Yandoit Sacred

Yandoit church’s particular spirit of place has its own essential agency. Like indigenous cosmology, where Country is an active participant in the ritual process, the building and the land it stands on holds an energy that permeates the gatherings held there. While acknowledging that ‘everywhere is Country,’ I do feel Yandoit church is what the Celts referred to as a ‘thin place,’ where we feel the presence of spirit in a special way. Which is all to say, the place itself ministers to me.

Yandoit Sacred is a community and a place where I can touch into the sacred and the mystery, where my spirit and heart can be nourished, and where the qualities of faith, hope and love, so needed in these times, are nurtured.

A place of empathy and altruism, where communal resources of heart and mind can be applied to the common good.This is what we have been yearning for, for years.

Brought up in Protestant circles, I spent a year with the Wesleyan Church in Tonga before becoming absorbed by a teaching career and motherhood. Emerging into A Course in Miracles and other activities of a New Age nature, I remained disconnected from the church for a decade. Then music, specifically hymns and Taize chants, enticed me back. Although very much part of Castlemaine UC Parish, I am still searching, and Yandoit is my greatest hope.

We are troubled humanity in troubled times on a troubled planet. Transformation is essential now. In an emergency we need places where we can ‘emerge’ and ‘see’. Through Dadirri, deep listening, we are listening to what’s emerging in us in this group and we are framing questions. What we are doing is the healing- creating stories of healing for the healing of stories. We are co-creating a space to share our stories and our experiences.

It’s exciting to consider what an expanded faith community might look like for the Uniting Church and the community- breaking new ground that is enriching for all involved. These times make it so much more crucial to explore.