The Australian Capital Territory Dialogue was formed in 1984 and has links to the Australian Council of Christians and Jews. Its committee includes a Uniting Church member, a Catholic, two Anglicans and two Jews. Over the last 14 years, the group has traversed a broad panoply of subjects of interest to Christians and Jews. It meets six times a year, and alternates between Jewish and Christian speakers or small group facilitators.

The seed that led to the ACT Dialogue was an article written by Ray Brown, one of the founders in the Canberra Times. It concerned the revolutionary turnaround in the attitudes and teachings of the Catholic Church regarding Jews, which began with Vatican II and further steps. A member of the Jewish community in Canberra, George Stern, a co-founder, was very interested to read this and was particularly struck by the fact that the Catholic Church had accepted Judaism in its own right as a valid relationship between humans and G-d without conversion to Christianity. George Stern contacted Ray Brown and their meeting became the genesis of the ACT Christian-Jewish Dialogue.

It exists to promote a greater understanding of each other?s points of view between Christians and Jews. Out of that understanding should hopefully arise a greater feeling of relatedness on both sides.

Recently a Council of Christians and Jews has been formed.

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