Holding an Aboriginal Sunday Service in Your Church or Faith Community on January 25

Journey alongside Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples by holding an Aboriginal Sunday service in your church or faith community this Sunday, January 25.

Key points:

Annually, Aboriginal Sunday is celebrated the Sunday before January 26, as an opportunity for church congregations and faith communities to reclaim William Cooper’s Aboriginal Sunday, a call to the Australian Church to stand in solidarity and pray for justice and the flourishing of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.

Aboriginal Sunday is an important opportunity for your church community to go deeper in listening, learning, and being led by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Christian Leaders. 

In 2026, Common Grace will again be providing Aboriginal Sunday Church Resources developed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Christian Leaders, with a focus on the theme of “Be Strong and Courageous”.

Aboriginal Sunday 2026 theme 

Be strong and courageous: This was God’s word to Joshua as he stepped into unknown territory (Joshua 1:9), and it is God’s word to us today. The journey of justice and healing for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in these lands is not easy. We continue to see and bear the pain of ongoing injustices – children still being taken from families, young ones imprisoned, truth and treaty still denied, lives cut short in custody. These realities can feel overwhelming.

Yet we are not alone: we are surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1) – faithful Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Christian Elders who have gone before us, like William Cooper and Pastor Sir Doug Nicholls, and those who continue to lead and inspire us today, like Aunty Dr Jean Phillips and Uncle Pastor Dr Ray Minniecon. Their lives of courageous faith call the Australian church to stand up, speak out, and walk boldly in the way of justice. Their witness reminds us that courage is possible because Christ goes before us and God’s Spirit strengthens us.

On Aboriginal Sunday 2026, we honour the legacy of those who have gone before and give thanks for the living witness of those still guiding us today. We listen to their voices and hear again the biblical call to “learn to do right; seek justice. Defend the oppressed” (Isaiah 1:17). We take heart, knowing God is with us wherever we go. As we walk together in courage and faith, we bear witness to the God who is bringing healing, justice, and reconciliation to these lands.

2026 church resources available

Sign up to receive your 2026 Aboriginal Sunday Church Resources developed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Christian Leaders. 

Once signed up, the Aboriginal Sunday Church Resource Toolkit will be emailed to you. These resources will include Bible readings, prayers, benediction and sermon materials from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Christian leaders, as well as a bush food communion guide, creative activity and advocacy resources to help your congregation engage their faith through the lens of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander justice.

Your Aboriginal Sunday service will inspire and equip your congregation to learn, engage, pray, and take action as a community together. 

Aboriginal Sunday is your church’s next step in walking in solidarity with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander brothers and sisters to pursue God’s justice and love for the flourishing of First Nations peoples. 

If you are not a church leader but would like to approach your minister or church leadership to encourage them to engage with Aboriginal Sunday 2026, we have developed this template letter to equip you in inviting them to host an Aboriginal Sunday service. 

What is Aboriginal Sunday?

On January 26, 1938, Aboriginal leaders including William Cooper, met for a Day of Mourning, seeking equality and full citizenship (though it would take another 30 years).

The Australian Churches were then asked to set aside the Sunday before January 26 as Aboriginal Sunday (previously called Aborigines’ Day), a day for Christians to act in solidarity with Aboriginal peoples and the injustices being experienced.

The first Aboriginal Sunday is thought to have occurred in 1941, although it was referenced in a letter from William Cooper to John McEwen, Minister for the Interior written on 19 January 1938 and also referenced in the Herald (Melbourne) newspaper on 18 January 1939.

Today, the Common Grace movement encourages individual congregations to reclaim William Cooper’s Aboriginal Sunday and each year provides free Church Resources developed by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Christian Leaders to equip churches and faith communities to act in solidarity with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples on the Sunday directly before January 26.

About our 2026 Aboriginal Sunday graphic

Our Aboriginal Sunday graphic for 2026 features Safina Stewart’s artwork of the outline of Australia, depicting songlines across these lands. Songlines are remarkable connections and cultural routes that have lasted for thousands of years, between Aboriginal communities across the vast and diverse continent of Australia. They are ancient pathways following the tracks of the ancestors, sung and danced in language to help custodians follow lore, and strengthen relationship between country, culture and cosmology. Many songlines and cultural practices have since been disrupted through acts of genocide. Safina’s artwork reflects the reclaiming of pride, song and culture, celebrating the hopeful pathways and connections between communities. The heart and songlines represent a way that is opening up to finding home and hope for healing, flourishing connections as we journey together.

This article has been supplied with thanks to Common Grace.

Feature image: Common Grace