Congregations are invited to hold a Day of Mourning worship service. For agencies of the UCA it might be marked on a day in the week before. We encourage Uniting Church schools to incorporate it into a service or liturgy at an appropriate time in the school year.

The Assembly Resourcing Unit (ARU) in conjunction with Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress (UAICC) will release a Day of Mourning worship resource early in December 2019.

Feedback from many parts of the UCA on last year’s resource was that local connections with UAICC and other First Nation Peoples made the worship so much more meaningful.

We encourage you to begin thinking about how you might plan for A Day of Mourning, and importantly, to do the work now to make local connections with the First Peoples in your region.

If you’re a UAICC congregation, how can this day be most meaningful for you?

If you are an agency or school who are the Indigenous staff members or students who can plan this time with you? Do you have an Indigenous Elder as part of your team?

The Uniting Church in endorsing the Statement from the Heart, believes the Day of Mourning is an important way we engage in ‘truth telling’.

We seek to be a community of love and hope, founded in Christ’s reconciliation and renewal of the whole creation.

If the National Covenanting Consultant, Stuart McMillan can support you in preparing for the Day of Mourning, please contact Stuart on email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..