a reality for him and his family. He travelled to remote places of Australia, ministering to his people, working to keep his family. He loved to write. He was a poet, and wrote beautifully about a faith that was tethered to his experience, his people and his land. He navigated his faith based on resilience. His son, my father, was called to bible college in his early years. Eventually allowed to leave the state of Queensland to enter into NSW, he had access to theological education, and the possibility to become a full-time minister. Under the safety of the Aboriginal Evangelical Fellowship, we moved to Western Australia to live on a small Baptist reserve called Marribank Family Centre, also known as Carrolup mission. Under the leadership of Uncle Ronnie Williams and other Noongar families he witnessed the ongoing atrocities of colonial invasion, ongoing segregation and racism. For Dad, faith was more than Sunday service attendance: it was to hear, see and feel liberation. To understand the full extent of God’s justice, he had to achieve higher education, so as to challenge the discourse and narrative of colonial Christianity. He continues to seek truth, in all its natural, spiritual, and physical forms, a truth that could set us free from the lies of colonial Christianity. My father navigates his faith through truth-telling. As for me, the journey of my ancestors ensures I can now follow the Jesus way with strength and courage. Because of them I understand survival. I know the importance of keeping your faith safe, how to be resilient in times of hardship and the courage it takes to pursue truth-telling and justice. This is my DNA - stories of God’s creation, my ancestors making room for God to move through them in the face of adversity and injustice. I am trans-denominational, not by choice, but by human design because of colonial Christianity. How do I keep my faith safe? I need to know if this church is safe for my mob. Are they in 25
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