This exercise formed part of a Justice Hack we facilitated on behalf of Micah Australia.

Tim Costello outlined his perceptions of the current context. He sees the world retribalsing and turning inwards. There is a widespread backlash to globalisation. Narratives that promote a fear of the ‘other’ are gaining traction. The local challenges that Micah is facing such as the reduction of aid, fearful and negative attitudes towards refugees etc. are connected to this shifting narrative.

We believe this presents us with an opportunity, because we believe that the Christian story has the resources to reshape the major narratives at play in our world, to be in greater alignment with the creator’s intention.

This news story exercise is a taster of the process we went through with participants at the Conference. It is designed to help you ‘see’ how the church could be more effectively engaged in shaping our communities.

Instructions:

Imagine a moment 5 years from now

Your local paper has called you because they want to run a story about something the church has done that has affected significant change in their community and/or beyond. What do you imagine the story could be?

On a piece of paper, list the following headings and then fill in your response below:

• Headline
• Image
• 3 key points
• 3 quotes the journalist has sourced and who they are from – think about people both within the church and beyond

Now reflect:

What is the issue you chose to focus on and why?

What action has the church taken, and what would need to be the next steps the church needs to take right now to set it on the path to making this fictitious story a reality?

If you have reflections on these last couple of questions, we’d love to hear them.