A rich human tapestry serving God

Trevor Cairney

James and Sarah Piggott

James is in second year at Moore College. He grew up in a Christian home on the North Coast of NSW in Laurieton, a town of 2500 people near Port Macquarie. James attended Camden Haven High School before completing a Bachelor of Arts (Government and International Relations) at the University of Sydney. He lived with other Christian students at St. Barnabas’ Terraces, where he met Sarah.

While James grew up in a Christian home, he recalls a ‘big gear shift’ when he moved to Sydney to study and live at Barneys. He recalls that he “was really struck by the witness of fellow students. They actually seemed happy about being Christian; not just having faith as an insurance policy to get into heaven in case they died young. God was important to them, and He became important to me!”

James and Sarah became even more involved at St Barnabas’ Broadway, and in the activities of the Evangelical Union, before completing their degrees. James then served as an MTS worker on campus in 2011-12. In parallel he commenced as a political adviser for a NSW politician in the Upper House. James and Sarah moved out of St Barnabas’ Terraces in 2010 after 5 years—3 as students and 2 years on staff. After marrying in 2012, they then moved to Flo Harris Lodge, an accommodation hostel for 50 young people at Petersham Baptist Church. James and Sarah served there as chaplains from 2013-17.

Daughter Betty was born in January, and the family are now at All Saints’ Anglican, Oatley West. James and Sarah are involved in a French-speaking Hospital Chaplaincy programme to New Caledonians who have been transported to Australia. They spend time at the hospital where they read the Bible and pray with the patients. They aren’t sure where they will serve God, but would be interested in parish work somewhere outside of metropolitan Sydney. They are also interested in French-speaking Theological Education, and are trying to follow up some opportunities to teach the Moore College PTC course in New Caledonia during College break.

Peter and Val Oram

Peter and Val Oram both grew up in Abbotsford. Peter was from a non-Christian home, but Val had a Christian upbringing. Peter was 15 when he left school to be employed in Waterloo as a Lithographic artist and printer. At night, he enrolled in an Intermediate Certificate at Leichhardt Technical College in Lithographic Printing. He didn’t meet Val until he was 20. After a courtship of several years they were married.

In 1959, just 3 months before their marriage, some of Val’s friend asked them to go to the Billy Graham Crusade. In Peter’s words, he “thought Billy Graham was a bit of an imposter”, but he went anyway. He was to go three times! Each night he ended up closer to the front. On the 3rd night, he was on the grass near the stage. In his words, “Billy Graham seemed to know me, I couldn’t understand how he had been reading my mail”! When Billy Graham issued the altar call, Peter said he “shot straight up and went forward”.

Three months later he married Val, who was by then a teacher. They spent several years in the Glebe area while Peter worked in the printing industry. They eventually moved to a new house at Elanora Heights. However, his boss observed him and suggested he consider full-time ministry. He didn’t have a strong sense of call, so this was a time of struggle and indecision. Their second child was on the way, but people kept urging him to go. Eventually they sold the house to pay the fees, and headed for Moore.

In first year, he took part in a mission to Walgett and prepared artwork for the Parable of the Sower in cartoon form. After the mission, he was introduced to David Long who worked with Clifford Warne, who in turn, introduced him to Clifford. He asked if he had ever done drawings of African animals. He said no, but agreed to draw cartoon images of African animals for a series of short Christian film strips, the text of which Paul White was to write for the Jungle Books. The filmstrip version was wound through a projector and accompanied by audio tapes. While he had no idea who Paul White was, nor had he drawn African animals before, he accepted the task. Eventually the first four films were turned into four books. He was to illustrate the complete series of eight Jungle Doctor books that were translated into 27 languages.

After two years at College the then Principal Dr Broughton Knox suggested to Peter that perhaps he wasn’t suited for church ministry. This was a confusing time for him and Val. They continued to live in the College till the end of their third year and then they left. Peter was to move into a lifelong career using his art professionally and for gospel work.

Peter and Val had three children, and stayed in the area of Glebe for five years, before settling in Camden on the fringe of Sydney. As well as raising her children in those early years, Val involved herself in parish life and continued to do casual teaching. Peter was to use his artistic, graphic design and printing skills for over 40 years, including more work for Paul White and Clifford Warne, the Bible Society, Anglican Diocese of Sydney, Gospel Recordings, and Bush Church Aid. The latter included radio work on 2CH once a week for almost five years.

Of the many projects he worked on, perhaps his most memorable assignment was to draw Christian artwork for the miracles of Jesus. These were printed on linen because paper broke down so quickly in tropical climates. These linen tracts eventually found their way into many communist prisons to be used as table cloths! One piece of artwork for a gospel tract on the death and resurrection of Jesus was also used widely in gospel work to indigenous people around the world. Some six years after he completed the work, the Director of Gospel Recordings called him one day and said, “did we ever tell you that the commissioned work you did was used to lead over 20,000 people to make commitments to Christ?”

Peter and Val’s story is an example of how at times it’s impossible to see God’s purpose in the events, twists and turns of our lives, until many years down the track.

Ed and Jocelyn Loane

Ed grew up in Wollongong and met his wife Jocelyn while at university, marrying soon after leaving. They have five children and a puppy dog. He is on the faculty of Moore College and has now lived in Newtown more than any other place. He has a passion for church history and theology and a commitment to evangelical pastoral ministry like others in the family before him.

This is his third Moore College experience. He was a boarder living in ‘Chappo’ House in the late 90s. Prior to that he had been at boarding school. Because his parents lived outside Sydney, Moore served as a great home for him while doing his Science degree (Mathematics and Physics) at Sydney University. He then worked for several years for a multinational pharmaceutical company and spent time in Cambodia before coming back to Moore about 10 years ago to train for ministry. This was followed by parish ministry in south-west Sydney, before completing his PhD at the University of Cambridge, on the doctrine of the church in the writing of William Temple, a twentieth century Archbishop of Canterbury.

Ed was blessed to grow up in a Christian family, but remembers clearly making a personal commitment to follow Christ when he was on a youth group camp in year 7. He recalls several other significant moments for him in his Christian life, including the decision to train for full time ministry.

He has had ministry experience either as a student minister or ordained minister at Naremburn, Moorebank/Hammondville, Little Shelford (Cambridgeshire) and St Peters. He has had the opportunity to visit different churches around Sydney to preach or speak at varied events, which he sees as a great privilege.

Some of the marks of Ed’s time at Moore have been his commitment to the pastoral work of the College as well as deep personal faith, a love of God, and a passion for teaching.

Please support Moore College to support Student Scholarships

I share the above stories to give you a sense of the varied backgrounds of our students, and the varied ways they end up serving our God. At a time when it is harder than ever to find the funds to attend Moore College, we need your help. On the back page of this edition I share some news about the challenges that our students are having finding the funds to attend the College. Please read it and consider how you might support future students.