Is the Creation Story from the Bible relevant to my life? New Church teachings are based on the Bible and its deeper meaning. Through this understanding, many of life's questions are answered. Rt. Rev. Tom Kline explores the days of creation (Genesis 1:1-31), showing how each day represents a step on our spiritual path.

"In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void, and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters."
We all begin our spiritual life in void and darkness. No matter how successful we are in the things of the world, without the Lord we are nothing. Yet the Lord is "hovering" over our life. He is there, anticipating great opportunities and possibilities in our lives. He is waiting for us to invite Him into our lives and begin the process of spiritual creation.

Take the time to pay attention to the Lord's presence in your life.

Day 1 "God said, 'Let there be light.'"
Our spiritual life begins when we truly see the light, that is, when we acknowledge something higher than ourselves; we acknowledge the Lord Jesus Christ as our saviour and redeemer. This first day of creation can be a gradual realization of the Lord's presence or a specific time when our lives are transformed. There is a world of difference between the void and darkness and the first day of creation - the difference between night and day.

Make time to read the Lord's Word.

Day 2 "And God said, 'Let there be a firmament (expanse between the clouds and the seas) in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.'"
Our acknowledgement of the Lord begins to transform our faith, the "waters" of truth that we hold in our mind. We come to see that there are "higher waters" truths that are Divine, holy and sacred - and "lower waters", truths that are of a human origin. We begin to set spiritual priorities in our lives, putting the things of God at the top.

Make a list of truths you wish to be led by.

Day 3 "And God said, 'Let the earth bring forth grass, the herb, and the fruit tree...'."
On the third day our actions and deeds are transformed. We no longer just think, but we do. When our faith leads to actions of loving kindness, this is the substantial new "ground" of our spiritual life, a foundation for the living actions of service and ministry pictured by the herbs, plants and fruit bearing trees.

Serve someone in your life.

Day 4 "God made two great lights: the greater light to rule the day...."
The sun appears on the fourth day; we are no longer ruled by truth, but the warmth of love. Love becomes the very centre of our lives. This is an important step in the spiritual growth of our minds: love now takes the first place and truth comes into the second place.

With love, do something special for someone.

Day 5 "Then God said 'Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly...'."
Because of the warmth of the sun, the waters of the second day now bring forth life: fish below and birds above. This day is characterized by truth that comes from feeling the Lord's love deep within us. It is truth that doesn't have to be reasoned or learned. It is spontaneously known to be true simply because of love. Our faith is seen through what the Writings for the New Church call the "self evidencing reason of love."

Make prayer a regular priority.

Day 6 "Then God said, 'Let us make man in Our image...'."
The ground created on the third day brings forth living creatures, in the image of God. Because of the power of love, Divine love, the Lord begins to form us in His image. We become "human" in the image of the Divine Human. We serve with actions and deeds that flow from the truly human qualities of kindness, humility, and a laying down of our lives.

Take the time to appreciate the beauty of people around you.

Day 7 "...And God rested...."
The seventh day is a day of peace. It is a peace that is beyond all description, a peace that becomes the very core of our being. As you do the work of spiritual growth, peace flows in. Jesus said, "Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you" (John 14:27).

Take the time to slow down, to be with the Lord in the quiet and peace of His creation.

Reprinted from New Church Connection Issue 3 2006

True love is love to the Lord, true life is the life inherent in love from Him, and true joy is the joy of that life. Arcana Coelestia 33.

His [God's] face shone like the sun, and His clothes became white as the light. Matthew 17:2

"Everyone is capable of knowing very well that no life is possible without love of some kind, nor any type of joy whatsoever except the joy that flows out from the love.

Furthermore the nature of the love determines the nature of the life and of the joy. If you took away your loves, and what amounts to the same, your desires (since these stem from love), thought would instantly perish and you would be as one dead.

This I have been shown convincingly. Self-love and the love of the world present a semblance of life and of joy, but because they are absolutely contrary to true love, which is loving the Lord above all things and the neighbour as oneself, it is clear that neither of them is love but hatred. For the more anyone loves himself and the world, the more the person hates his neighbour and so the Lord.

Consequently true love is love to the Lord, true life is the life inherent in love from Him, and true joy is the joy of that life. The existence of more than one true love is not possible. Nor consequently is the existence of more than one true life possible which is the source of all true joy and happiness, such as angels in the heavens enjoy". Arcana Coelestia 33.

The Lord teaches us that there are two great loves: the love of the Lord and the love of our neighbour. It is said that we are to love Him above all things and the neighbour as oneself. All joy and happiness come from love. Our loves determine our happiness.

So how does that play out in our daily lives? We can know it is important to be loving, but what about the rude person on the bus? Or what about a colleague that gossips? It isn't difficult to be loving towards those people who are kind towards us. But the Lord asks us to be loving towards all people, not just those who are nice to us.

When we ask the Lord for a loving and forgiving heart, He begins to instil in us tolerance and acceptance of even those people who are less than kind. The more we strive towards service and love in our lives, the more courteous and forgiving we can be of others' shortcomings.

A loving heart is grounded in a loving relationship with the Lord. We must also work hard at loving and forgiving ourselves. The Lord asks that we love our neighbour as ourselves, not more than ourselves. A healthy self-esteem, and a strong sense that the Lord truly loves us as much as anyone else, allows us to unselfishly love those around us.

Instil a loving heart in me, dear Lord. Help me to know that truly You love me and all those around me, equally. Help me to unconditionally love others, even if that means I need to be courteous and non-judgemental of those people who hurt me.

You alone are the source of all love and kindness. When I am truly loving You and those around me, I feel profound happiness as I reach out in service to the world.

Thank you for teaching me and leading me and loving me. Thank you for the opportunity to serve You and those around me.

Help me to think of You often today.

Bill Hall lives in Central Queensland in Rockhampton.

The following is an email sent to the Hurstville New Church from Shada Sullivan and may be of interest to readers.

I apologize for emailing you out of the blue like this. Some of you may remember me from various New Church gatherings in Australia (I used to be Shada Rabone). I now live in Bryn Athyn and I am writing to you about Loving Arms Mission, an organization with which I have recently become involved. Loving Arms Mission was started by people who wanted to put the Lord's instructions to "love one another" as He loved us into action by sharing His blessings with some of the most helpless and needy of his people.

Loving Arms Mission provides a loving home for 20 abandoned, orphaned and runaway children in Kathmandu, Nepal. Nepal is one of the poorest countries in the world, with a large number of homeless children, caused by social problems such as rampant alcoholism, corruption, political strife, a caste system, and poor healthcare. The 20 children live in two adjacent houses, cared for by a full time "mom and dad" who are absolutely committed to them. Each house has both a US and a Nepalese parent, all baptised in the New Church. The children now attend school, eat healthy and nutritious meals and have warm beds to sleep in. Most importantly, they are part of a real family, and the flow of love and interconnected responsibilities that are part of family. They receive religious instruction and have been baptised into the New church. A new church minister (John Jin) visits periodically.

Some of you may already receive the Loving Arms Mission newsletter, but if you do not, I am wondering if you might like to be put on the mailing list. In addition, there is also a PowerPoint presentation about LAM available should you or someone else like to educate your congregations about what LAM is doing. If you are interested, please don't hesitate to let me know.

Thanks for your time

Shada Sullivan
shada.sullivan@usa.net

I am delighted to announce that the Board of Trustees has unanimously elected the Rev. Eric H. Carswell as the new President of the Academy. He will begin to serve on July 1 of this year.

I had nominated Eric for this position following careful counsel from a committee of Board/Corporation/Faculty appointed by me. The committee was enthusiastic and unanimous in supporting the nomination, as are the Heads of Schools.

Eric is Dean of the Academy Theological School and has served in key leadership positions in the Church over the past 10 years. He also has a long and impressive history with New Church education at all levels - elementary, secondary schools, Bryn Athyn College and the Theological School.

His career includes:

• Pastor of the Pittsburgh New Church and Principal of its New Church School
• Pastor of the Glenview New Church, including leadership roles in the Immanuel Church School and President of the Midwestern Academy
• Regional Pastor for the Northeastern United States
• Member of the Bishop's Advisory Council and numerous committees
• Dean of the Theological School (he has been a change agent for its curriculum)

Eric graduated from the Academy Boys School in 1971, received an AA from Bryn Athyn College in 1973, and a BA in Psychology from The Pennsylvania State University in 1975. In 1979 he received his Masters in Divinity from the Academy Theological School and a Masters in Education for School Administration from Lehigh University.

Eric not only has broad experience in - and understanding of - New Church education but an inspiring vision for what it should stand for throughout the Academy Schools. He believes in working closely with the teachers in all four schools to cast a renewed vision for New Church education. He also wants to be a visible, supportive presence in the schools. His skill sets are well-suited to the new structure in the Academy, with the President serving as a true spiritual leader.

When Eric assumes the Presidency that will leave a vacancy in the Theological School and we will move to fill that as quickly as possible.

The Rt. Rev. Brian Keith will return to his full-time duties as Assistant Bishop of the General Church July 1. The Academy is most grateful for his wise and sensitive leadership as Interim President during this transition period.

Rt. Rev. Thomas L. Kline
Chancellor of the Academy

The next summer camp will actually begin on the last day of December (Monday 31st) and run till Sunday 6th January. Promotional posters and leaflets will be available soon but we can tell you that it will be at Mangrove Mountain Retreat, 2180 Wiseman's Ferry Rd, Mangrove Mountain. The following words are from the website for the camp location.

Mangrove Mountain Retreat is situated in a beautiful 45ha bushland setting adjoining the 1000 ha McPherson State Forest, 80 minutes from Sydney and an easy 25 minute drive from Gosford train station. Set amongst native eucalypt and banksia, Mangrove Mountain Retreat has an enviable reputation for hospitality and service. We have accommodation for 100 in our comfortable lodges and 60 in our Morgan Centre self-contained cottages.

http://www.wesleymission.org.au/centres/mangrove/home.asp

 Nearby are a wildlife sanctuary, horse riding, river cruises, Forest of Tranquillity, Koolang Observatory and the Australian Reptile Park. Beaches are about 20 minutes away by car.

Several items of interest from the Society meeting are as follows:

New Church Day Celebrations. It was decided that with some members of the Society away the most appropriate way to celebrate New Church Day would be a luncheon after church on 24th June (Rev George and Lois McCurdy arrive the previous Monday) at which we would invite Rev McCurdy to speak about insights from his years working for the church in a similar manner to Rev Frank Rose last year.

Bryn Athyn College Internships: Margaret Heldon reported that there is serious interest from up to four young people about coming to spend time serving the Hurstville Society on the intern's plan. The meeting was able to confirm that they would be happy to support them including offering accommodation in member's homes where necessary. It is likely that the interns would come in our Spring/Summer timeframe.

Communicating the church: In addition to the evangelisation brainstorming ideas documented in the March Newsletter Owen Heldon drew the meeting's attention to the initiative of Rev Brian O'Neill in setting up "Google Groups" to "provide the opportunity for the people involved to send and receive emails, discuss ideas, put up articles, make announcements, provide photos etc". Some of you may have already been signed up but if not further information is available from:

Brian O'Neill on boneill@uow.edu.au or

Rev Julian Duckworth on jcduckworth@optushome.com.au.

Also brought to the attention of the meeting was a proposal under consideration in Canberra for a redesign of the New Church in Australia website to make it more interactive, providing a "virtual church" to help "overcome geographical problems faced by a small organization in a huge country and different stylistic preferences and demands in worship". It must be stressed this is only in the early planning stage but anyone wanting further information or wanting to offer help can contact Rev David Moffat on d_a_moffat@yahoo.com.au

We are pleased to announce that the New Church minister in France Rev Alain Nicolier and his wife Jeanne will be arriving on Friday 11th May and staying until Wednesday 23rd May.

 Alain has served the church in various capacities on a contract basis. He has offered to tell us about his work in the Ivory Coast in West Africa and about couples' workshops that he has conducted in various places. This visit is an assessment to see if they might return again perhaps next year for a longer time. We hope as many people as possible will be able to meet Alain and Jeanne and bid them welcome.

While they are here Alain will give services on Sundays 13th and 20th and we will have a dinner and class on Friday 18th. On Sunday after church on the 20th there will be a Pot Luck 'Farewell' Luncheon. Please bring a savoury and sweet to share. Drinks will be provided. At this time there may also be a further opportunity to hear more from Alain.

Last month we were able to announce the visit of Rev George McCurdy and his wife Lois from late June to the end of August. Their arrival is now confirmed for Monday 18th June. The following Sunday 24th June will be a New Church Day service with a luncheon and talk afterwards. Further details will be available in the June newsletter.

Last month's newsletter contained details of the proposed visit by Bishop Kline. Unfortunately he had to change his plans. Accordingly you would have received notification by separate mailing about this. No information is available at this stage of any rescheduled date.

The Hurstville Society received an enquiry from the Royal Australian Historical Society as to whether there was a written history of our church and if so could they have a copy. As we did not have any spare copies we are grateful for the assistance of Rev Chris Skinner and the Melbourne Society for providing a copy of Ivan Robinson's "A History of the New Church in Australia 1832 - 1980" on our behalf.

Darren & Kate Macfarlane have a new baby daughter, Sarah, born on the 21st March and is a sister for Gabrielle.

Lina Heldon's mother Gittan Fornander passed into the spiritual world suddenly in Sweden recently not long after returning home from a six month's visit with Lina & Shane on the Gold Coast.

It was a pleasure to see Grace King from Bryn Athyn and her friend Kristen at church before Easter. They are studying at the University of Wollongong.

Happy Birthday: Brandon Hinds (10th), John Sandow (18th), Naomi Heldon (20th), Daniel Walsh (27th), Brian Walsh (31st)

Note: All events are located at the church at 22 Dudley St, Penshurst 2222 (off Hillcrest Ave) unless otherwise stated. Contact the Hurstville New Church on (02) 9580 1589 for more information or email us at newchurch@optusnet.com.au All are welcome and refreshments are served after church each Sunday.
Sunday	May 6th	10 00 a.m. Worship ("Cheerfulness and Laughter") - Lay Service
Sunday	May 13th	10 00 a.m. Worship ("The Affirmative Principle") - Rev Alain Nicolier
Friday	May 18th	7 00 p.m. Dinner followed by Class - Rev Alain Nicolier
Sunday	May 20th	10 00 a.m. Worship ("The Widow, Elijah and the Pot of Oil") - Rev Alain Nicolier followed by Pot Luck Lunch
Sunday	May 27th	10 00 a.m. Worship ("Anxiety for the Future") followed by Theta Alpha Guild Meeting