By Clare BruceThursday 26 Oct 2017Social JusticeReading Time: 2 minutes
Above: Q Commons speakers for 2017 include (L-R) Aminata Conteh-Biger, David Brooks, Propaganda and Kara Powell.
As political debates rage, dividing families, friends and communities, it’s fair to say our nation needs some healing.
‘Healing our Divided Nation’ is the theme of this year’s Q Commons event, being held at Parliament House in Sydney on Thursday, November 2. It will include a mixture of international talks on screen from speakers in America, as well as live talks by local leaders.
International speakers will include Q founder Gabe Lyons, cultural commentatorof the New York Times, speaking on ‘Cultivating Virtue’, and hip hop artist Propaganda (Jason Petty) who will share a message on social justice.
Kara Powell of the Fuller Youth institute, a writer on parenting in a digital world, will speak on technology addiction—and whether our all-absorbing mobile devices are making us numb towards each other, and God.
Local speakers include former child captive Aminata Conteh-Biger, whose story of being kidnapped as a child in Sierra Leone to be used as a sex slave and human shield, will have you in tears. She will talk about the power of forgiveness.
Michael Kellahan of Freedom for Faith will speak about religious freedom, while Senator Lucy Gichuhi will talk about ‘The Lost Art of Disagreeing Well’.
Q talks are held in cities around the world, much like a faith-based version of TED-Talks. It’s an event for not only leaders, thinkers and innovators, but anyone passionate about influencing their community and their world for good.
Australians will meet for Q gatherings throughout November in Sydney, the Gold Coast, Melbourne, Brisbane and Perth, and there will be similar gatherings being held in the same week across the USA, UK and Europe.
The Q movement was founded by writer Gabe Lyons, who wanted to see Christian leaders “recover a vision…to renew and restore cultures”. It aims to help believers focus on both personal faith and cultural change, not just one or the other.
The Sydney Q Commons event is at Parliament House in Sydney on Thursday, November 2, 2017, from 7pm to 9:30pm. Tickets are available from the Q Commons website with special student, couples and group tickets available.