Reflecting on Reconciliation

By Darcy Vaughan

What does reconciliation really look like? And what steps could our diocese take to turn the vision of reconciliation into a reality? These are some of the questions being asked by the Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) Working Group with the goal of developing a RAP for our diocese. The group’s creation was inspired by last year’s Provincial Walkabout and the call from first nation elders for the diocese to have the courage and confidence to take further steps toward reconciliation.
The development of a RAP was given wholehearted support by Bishop Matt Brain and Indigenous Ministry Officer Rev’d Canon Shannon Smith. After some initial conversations the group, consisting of Rev’d Hannah Gregory, Rev’d Lauren Lockwood-Porter, Rev’d Darcy Vaughan and Archdeacon Tracey Wolsley, decided that it was important for this journey to begin on the country that first nations people have inhabited for so many millennia and continue to care for today. And so, a ‘visioning session’ for the RAP Working Group was arranged at the Community Gathering Space at Larni Yirrip Campground, Big Hill.

Larni Yirrip, which means ‘home of the Ironbarks’, is a beautiful cultural space which has been designed around traditional Dja Dja Wurrung values, with cultural landscaping and stories, and large gathering shelters. The Working Group invited some of the senior leaders of the diocese to join them at Larni Yirrip. All in attendance were asked to bring with them two items; one that represented where they’ve come from, and another that represented their hopes for the RAP process.

The time began with lighting the campfire and preparing tea and damper, with an acknowledgment of the Dja Dja Wurrung and with prayer. Shannon prayed that; as they gathered around the campfire inspired by the Christian faith which had been passed down through so many generations, they would have on their hearts the first nations peoples whose culture and stories have been shared around the fire for so long.

Those present displayed the items they had brought along and reflected on all they brought to the process. Some shared how their family stories began somewhere else. Others acknowledged the great privilege they had been afforded. Others spoke from firsthand experience of the exclusion and judgment of Aboriginal people within Anglican churches. Each person then shared the hopes they brought to this process of developing a vision for our Diocesan RAP. Acknowledgment was also made of the steps towards reconciliation already taken by the diocese in the past.

More structured discussion was held regarding the theological underpinnings of the diocese’s commitment to reconciliation and the biblical imperative for this to lead to action. And some early attempts were made to articulate what exactly a vision statement could be for a diocesan RAP.

The process of developing a RAP is facilitated by Reconciliation Australia, an independent not-for profit organisation established in 2001. Reconciliation Australia is the lead body for reconciliation in the nation. The Working Group has registered the diocese to develop a ‘Reflect RAP’, the first of four types. A Reflect RAP helps to prepare an organisation to engage in reconciliation meaningfully, nurturing understanding and relationships which will form the basis for further developments. This Reflect RAP process is expected to take twelve to eighteen months. The RAP Working Group looks forward to inviting the diocese into this journey at this years Synod. Time will be set aside for further exploration of what a RAP means for our diocese and to commit this process to God in prayer.

The time at Larni Yirrip concluded around the campfire. All stood in silence, feeling the warmth of the fire, hearing in the silence the distant buzz of traffic, and nearer by, the calls of Magpies and Cockatoos and the leaves in the Ironbark trees. A final question was posed: what could it mean for the church to gather around the campfire, called by Jesus and reconciled with first nations people? The visioning session concluded in prayer, asking for God’s blessing and guidance as the diocese seeks to walk with Jesus in justice, truth and grace towards reconciliation.