at the heart of what we do

A note from Adam

When I talk about Mosaic to my grandma, she thinks I am a part of pottery class. As I try to talk to her about what MosaicPerth really is, she responds by saying, "How do you have the fine-motor skills to do pottery?" So I go on the internet to show her our blog, and unfortunately a pottery site came up. She once again looks baffled.

MosaicPerth is simply a community of followers of Jesus who attempt to live by faith, be known by love and be a voice of hope to those around them. We are a church, constantly changing what we do, based on who is in our community. If there are artists in our community we seek to connect with people through art, if there are kids in our community we seek to serve them.

We look for opportunities to connect and engage with people in the community and reveal God's kingdom (love, compassion, justice, mercy, kindness, truthfulness etc.) through our actions. We believe that no matter how dark a place may seem, there is always hope.

Practically we have people in our community being a voice of hope, in love, and with faith all across Perth. Some people go to university, others work with children, and others are self-employed. We believe God has called us to unleash those in our community to awaken humanity, so that people live their lives to the full, understanding that God's idea of what this world can be is so starkly different to what we hear on the news.

Since Mosaic is a community of people, how we engage the world around us changes as our community grows and brings new people. We believe that God wants to use all to change this world...

So in the upcoming weeks at Mosaic we are going to explore in more detail what are the core values of Mosaic, what is the type of clay that makes up our community (Dammit, I should get away from the pottery analogy, no wonder I confused my Grandma).

So please come along on Sunday as we continue to dream of what this world could be...

"Draconian" yeah that's a word for it

Next Sunday (June 20 - World Refugee Day) Refugee Rights Action Network (RRAN) with Amnesty International Australia are holding a rally in response to the government's new immigration policy, which "freezes" visa applications from people arriving from Sri Lanka and Afghanistan.

Check out this video below from GetUp:



The ARTillery crew will be down there, getting creative to raise awareness about the issues. They'll be providing all the rally-ers with shipping tags that are personalised to asylum seekers and say "I AM NOT ILLEGAL". If you're keen to help make the tags, then shoot an email to artillery@amnesty.com.au.

Or just come down to Wesley Church cnr of Hay St and William St at 1PM.



P.S. Check out the header link. It's an article from the west online about the reopening of Curtin Detention Centre.

Adam, Sean and Jeff's Indo adventures cont.

The illustrious Adam, Sean and Jeff spent some time with Paul Richardson, the man being interviewed in the video below. Pretty amazing guy, we could learn a lot from his faith.

The Peace of Wild Things

When despair for the world grows in me
and I wake in the night at the least sound
in fear of what my life and my children’s lives may be,
I go and lie down where the wood drake
rests in his beauty on the water, and the great heron feeds.
I come into the peace of wild things
who do not tax their lives with forethought
of grief. I come into the presence of still water.
And I feel above me the day-blind stars
waiting with their light. For a time
I rest in the grace of the world, and am free.
- Wendell Berry

How can we find the peace of wild things in our lives?

A thought for Easter

A post from Adam Martin.

I once met a man who was a hospital chaplain and he uttered these wise words: "God simply wants us to stay with people during their pain, the type of pain that only God can fix or heal." As I contemplate these words I cannot help but think about the pain that I have endured in my life thus far. But when this pain comes to mind I am strangely filled with hope, because of the loving actions of those around me.

For example one and half years ago my mother sadly passed away. However, what overwhelmed me was the response of the Mosaic community. Instead of trying comfort me with a catchy saying like, "It will pass" they took time off work to attend her funeral. Instead of simply saying, "Let me know if you need me, I am here for you" they stayed with me and grieved with me. In fact, my family were amazed that so many of my friends attended my mum's funeral.

Staying with people in their pain is awkward and hard because we cannot fix their pain, only God can. If he chooses to.

As Easter has just passed it reminds me of how God endured so much for us, how Jesus became a man, and stayed with humanity in its pain and brokenness. I hope that because of this we too as a community (of love, faith and hope) can stay when painful circumstances hit those around us. That we can be known for our love in a crisis, that we shower others in patience and grace when they hit rock bottom. That we do not expect those around us to finish grieving for lost ones in two weeks, and that we love people regardless of whether they change or not.

How can we simply stay with others in their pain this week?

Sojourners April Fool's

Recently in America, Glenn Beck, a Morman TV and radio host, has claimed that preaching social justice as a part of the gospel is a perversion. Rev. Jim Wallis, famous social justice advocate and Christian, has condemned the accusations, saying that social justice is at the heart of the gospel, and has invited Glenn Beck to discuss his views. Go here to check out a news article with some more background of the situation, and a video too. Very interesting!

Sojourners: faith, politics, culture is a great website/resource/community/all-round hub of awesomeness for learning and understanding the relationship between the gospel and justice. Below is a video they made on April Fool's Day to highlight the hilarity of the Jim Wallis v. Glenn Beck debate. FUN!



HAPPY WATCHING AND HAPPY EASTER!

Living Easter

The ethereal Sarah McLachlan took the Prayer of St Francis of Assisi and turned it into an amazing song of reflection and hope. This is the prayer:

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace:
where there is hatred, let me sow love
where there is injury, pardon
where there is doubt, faith
where there is despair, hope
where there is darkness, light
where there is sadness, joy

O divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console
to be understood, as to understand
to be loved, as to love.

For it is in giving that we receive
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life.

Amen

It is a prayer that I think is a fitting meditation for the time of Easter. The death, burial and ressurection of Jesus is the cornerstone of our faith and its reality in our lives has enormous repercussions. St Francis describes a life that reflects the image of Jesus we find in the Scriptures and is an encouragement to continue to follow Him as He asked us to do.

One practical thing you can do at Easter time to be an instrument of peace is to think about the chocolate you are buying for your friends and family. This may seem a little left of centre as Easter is often portrayed for Christians as a time to think of Jesus' sacrifice and it's importance in our lives. This is true but these reflections are almost useless if they aren't transformed into the outpouring of love and hope that Jesus showed in His resurrection.

A simple choice regarding what chocolate you buy really does have a massive impact. Watch the video below to hear about the benefits of fair trading in Ghana.



You can buy Fair Trade Certified Chocolate in most supermarkets now and Oxfam have a great selection of festive chocolate delights. Your decision has a person at the end of it, so it's kind of a big deal. Plus, fair trade chocolate tastes way better, with none of that nasty guilt!



ALSO!
A cool art video:

Indo trip with Adam, Sean & Jeff

Indonesian Adventures!
By Adam Martin

On January 8th 2010 Jeff, Sean and I left Perth to a school in East Java for a strange experience. When we arrived in Indonesia we were welcomed by the thick warm air, congested traffic, and people selling whatever they could. I thought that often Westerners are frustrated by how aggressively those from Bali sell, but if I was faced with poverty how aggressively would I sell?

After flying into Subaraya we were welcomed by true Indonesian hospitality by the Richardson's and Charis National Academy; its amazing how community and belonging feels the same where ever you are in the world. The following days included teaching students and simply learning about the culture and the area. The poverty in Indonesia was not as visible as we anticipated, but the teachers were only on $150 a month, which is what a WA teacher earns in half a day.



Charis National Academy provided a school for students in the area, but was also involved in training and equipping teachers across Indonesia. I think overall the most challenging part of the the trip for me was the way the people I met lived their lives. I will introduce of few of these heroes:

Paul and Faith After retiring in the US both Paul and Faith had this feeling that they could do more than sip tea in a condo all day. At 70 both of the took a risk and went to Indonesia to serve, and have been known to hoon around on motorbikes from time to time.

Samuel Is training to go and help start schools in the jungle; this is a very difficult and lonely task... I admire his courage in going.
Wenny. Even after discovering that she is dying Wenny continues to provide after-school care for at-risk kids.

I hope this blog gives you an overview of our experience; we look forward to going back and serving in the future.

Much love

Adam

Let's get together...

and feel alright.



Here's some words that pop up in this how-to guide on being a human:

PEACE. LOVE. DEVOTED. SAME MIND. ACCEPT. ADMONISH. WAIT. CARE. BEAR. FORBEAR. TRUTH. TENDER. FORGIVE. COMFORT. ENCOURAGE. SEEK. PRAY. CONFESS. HOSPITABLE. HUMBLE. FELLOWSHIP.

We share this planet with other humans. The only way to make it work is to be like Jesus, lay it all down.

Perth Fringe

ARTRAGE are wanting to start a Fringe Festival in Perth. Yes, please!

Go check out the website they've started to give feedback on the idea.

oakboundlane 2010

It is time again for the inaugural oakboundlane festival, Perth's most internationally acclaimed summer festival. Situated in the green pastures of Oakford, oakboundlane plays host to some of West Australia's, nay the world's, greatest talents.*

Imagine a night under the stars with world class performers, creative virtuosos, and prolific artists, set to entertain and enchant the whole night through. Followed by a hand picked feature film set to delight and surprise even the most hard to please film critics. And to conclude the evening, the festival goers wander back to their tents to sleep in the warm summer air and to awaken to a delicious cooked breakfast.**

This is an event not to pass by, oakboundlane is a life changing experince or nothing at all! Don't miss out, you will regret it.


* This can be neither confirmed nor denied.
** Warmth and delicious is not a guarantee.

2009, what a year to remember. Things happened, people did stuff and a bunch of events took place. I am sure we will all look back on this year together with much fondness. But we are in a new era: the past has passed and now only the future awaits us.

In this new era some things will be required of the new era inhabitants:
#1. When referring to the year, one must say TWENTY-ten, TWENTY-eleven, TWENTY-twelve, etc. The time of two-thousand-and-whatever is over.
#2. We are rapidly approaching October 26 2015, the date Marty McFly goes back to the future. It is imperative that we all work towards inventing the self-drying jacket.
#3. Because we’re living in a technologically insane age, check out this TED video to prepare yourself for the ART and TECHNOLOGY merger http://www.ted.com/talks/golan_levin_ted2009.html
#4. One and all must attend Jeff Smith’s acoustic gig at the Rubix Bar/Cafe on Sunday 7th Feb @ 2 – 4 PM
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/event.php?eid=444828080156
and bring friends too.

So these are just a few of the things one must do as a inhabitant of this futuristic age. Prepare your wit and your family for the onslaught of the hover board, robot slaves and an underwater world.


NB. This image was taken from a scientist's holiday trip to 2020. So if you haven't yet seen much of London, you better book a ticket today.*
*That is a flat out lie.


Disclaimer: www.mosaicperth.blogspot.com is the place to keep updated on all the super stuff that people at Mosaic Perth are up to (gigs, shows, interpretive dance performances [that is not a joke]), and also the place to get your fix on random interesting things. It’ll be updated weekly so don’t be a stranger (apologies for how lame that sounded).