says “the mark of a great society is one where its most vulnerable members are properly cared for… It’s also time we recognised the innate value of all people, and that disability is part of the normal range of human life.”

Synod rejected a motion calling for a program of multi-faith, General Religious Education to be introduced in state schools as soon as possible.

Melbourne’s Anglican Synod has called on the Diocesan Council to review Anglican Media, publisher of TMA.

Primary school pupils were absorbing a “betting odds culture” from big screens at major sporting venues such as the MCG and promotions by sporting identities, Synod was told.

Bishop Philip Huggins has told the Melbourne Anglican Synod that the number of refugees, including asylum seekers, Australia was receiving was “eminently manageable”.

A website sponsored by a Melbourne Anglican agency and one of whose principals is a parishioner of St John’s Cranbourne has won a UN Peace Award

If the scientists are even partly right, “our children’s children will have to endure a harmful legacy,” Dr Philip Freier, Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne warned in his opening address to the 50th Synod.

20 Oct 2011 An Indian woman who transformed herself from a middle-class Hindu to a Christian disciple to the slums of Delhi marked a departure from the traditional opening of Melbourne's Anglican diocesan synod at St Paul's Cathedral on 19 October.

“The global debt crisis continues with the very real probability of a post Christmas downturn with another credit squeeze,” said Peter Kentley from Cre8.

The Australian Christian Lobby is calling for the Australian Government to make representations to the Iranian Government about a Christian Pastor who has been sentenced to death in Iran.

Melbourne’s Anglican Synod (parliament) is to consider a motion this week for an asylum seeker policy for Australia that is “consistent with our moral obligations and international commitments”.

The Rev Hon Fred Nile MLC and family, the Management Committee and the NSW State Council of the Christian Democratic Party are saddened to announce the death of the Hon Elaine Nile.

The Foreign Minister, Kevin Rudd recently announced that the Federal Government is going to match “dollar-for-dollar” any money raised for the ongoing crisis in East Africa, throughout the months of October and November 2011.

The Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, has met Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe in Harare, asked him to end attacks on Anglicans.

Melbourne’s Anglican Archbishop, Dr Philip Freier, today called for international efforts to assist Egypt’s transition to a stable democracy.

In an act of solidarity, people from some 40 religious communities across Australia, will leave their cars at home and cycle to their religious activities during Ride to Worship Week, from 7-13 October 2011.

Homelessness is often a cause of poor physical and mental health and substance abuse, rather than a consequence of them, an event co-sponsored by a Victorian Anglican agency was told on 6 October.

Hindu community representatives and organisers of a play about a Hindu deity, Ganesh, and Hitler have met after Hindus called for the play to be withdrawn from the Melbourne Festival.

Australian Anglicans are being invited to commemorate Defence Sunday on 6 November.

Melbourne-based Anglican relief and development agency Anglicord has launched a campaign to fight breast cancer among women in Gaza.

"The AFL should stay on the high moral ground and just enjoy the Grand Final", said Bishop Philip Huggins today.

The Uniting Church in Victoria and Tasmania has elected a new Moderator. Mr Dan Wootton will succeed the current Moderator, Ms Isabel Thomas Dobson, for three years from 2013.

The National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) and the National Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Ecumenical Commission (NATSIEC) have announced that Kerry Charlton is the new National Director NATSIEC.

The Brotherhood of St Laurence has welcomed the introduction of the household assistance package as part of the Clean Energy/carbon price legislation now before Parliament.

Bishop Philip Huggins, the convenor of the service, said: "Remembering is the opposite of dismembering. It helps us hold together. We remember together in order to renew our common human yearning for peace, pledging to be better peace-makers."

The alarming level of violence against women in the Pacific region is stalling the area’s development, the head of Anglican aid agency AngliCORD believes.

Aid and relief agency SIMaid has cautioned against compassion fatigue towards the African famine, warning in a recent press release that the situation continues to worsen.

There will be a special prayer service in remembrance of the tenth anniversary of 9/11 in 2001, on Sunday September 11 in St Paul’s Cathedral, Melbourne, beginning at 1pm.

Three Anglican dioceses covering most of NSW and the Australian Capital Territory are embarking on a partnership under which they will retain their independence but deepen cooperation.

Supporters of aid advocacy group Micah Challenge will queue for a giant toilet outside Parliament House in Canberra to raise awareness of poor sanitary conditions in the third world.

The St Vincent de Paul Society has welcomed the High Court of Australia’s decision that the Government’s Malaysia solution is illegal as a victory for human rights.

In a statement on the WCC’s website on 26 August, the organisation’s General Secretary, Dr Olav Fykse Tveit said: “It is absolutely unacceptable that the Fiji authorities intervene in internal church decisions and affairs.”

The St Vincent de Paul Society called on the Federal Government to scrap its Malaysia Solution and resume processing asylum seekers on Australian soil.

The Bishop of Oxford has voiced his concern over the decreasing levels of religious education being offered in the UK, saying that it provides much needed teaching on values and responsibility.

The leadership of the Anglican Church has paid tribute to Sir Paul Reeves, former Primate of New Zealand, who died on 14 August.

The Victorian Government’s proposal that juveniles aged 16-17 be given minimum two-year jail sentences, is designed on flawed premises, Archbishop Philip Freier said today.

The Bishop of Southwark has called on those rioting in England to halt their destructive behaviour.

Anglican social welfare organisation Anglicare has voiced its support for the findings of the Productivity Commission’s public inquiry into the state of aged care in Australia.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has called for the UK Government to make building its ‘Big Society’ a major priority in the wake of the English riots.

Church agencies Anglicare Victoria and the Brotherhood of St Laurence continue to stand ready to assist with caring for asylum seeker children and unaccompanied minors in community settings

The Church of England’s two highest-ranking clerics have called for action to combat the famine currently jeopardising the lives of millions in the Horn of Africa.

St Paul’s Cathedral in Melbourne will hold a Thanksgiving Service for the life and ministry of English evangelical leader John Stott.

Asylum seekers should be detained no longer than a month and only on Australian soil, the Archbishop of Adelaide said in a recent media release.

The St Vincent De Paul Society has criticised the Federal Government’s Malaysia solution, saying it promotes a misleading characterisation of asylum seekers.

The Archbishop of Canterbury has sent a message of support to the people of Norway after 22 July’s horrific massacre.

The poor are the chief victims of poor customer service from telecommunications companies, the Brotherhood of St Laurence said in its response to a draft public inquiry report from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

The Episcopal Parish of Trinity Wall Street in New York is set to hold a ‘Remember to Love’ week to mark the tenth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The Bishop of Grafton has called on the Israeli government to reissue the Bishop of Jerusalem’s residency visa after it was revoked earlier this year.

Christians in the Holy Land are in danger of becoming extinct unless action is taken to ensure their survival, a conference at Lambeth Castle has heard.

The Micah Challenge has initiated a letter writing campaign in an attempt to make the Federal Government pay more attention to meeting the Millennium Development Goals.

A response to yesterday’s horrific bombings in Mumbai from Bishop Philip Huggins

The Archbishop of Canterbury has launched an appeal to help the dwindling population of Christians in the Holy Land.

Anglican welfare agencies have welcomed tax and welfare measures packaged with the new carbon tax, which ensure that disadvantaged Australian families do not bear the brunt of increased energy prices.

Long serving Anglican Bishop, The Right Reverend David Hubert Warner Shand has passed away after a long period of illness.

The Australian Churches Gambling Taskforce has voiced its support for the Federal Government’s proposed pre-commitment laws on poker machines.

Act for Peace is calling on the international community to support South Sudan as its border territories continue to be wracked by violence.

Dr Philip Freier, the Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne, has today welcomed the decision by the Hon. Jenny Macklin, Minister for Indigenous Affairs, to include interpreters in the Northern Territory consultations.

The Federal Government is in danger of adding to the hurt and grief of Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory caused by the Intervention, Archbishop Philip Freier warned today.

Church leaders have voiced concern over the escalating violence in Sudan’s South Kordofan State, and called for an end to the conflict between the Sudanese government and rebel forces.

The Brotherhood of St Lawrence has called for the insurance industry to be reformed so that insurance policies are more appropriate and affordable for low-income Australians.

The Right Revd Garry Weatherill has been appointed the 10th Anglican Bishop of Ballarat

Anglican aid agency Anglicord has urged the government to support a financial transactions tax initiative at the G20 meeting later this year.

The Anglican Alliance is calling for increased advocacy against food poverty ahead of two key international events taking place.

The St Vincent De Paul Society has called on the Federal Government to stop punishing asylum seekers.

An Anglican Bishop has called for an amnesty on sending children in detention centres off-shore.

Micah Challenge has launched a new advocacy campaign encouraging Christians to ‘Share the Earth’ and live in a sustainable way.

“Violence against women remains a significant social issue with a huge personal and social cost,” Bishop Philip Huggins, Chair of the Melbourne Anglican Social Responsibilities said today.

The Bush Church Aid Society has announced Dr Mark Short as its new National Director.

The New South Wales Council of Churches has hit out at big business and state governments for not doing enough to promote gambling reform, despite commending the Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Select Council on Gambling Reform for its progress.

Dr. Rowan Williams, Archbishop of Canterbury, has awarded the 2011 Michael Ramsey Prize to David Bentley Hart for his book Atheist Delusions.

Twenty-eight religious leaders will converge on Canberra on 2 June to pressure the federal government to act on climate change.

The International Ecumenical Peace Convocation has called for war to be outlawed in its final message from Jamaica this week.

Peter Murphy, CEO of Christian Super, has encouraged Christians to take advantage of the government co-contribution superannuation scheme as a means to help fund ministry opportunities in retirement.

The World Council of Churches is currently holding an International Ecumenical Peace Convocation to mark the end of its Decade To Overcome Violence.

“Good CEO’s are those who see community engagement as a vital part of their work and vision for the company, and not as something that can be delegated to a relatively junior Corporate Social Responsibility manager,”

Anglican Archbishop of Melbourne, Dr Philip Freier, said today he was sorry to learn of the Victorian State Government’s decision to cease the mandatory ‘Acknowledgement of Country’ in official events.

Sudan’s Council of Churches is calling for peace and unity ahead of the upcoming partition of their nation in July.

The ABC has launched a site to commemorate the 400th Anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible.

The Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) is calling on the Federal Government to pressure Egypt

Hallan Whittle, roofer, has received a ‘Specialist Heritage Trade Skills’ award from the Mornington Peninsula Shire for his restoration work on the roof of St John’s in Sorrento.

Christian aid and development organisations have welcomed the federal government’s decision to increase foreign aid in the new budget

The federal government has announced it will increase foreign aid in the new budget, despite other cuts.

Despite the crimes against humanity committed by Osama Bin Laden, we should not rejoice in his death, Bishop Phillips Huggins said on 4 May.

Articles and reports in the media which suggest that the Anglican Church is calling for an end to the Baby Bonus scheme are misleading.

Holy Week is a good time to reflect on the contribution that volunteers make to the wellbeing of our community, including those who volunteer to teach CRE in state schools.

“As much as we sometimes find relationships with each other demanding or stretched to their breaking point, the best way back is through attending to our relationship with God and making an honest inventory of how we stand before God."

Archbishop Philip Freier has offered an Easter message of hope to those who are feeling traumatised by the recent series of natural disasters.

A snapshot of rental properties advertised over the weekend shows only 42 properties out of a total of 14,211 across greater Melbourne were affordable for low income singles and families.

Is this the world's fist single piece, solar powered, low cost, solid state talking Bible?

Ken Morgan has been encouraged by the positive response of parishes and clergy to his new role helping implement Archbishop Freier’s vision and strategic directions for the Diocese 2011-2013.

Want to see a church where traditional liturgical furnishings have been given an exciting contemporary expression in the finest materials by world class artists?

St John’s Toorak has had a camera installed which enables the filming and recording of Sunday services, weddings, baptisms and funerals and also the on-line broadcasting of services in real time.

A group of Indigenous elders will present their case against the intervention in the NT, when UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay visits Australia in May.

A scheme allowing gamblers to set a limit might help problem gamblers like Brendan Fevola, according to the Australian Church's Gambling Taskforce.

The World Council of Churches (WCC) hasissued a strong statement condemning many aspects of the Australian federal government’s “Intervention” into indigenous communities in the Northern Territory.

A dinner for 50 held at St George's Malvern last month raised $2000 for The River Nile Learning Centre. The RNLC assists women from Southern Sudan re-engage with education.

Since St George’s Anglican Church, Red Hill, became a parish in its own right, the congregation has more than doubled, and vestry member Elizabeth Albiston says it has an air of “excitement and fresh vigour”.

Rosaleen Rudd had little prospect of becoming an Anglican, a nurse or a chaplain. But her openness to God’s call has led her to become all three.

St Mark’s East Brighton – which was built in 1850 and is believed to be the oldest church building south of the Yarra – was officially re-opened as a place of worship and outreach last month.

Bishop Paul White inducted three new chaplains to Beaconhills College on January 25.

At the request of the local progress association, Holy Trinity Hampton Park ran the family games at the Hampton Park Australia Day celebrations.

Many Melbourne Anglicans are planning to abstain from alcohol for Lent, Christians’ traditional pre-Easter 40 days of prayer and fasting, which begins tomorrow, Ash Wednesday (9th March).

A new report launched by Anglicare Victoria shows less than one in five foster children live with all of their brothers and sisters in the same home.

The findings of a survey of Australians’ racial attitudes are a cause of grave concern, according to Bishop Philip Huggins, Chair of the Melbourne Anglican Social Responsibilities Committee.

A special Service of Prayer and Holy Communion will be held at St Paul’s Cathedral, Melbourne on Thursday 24 February at 12.15, for the people of Christchurch.

The death of Fr. Ted Robins on 3 February, brought Perry Hall students memories of an outstanding priest who played a vital part in shaping their lives as ordination candidates, during his time as Warden.

Come and see Jesus through fresh eyes - this is the invitation of the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne, via Lent studies published this week for the season of Lent 2011.

A series of study guides on euthanasia will encourage Melbourne Anglicans to delve into a Biblical perspective on the perennially challenging issue.

Christians have been called on by a prominent anti-poverty advocacy body to hold the Federal Opposition to account for its proposed deferral of $448 of foreign aid to Indonesia.

The Victorian State Government’s reported proposed move to lift the ban on Easter Sunday trading lacks both imagination for civilised living and sacred awareness, Bishop Philip Huggins said today.

Archbishop Freier has appointed Mr Ken Morgan to the position of Co-ordinator of the implementation of the Diocesan Vision and Strategic Directions 2011-2013.

This missionary reminds us that God gives one of three answers – "Yes", "No" and "You have got to be kidding".

The Karen refugee community resident at Werribee and Hopper’s Crossing, many of whom are Anglican, know about having to flee from the danger and ravages of fire.

Retired bishop and former Dean of St Paul’s Cathedral, James Grant, AM, celebrated 40 years as a bishop at a Eucharist in St Paul’s Cathedral on 21 December.

Several Victorian Anglicans (or people associated in some way with the Anglican church) have been named in this years Australia Day Honours List, including former treasurer Peter Costello and the Bishop of Wangaratta John Parkes.

The Anglican Diocese of Melbourne is mourning the passing of one of its longest serving bishops, after the death of the Right Reverend Dr John Warwick Wilson on Saturday.

Melbourne clergy and students may find it harder to browse and purchase theological textbooks and other academic theological publications, with the closure of Ridley Bookshop in February.

Truckloads of donations for families affected by floods have been received by St Alban's Anglican Church, Gratton. Clothing, toys, food, toiletries, whitegoods and furniture have filled the church hall to overflowing.

A new online resource from the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne offers answers to difficult questions as the Church seeks to engage directly with the rising “New Atheism” phenomenon.

Brisbane Archbishop Phillip Aspinall said the church was ready to help and teams are now in place working with Brisbane’s Lord Mayor’s Office and Red Cross.

At this time while parts of our nation face fire and other parts face unprecedented floods we pray for protection, comfort, and a spirit to work together. These prayers are offered for use by congregations, groups or individuals.

"We remember clearly the outpouring of compassion we received from around the nation when Victoria was reeling from the 2009 bushfires. We offer that back to the utmost extent."

The Indonesian Congregation Camberwell (ICC) Christmas service was attended by Abp Freier at St John’s Camberwell. This service was held on Sunday 28 November 2010, in order that the ICC members could travel back to Indonesia for christmas.