Aboriginal Church Paintings, Reflecting on our Faith
Edited by Eugene Stockton with Terence O’Donnell
Blue Mountain Education and Research Trust, 2010
A Scriptural Way of the Cross
Terence O’Donnell and Eugene Stockton
Blue Mountain Education and Research Trust, 2010
Aboriginal Church Paintings, Reflecting on our Faith is a remarkable book that connects Christian faith with the Aboriginal tradition of the land. It is a journey through an Australian Aboriginal perspective on the Christian faith. It enables us to explore an overview of some of the best Aboriginal Christian art in the country from many remote areas as well as urban perspectives.
The full colour plates of the art are magnificent and the commentary offers not only Christian theological insights but deeper insights from the meanings and symbolisms of Aboriginal art which are explained well and succinctly. The art work is from Wadeye, Halls Creek, Kutjungka, Nauiyu, Ltyente Apurte, La Perouse and Moree and they are beautifully rendered in the book. There is a wealth of information on the artworks, but the painstaking inclusion of commentary from the artists themselves makes this book particularly interesting reading as a theological and art perspective.
A Scriptural Way of the Cross is a modest devotional book designed for private and group settings. Its strength is its scriptural references throughout and its full colour pictures of each station by Terence O’Donnell. The prayers are modern and based in a psychological spirituality emphasising the personal and the relational rather than the social justice approach.
It is pleasing to see attention paid to the gender language of the prayers which are inclusive, although the scriptural texts are directly from the Jerusalem Bible. A nice touch is that Jesus’ words are in red which is useful for reading the texts in parts when praying in a group.
The gem however in this book is toward the back written by Eugene Stockton, a priest of the Parramatta diocese and a scripture scholar. His translation and edited text of the Suffering Servant Song of Isaiah Chapters 42-53 is nothing short of inspirational. He also includes a short readable commentary reflecting his scriptural scholarship. It is a superb help for reflection for all Christians approaching the Easter period. It is insightful and while based in good scriptural scholarship, it is free of academic language.
Both books are available by writing to:
Blue Mountain Education and Research Trust,
254 Great Western Highway, Lawson 2783.
Aboriginal Church Paintings, Reflecting on our Faith is $20 per copy (incl postage and handling) and A Scriptural Way of the Cross is $12 per copy (incl postage and handling)
