Rev. Carmel Sheraton Elected President of NSW Ecumenical Council, Calls for Renewed Commitment to Unity

Rev. Carmel Sheraton has been elected President of the NSW Ecumenical Council at its recent Annual General Meeting. Members expressed gratitude for the leadership and perspective she brings to the role.

In her closing address at the meeting on Saturday, 18 October, Rev Sheraton affirmed the continuing importance of unity and shared witness across Christian traditions. “Unity still matters; hope still matters; the gospel still calls us to stand together,” she said. “The Spirit is still at work, weaving threads of grace and peace through our diversity, mending the torn places of our world, and calling us to be signs of God’s reconciling love. And when the work feels slow, as it sometimes does, may we remember that seeds of unity often grow in hidden soil. That every conversation held in love, every act of compassion across denominations, every shared meal, every quiet ‘yes’ to collaboration, is already a small resurrection.”

The Council also acknowledged the ongoing work of Rev Dr Rod Benson, General Secretary, whose leadership continues to support collaboration across churches in New South Wales. The newly commissioned Executive Committee includes Joyce Tangi and Rev Dr Helen Richmond, both appointed by the Synod. Rev Dr Manas Ghosh was recognised for his role as Chair of the Council’s Interfaith Commission, along with Uniting Church members serving on the Peace and Justice Commission and the Theological Reflection Commission. Among current projects, Rev Dr Clive Pearson is completing the final draft of “Belonging”, a book on baptism in the contemporary world, which is expected to serve as a valuable resource for congregations.

Reflecting on the Council’s shared mission, Rev Sheraton said, “The Holy Spirit continues to whisper that our shared story is not finished and ecumenism isn’t a project to manage but a way of living; a pilgrimage of love, truth, and courage. That’s our calling: to keep turning up, keep praying with our hands and hearts, and be a community that listens and sees in our differences not barriers but gifts, that bear witness to Christ’s prayer, ‘that they may all be one… so that the world may believe.’”