Logo explanation
The cross is central and prominent. Lutheran teaching always points to and revolves Jesus. Our teaching is interpreted by his cross. It’s the lens through which we view the world. The cross shapes our relationships with God and with others.
The circle represents a how all creation finds its centre and its purpose in Jesus.
The background landscape mosaic places the cross in the context of the world in which we live, and our place and purpose in it.
The text (come, listen, live) is embedded around the cross, circling it in a continuous, never-ending movement. The invitation of God to come, listen and live at the foot of the cross is a lifetime calling.
COME – come to Jesus and there you will see how much God loves you and how much he paid to redeem you. His cross is your beginning and your end. Everything in your life and death is anchored and finds its meaning there. Here is where you come to be reborn – to repent, to lay down your burdens. Here you receive new life – forgiveness, renewal and refreshment.
LISTEN – pause at the cross, be still, hear the timeless God speak to you from the cross. Hear his voice in the crosses of your own life and in the life of the church. Lay aside the load you carry, all the voices demanding your attention, even those of your own making. Here at the cross, listen to God and you will receive everything you need …
… that you may LIVE. Life truly comes when we live through the cross of Christ, in the power of his death, resurrection and ascension. Jesus is where God meets us on earth, and we know abundant life in him, life marked by the fruits of the Spirit and life eternal with him forever.
Theme
The Convention of General Synod theme is based on Isaiah 55:3:
… come to me, listen, that you may live.
Explanation of worship animation and visual elements
Come, all you who are thirsty,
come to the waters;
and you who have no money,
come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk
without money and without cost
Isaiah 55:1
As the animation begins, three copper bowls rest on the cross, one in the centre above the cross bar, tilted to suggest Jesus’ crown of thorns, and one on each end of the cross bar, angled to resemble Christ’s outstretched arms.
Water pours from the left-hand bowl. The water brings life to the earth and all its people, meeting our most fundamental needs and bringing hope and life. In the chapel, the waters flow from the font, reminding us of the sacrament of baptism. New life is already springing up from the desert place as God brings hope and salvation to his people.
The right-hand bowl pours out milk, representing the abundant blessings of our loving God. The white continues over the lectern, where the word is read and proclaimed. As we grow in our knowledge of the Lord, God’s word feeds us and grows our faith. The gold of wheat and bread remind us of the Bread of Life and the harvest of righteousness he brings in our lives.
Rich burgundy pours from the central bowl, symbolising both wine and the blood of Christ, poured out for us for the forgiveness of sins. The wine-red flows over the altar, where we remember Jesus dying for us as a final atoning sacrifice. God comes to us here in the sacrament of Holy Communion.
At the foot of the altar, there is a circle of stones and the bare branches of a small tree, dry and dusty. We are in the desert place, thirsty for all God has for us. The colours of the desert continue up the sides of the altar cloth, in an Aboriginal print bearing the symbols for meeting and talking together, as we do at Synod. The pattern reminds us of the faith of our Aboriginal brothers and sisters in Christ who we especially welcome into communion this synod. As we notice that these vibrant, flame-like colours meet the tips of the branches, we are reminded of the burning bush in the desert, when God said to Moses, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy ground.”
Come. Listen. Live.
