Southern Cross MAY 2021

SouthernCross

THE NEWS MAGAZINE FOR SYDNEY ANGLICANS MAY 2021

Prepared to serve

CHOICES SUPPLEMENT - ANGLICAN EDUCATION INTO THE 20’S

Farewell, Glenn • Beware, cults about Passing on the faith • The Bishop and Baklava

Thanking God for Glenn and Di

“It’s been a joy to serve as Archbishop and, as I lay up my pastoral staff, it comes to an end of a particular season for me –but one which it has been a great joy for me to exercise and one which I trust in God’s goodness has brought blessing to others.”

Archbishop Glenn Davies and Mrs Di Davies sat in the centre of St Andrew’s Cathedral before a COVID -capped audience, which included former Prime Minister John Howard, the Lord Mayor Clover Moore and representatives of Federal and State governments, as they were given a diocesan send off to remember.

It was fitting that the Cathedral was given an exemption to allow singing, as Dr Davies’ term had been extended due to COVID and he had campaigned for churches to be allowed to serve their communities as much and as safely as possible.

Tributes came from all corners of the Diocese on behalf of the laity, organisations, bishops and clergy. More than two dozen bishops were present, including the Primate, Archbishop Geoff Smith, bishops from other parts of the country and from the province of NSW. Former Archbishops Harry Goodhew and Peter Jensen also attended.

A joy to serve: Glenn and Di Davies share the light-hearted moments during the farewell speeches.

The rector of Hurstville Grove, the Rev Mat Yeo, spoke for clergy when he said, “There are so many things that your clergy are thankful for – your confidence in leading Synod, in dealing with difficult issues in the public sphere, your preaching and your pastoring of the clergy, and particularly in the last 12 months. We as clergy knew that there was a competent hand at the tiller of the boat.”

Mr Yeo spoke of Dr Davies’ time as a lecturer at Moore College and the qualities he brought to the office of Archbishop in 2013.

“There was a humble dependence on God’s mercy to sinners and a joy and a thankfulness in life in response to that mercy,” he said. “Glenn taught that, and I think Glenn epitomises that – humble

dependence and joy in living for Jesus.”

He also referred to Dr Davies’ final Archbishop Writes column in Southern Cross, in which he said he had begun and ended with prayer.

Speaker after speaker referred to the range of issues with which the Diocese has had to grapple in the past eight years and Dr Davies’ personal influence in a variety of situations, including the response to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Abuse.

Barrister Michelle England spoke on behalf of the laity of the Diocese, describing Dr Davies as “an Archbishop who is led by conviction, who is passionate about the truth of the gospel, who looks to Christ for all that he trusts in, whose foundations

are bedded so very deep and who has prodigious skill to wield his convictions into confident assured leadership in following Christ”.

After he had preached his final sermon as Archbishop, Archdeacon Kara Hartley and the Administrator of the Diocese, Bishop Peter Hayward, unveiled a portrait of Dr Davies by artist Andrew Sullivan.

In final comments, the Archbishop paid tribute to his wife Di, who had earlier been thanked for her extensive work with ministry wives.

“God’s been good to me,” he said. “It’s more blessed to give than to receive but tonight I feel very blessed in receiving your gifts, your love, your affirmation and I bring it all to the glory of God.” SC

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Archbishop Davies farewelled, COVID-style.

Youth initiative aims to prevent domestic violence

KYCKing off: Volunteers at Katoomba hand out information on the Before It Starts program.

A new youth program aiming to prevent domestic violence and sexual abuse launched at the first

night session of Katoomba Youth Convention (KYCK) on Friday April 9. Over one thousand teens

and youth leaders attending the Convention youth camp heard about the initiative that

- Graeme

Tara Sing

aims to educate young people from the Bible about respectful relationships.

The four week program, which includes survivor’s stories, Bible studies, games and leaders notes, aims to facilitate conversations within youth groups. The primary focus is on prevention and covers topics including identity, love, power, romance and friendship.

Domestic violence has always been a serious issue, with one in four women and one in 13 men experiencing abuse by an intimate partner. Anglicare’s Community Service team and Anglicare’s youth initiative, Take Love, partnered with Youthworks to create “Before It Starts”, hoping to positively shape the next generation.

ABUSE COMES IN ALL FORMS

Controlling and abusive behaviours are displayed in many different ways. For Harry*, the violent outbursts he experienced growing up meant that the best part of his day was when his Dad wasn’t home.

“When [Dad] was angry,” Harry explained, “he would hit Mum,

PROTECTION AND CARE FOR EVERYONE

We are committed to strengthening

our culture of

‘safe ministry’ through education and professional development of our clergy and lay people, as we seek to maintain the standards of Christian ministry which are grounded in the teaching of the Bible.

The Professional Standards Unit receives and deals with complaints of child abuse or sexual misconduct by members of the clergy and church workers.

A Pastoral Care and Assistance Scheme is available to provide counselling and other support to victims of misconduct or abuse.

The Safe Ministry Board formulates and monitors policy and practice and advises on child protection and safe ministry for the Anglican Church Diocese of Sydney.

Before It Starts teaches biblical truths about healthy and respectful relationships.

push her into the cabinets, tell her that she was a worthless mother and that we were the proof.” The family only went out together once a week to go to church.

For Rani*, her boyfriend initially seemed sociable and extroverted. It didn’t take long for his anger to show, and he used coercive and spiritually controlling behaviour to exert power over her. This escalated until she found herself fearfully huddling with her aunt one night while he waited outside, refusing to leave and kicking the fence, until her uncle phoned the police.

LONG TERM CHANGE IS NEEDED

“We know to make long term change in the incidence of domestic abuse we need to also address underlying beliefs and attitudes that allow it to flourish,” says Lynda Dunstan, Anglicare’s Family and Domestic Violence Advisor.

“One area to specifically start to do that is conversations with young people about what a

respectful, healthy relationship looks like, and what some of the red flags of unsafe, abusive relationships are.”

The program comes at a time of national reckoning in Australia. Questions of sexual assault and domestic violence are being discussed across the country as well as discussions concerned with the sexual assult expereinced by young women.

Rev Mike Dicker, Dean of Students at Youthworks College, longs for teenagers to understand God’s design for relationships and reject the evils of abuse. “We really hope this program will shape the hearts and behaviours of our young people to follow the gracious and loving behaviour of the Lord Jesus.

“Wherever the gospel is proclaimed, we long to see it lived out in safe and equal relationships that shine as a light in the darkness and injustice of our world.” SC

* These survivor’s stories are included in the Before it Starts program. Survivor’s names have been changed.

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How youth ministry has changed,

yet stayed the same, in 30 years

Tara Sing dance on Tik Tok (a video social media platform) and aren’t sure what a cassette tape does. Trends come and go, but there are unchanging principles that act as the foundation for a faithful youth ministry. The Rev Cameron Hyslop would know – he has served as the Youth Minister at Jannali for three decades. He shares five ways youth ministry has changed yet remained the same.

1 THE BIBLE IS A TIMELESS ESSENTIAL

The early nineties couldn’t seem more different to our current age. It was a time when Terminator 2 was in cinemas, Mario and Luigi were all the rage and “The Horses’’ by Daryl Braithwaite was topping ARIA charts. Three decades later, teens

Any youth ministry worth doing must have the essentials, including using the Bible and praying continually. These have been the foundation for many faithful youth groups for years, including the ones at Jannali.

“This doesn’t apply just to youth ministry, it applies to every ministry,” says Mr Hyslop. “The gospel message doesn’t change,

but how we articulate it might vary depending on the generation. God’s word hasn’t changed, so make sure everything is based on God’s word.”

The goal of youth ministry is to disciple youth and help them grow more like Christ. One way Mr Hyslop encourages this is by asking teens to plan their next step after conversations and considering Bible passages. “If it doesn’t translate into an action of

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“Next steps”: Young teens from Jannali Anglican’s FUSE group study the Bible at one of their weekend camps.

some kind, I’m not helping them move forward.”

2 TEENS LONG TO BELONG

Training for youth ministry in Sydney’s north and southwest before landing in Jannali convinced Mr Hyslop that teens everywhere desire to be loved and belong. As they explore and work out their identity, teens have always strived to know where they fit in the world.

“They need to know they’re accepted for who they are,” says Mr Hyslop. “It’s expressed differently but they have the same desire to know they’re accepted. [Therefore], they need to know how to be right with God.

“I recall in the 90s if there were any spiritual questions it was ‘What happens to someone when they die?’ That question is still there. It’s a question of security, whereas the identity stuff is about significance. Who am I? Am I a person of value? Will I be seen as a person of value if I feel this way about myself? That goes back to acceptance.”

Looking back on three decades of teaching teens the gospel.

Three decades of youth ministry have formed six core values that Mr Hyslop holds strongly:

1. Young people are not the church of the future, they’re the church of today

2. Young people are the ministers – “Every young Christian in our church is a youth minister, they all have access to peers and the gospel message. My job is to equip them to do their ministry.”

3. If you’re there, be all there – “There’s nothing worse than a person undertaking a ministry, but you can tell they’d rather be somewhere else. It’s a massive commitment because it’s

3 TEENS ARE FORMING THEIR IDENTITY

Teens have always wrestled with who they are. Recently this has been dominated by issues surrounding sexuality, gender and mental health. There is now less taboo surrounding mental wellbeing, with issues, support and therapists spoken about freely. “There were lots of people who weren’t getting the help they needed back then,” says Mr Hyslop. “I wonder if schools are

a massive ministry. It’s incredibly important so it’s worth the effort.”

4. Value your team and their contributions

5. Communicate with and involve parents – “At the end of the day, if the parents aren’t on board, you have no youth.”

6. Love the youth for who they are – “Youth don’t want me to be a young person, they want me to be someone who will listen and have Bible knowledge to help them and encourage them in decision making.”

trying to push resilience because they’re recognising young people don’t have the tools to stand tall in the face of difficult situations.”

4 THE SHIFT IN SCREEN TIME AMPLIFIES ISSUES

The number of screens and control of screen time has shifted from one television controlled by a parent to multiple screens owned by teens. Setting boundaries around screen and viewed media has become a

Help bring the gospel to

challenge, with many youth finding workarounds to net filtering programs.

This has heightened issues around body image, peer pressure, gaming addiction and access to pornography. “The problems tend to be around social stuff, expectations, and needing to have the right look, but that existed before with the Dolly magazine,” says Mr Hyslop. “A lot of the gaming consumes hours, and there’s a lot of people who say they can see it’s not helping.”

5 TEENS ARE CURIOUS ABOUT THE GOSPEL

Popular culture and discussions in the public arena have changed the type of questions teens are asking of God, but teens are no less interested.

“There is a lot about gender that definitely wasn’t there in the nineties,” says Mr Hyslop. “There’s a false position that to accept someone, you have to agree with them. It’s a misunderstanding of tolerance. That’s a challenge always.” SC

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The place where the drought is not over

When it rains, it pours: The challenge for this drought-affected community is to store whatever rain they get.

By the end of March, less than one per cent of New South Wales was in drought. Quite a turn around from January 2020 when the whole state was drought-affected.

The same can’t be said for the Marsabit Diocese in Northern Kenya, a place with a special link with Sydney through CMS missionaries Norm & Janelle Gorrie. It is in almost continuous drought.

The Gorries served in Marsabit from 1989 to 1998 and returned there in 2017. Mr Gorrie is now Director of Training and Mission with the Diocese.

“In the North (of Kenya), the physical needs of people are enormous. Weather events are becoming more extreme so the droughts are more frequent and more extreme, and with that comes hunger.” Mr Gorrie says. “We’ve just had two locust plagues. There’s a disease in the crops, and life is a continuous struggle, so we can’t be indifferent to the needs of people.”

Part of their work, in partnership with the Archbishop of Sydney’s Anglican Aid, is to battle both the effects of the drought and the persecution of those who become Christians. The immediate need was famine relief.

“There were four communities

which have recently come to Christ out of a demonic cult. It is wonderful the way they received the gospel, and they’ve actually gone on to be strong in Christ. But they were really suffering with the drought and so that was just a wonderful encouragement that Anglican Aid money came in...at that right time.”

But what really excites the Gorries is a longer-term project which has a twin benefit. “We need to have a way of generating employment, especially for people who will come to Christ out of Islam, and we know that they will lose their jobs because the majority of businesses are owned by Muslims,” Mr Gorrie says.

“Water scarcity is a huge problem. When it does rain, it often rains very hard, and so if we have a means of actually harvesting water, that can be a great blessing.”

The solution? Construction of Ferro-cement water tanks which can be filled up during pouring rain and take the stress from over-worked boreholes. Mr Gorrie said the aim was to build the tanks in an economical way, but also with structural integrity to withstand the conditions.

He is drawing on his experience in the building industry in Australia. “I’ve just started in

a small way, trying to get the principles right. At the moment we have five people who have been trained up (to build tanks).

One of them was from a Muslim background.”

During construction, there is a time of Bible study and prayer. “We do this over morning tea and often other people will come and we had some wonderful discussions with our Muslim neighbours,” he says. “As they

come for a cup of tea, they also join in the Bible study. So we see it not only as a way of providing employment, but we also see that Jesus has got to be at the centre of that project.”

The drought may not be over in Marsabit, but the water of life is flowing in that parched area. SC See and support the Marsabit project at https://anglicanaid.org. au/projects/marsabit-water-andincome-generation/

Water for life: Norm Gorrie and his team construct water tanks (top), and break for a meal and some Bible study.

and

North Shore parishes partner to provide for needy

In the suburbs of Artarmon and Willoughby, deep need is hard to spot amongst the quiet tree-lined streets. But with people from a diverse range of backgrounds and circumstances, there are residents searching for physical and spiritual assistance. Recognising that this need is present in both their suburbs, St Basil’s, Artarmon and St Stephen’s, Willoughby combined forces to run an Anglicare Mobile Community Pantry to serve their communities.

“There are huge numbers of migrants from a variety of Asian countries,” says the Rev Prashanth Colombage, Senior Minister at St Stephen’s, Willoughby. “And there are many people who live in mid-density housing who are yearning for community, care and connection.”

Down the road, in neighbouring Artarmon, the Rev Jack Wong is seeing the same situation. As the demographics of the neighbourhood change, the social needs of its residents change also. “There are people who are struggling with food security and other social issues,” says Mr Wong, who is the Assistant Minister at St Basil’s, Artarmon.

FOOD FOR THE WEEK AND FOR THE SOUL

The Anglicare Mobile Community Pantry runs on a fortnightly basis, meeting in the grounds of St Basil’s and offering locals in need a full bag of pantry staples for ten dollars.

Mr Wong acknowledges that food insecurity is only part of the struggle for migrants, especially those who come from communal cultures. “Perhaps

churches collaborate to offer care and community.

Mobile Foodies: Some of the volunteers working with the Anglicare Community Pantry.

the bigger problem people face is spiritual poverty and a lack of good community,” he says. The Mobile Community Pantry not only helps to feed residents. It creates an opportunity and provides a space for those lacking connection to gather with each other and experience the love of a Christ-centred community.

WORKING TOGETHER

The collaboration is a first for both churches, which are two kilometres away from each other and facing the same challenges.

“It’s been important to feel like we are in a partnership rather than competing against each other,” Mr Colombage said.

“Artarmon has plenty to teach us about ministry to multi-ethnic communities and we are eager to learn over the course of time.”

Mr Wong agrees, noting how working together has already strengthened the capacity of both churches to serve and reach those in their local area.

“We have been greatly encouraged by the eagerness of the volunteers, both from St Basil’s and St Stephen’s, and there were more than

we expected,” he says. “We hope to assist the needy with their physical needs, and more importantly, [we hope to] create a supportive, welcoming and

caring community where they can feel and know of God’s love for them through our interaction with them – and ultimately, know the gospel. SC

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I want my children to have eternal life

Ruth Baker

The day I realised my kids might not go to heaven was the day I became preoccupied with creating space for God to do his work in them.

As a single mum, I want to ensure my children have a strong spiritual base because the statistics are sobering.

The latest report prepared for Youthworks in 2018, based on National Church Life Survey data, identified that 78 per cent of respondents became Christian before the age of 20.

INFLUENCE OF PARENTAL FAITH IN RESPONDENTS WHO BECAME CHRISTIAN BEFORE THE AGE OF 20 Source: Youthworks, 2018 (based on NCLS data)

Families with two parents who are active Christians must ask how they can optimise their influence in their child’s faith. Outside of both parents in the home and both active Christians, the data shows a decreasing degree of influence with only one parent an active Christian.

Other questions arise for families where there is only one believing parent, or in single-parent homes. How can a mother take a spiritual lead without emasculating the father and alienating him from the faith also? How does one parent compensate for the lack of the other in single-parent homes? How can our churches help all families to have a positive influence on their children’s faith?

Reports prepared over the past two decades display similar results, but we shouldn’t put too much faith in statistics. There isn’t enough data and numbers by themselves don’t give us context.

A PARENT’S INFLUENCE IS CRUCIAL

The data does tell us that the influence of parents on future faith is crucial. Of those that became Christian before age 20, 76 per cent became Christian with one or both parents as active believers. It is up to God whether they take the step of faith, but we are an instrument through whom God works. The statistics show us we need to be aware of the extent of our influence as parents.

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• Pet-friendly

• Bowling green

• Aged Care Onsite

• Indoor pool and gym • Library • Hairdresser

Clubhouse with bar and fireplace

MODELLING FAITH IS KEY

Author of Big Picture Parents , Harriet Connor, advocates an apprenticeship model rather than the school style teaching we are familiar with. She suggests we show our children the way, walk with them on the way, and then let them practice while we supervise before they take on the journey as their own.

This means modelling. This may seem obvious, but statistics tell us we must consider how to demonstrate faith in action throughout the day. We need to infuse the natural rhythms of the day and the week with our open participation in the gospel, not cordoned off into five minutes at the end of the day. And always in prayer. Mrs Connor, who is also content editor for Youthworks Media’s Growing Faith website, notes that it is our trust in a sovereign God that we are passing on, not simply a personal quality like work ethic.

For homes with one believing parent, the encouragement in 1 Peter 3:1 is for believing spouses to win the other parent over through conduct, and not take charge of the faith journey at the expense of the other parent. For single parents, Mrs Connor points out that God is still sovereign and is not surprised by anyone’s situation. The Bible gives us examples of people who came to faith without both parents, such as Rahab and Timothy, and so we should not feel like outsiders.

PARENTS AND

CHURCHES

NEED TO WORK TOGETHER

Church is a powerful means of support. God placed us in community and this community also supports parents.

Data shows that youth group, children’s ministries and church services are also important influencers in a Christian’s faith, but with mounting pressure on our time, many parents can accidentally treat church as an extracurricular activity.

Ed Springer, former Head of Ministry Support at Youthworks, observes that parents often choose a church based on what it provides for children. Many churches advertise activities to attract families, which has the unintended consequence of feeding into consumer expectations. Neither are wrong but move us away from churches and parents partnering together effectively.

“The church and the parents are coworkers on the same mission to see the next generation receive the knowledge of God and then pass it on themselves,” says Mr Springer.

Churches can strengthen parents discipleship so they can actively model their faith. The church can equip parents to meet the challenges of the children’s doubts and rebellions – which both Mr Springer and Mrs Connor say will assuredly occur.

THIS SUPPORT IS KEY FOR SINGLE-PARENT FAMILIES

The additional role models, peer support and prayer support a church provides is a pivotal help for single-parent families, without being a parental replacement.

For single parents like me, these statistics can feel bleak. Looking at this research through the lens of the gospel shows us the means by which we can build, in Him, the most fruitful approach to caring for children. There is an opportunity God is giving us to use the church to equip parents to disciple their children. Whatever time God provides us with, we use it wisely to provide our children with a rich faith-based environment – whether we have every day as a full-time parent or every other weekend.

Parents and churches are co-investors in the long term faith journey of the children of God’s community. Together they can create a rich and active faith environment for children to grow in, and create space for the Spirit of God to do his work in the hearts of our kids. SC

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choices FOR SCHOOLS & STUDY

IShellharbour takes service on the road

N mid-west New South Wales, a busload of students arrives in the town of Gilgandra, where they roll up their sleeves and get busy. Some dig into tough dry land to plant trees. Others clean the community showground in preparation for the upcoming agricultural show. It’s hard but rewarding work, and each student knows that their service contributes to something greater than themselves.

For over a decade now, students from Shellharbour Anglican College have travelled six hours inland to Gilgandra to serve the rural community there. This year, over fifty students and staff members spent a week in the outback.

“We make it clear that this is about going out and helping someone else, it is not supposed to be a holiday,” says Sven Barter, the Science Coordinator who was responsible for the 2021 Gilgandra trip. “They’re helping strangers, which is beautiful.”

The trip is one of many opportunities the college provides for students to serve. ‘Service Learning’ is core to the Shellharbour Anglican College experience. Enabling students to contribute within the college community and outside develops their character and teaches them to look to the needs of others, as Christ did for us.

“Giving students a sense of hope, a capacity to be curious, creative and actively learn, be resilient, compassionate and to have a strong sense of justice are core aspects of what I value,” says Megan Hastie, Principal of Shellharbour Anglican College. She is passionate about “building an engaging learning community and providing real-life opportunities to care for our world. As we continue to serve the community for which we were founded, we partner closely with each family from the very first day to raise compassionate, respectful and caring young men and women.”

All hands on deck: Shellharbour students get busy serving the Gilgandra community. photo: Phillip Baldwin

For Mr Barter and the team, Jesus’s model of service is front of mind as the Gilgandra trip is planned. “Think about the number of times Jesus went out of his way to reach people who weren’t in his community or group or the number of times he stopped by the side of the road to heal someone or address people,” he says. “He taught his disciples to wash each other’s feet and lead by example. That is in mind as we put this trip together.”

Mr Barter hopes that the trip leaves a lasting impression on both the community of Gilgandra and the students who spent their time there. Multiple Gilgandra trips have fostered good relationships with locals. These friendships have a special place in the hearts of many students, including year 12 student Kaitlyn Langridge.

The trip has been a key part of her student experience, teaching valuable life skills and showing her how she can use the gifts God has given her to help others.

“It’s easy to learn how to read or do equations, but it isn’t as easy to learn about kindness, sacrifice or giving. Going out into the community and being proactive helps give an opportunity to learn these values

and grow in your personality. I will treasure [this experience] for years to come.”

The visit to Yalmambirra Boogijoon Doolin Cultural Camp was a real highlight for Miss Langridge, where she and other students were able to learn from Uncle Ralph Naden, the camp’s founder. “I was touched by his knowledge and his ability to connect and communicate with others. I learnt a lot about Indigenous culture that I wished I knew earlier. It was really eye-opening.”

The students are well known in the community. “We were planting a row of trees on the road in a nearby village called Tooraweenah, and the kids were finding it difficult to dig in the very hard soil. This dump truck stopped by us and came to say hello. The truck’s driver, who I had never met before, said ‘You’re part of that school group’ and wanted to have a chat with us. Complete strangers know who we are and what we’re doing in the community. That’s very special and rewarding.”

“Pray we would be able to bless Gilgandra [with our trip],” adds Mr Barter. “Pray for our kids that by serving the Gilgandra community, they might get a better understanding of the service that Jesus gave to us.”

Top: Landscaping the rugby field. Left: Nightly team devotions around the bonfire. Right: Freshening up the Gilgandra Historial Society grounds. photos: Phillip Baldwin

Moore Mission faces new challenges

STUDENTS at Moore Theological College dedicate a week every March to break into teams and participate in the evangelism efforts of other churches. This year’s mission included a new partnership with Evangelism and New Churches, giving one group of students a chance to observe and work alongside several church plants and learn from the challenges this unique group of churches face.

“We thought it would be a great opportunity to expose some of our students to some of the churches in our diocese which are thinking hard and creatively about how to establish the gospel in very different contexts,” says Dr Peter Orr, New Testament lecturer and the faculty

member who oversaw the mission team. He recognises that these are not the only churches in the Anglican network thinking creatively about reaching others with the gospel, but that there was plenty for students to learn from this selection.

The team visited churches that couldn’t be more different. They worked alongside churches at Albion Park Rail and Berkeley in the Illawarra, visited inner city churches such as Grace City and Living Water Redfern, and headed out west to spend time with Hope Leppington and Chester Hill.

Their time was filled with door knocking in different communities, participating in school scripture classes and assemblies, and hearing

Moore students visit Living Water Community Church, Redfern.

from various pastors about their approaches to engaging with their community and sharing the gospel.

Writing about their experience at Albion Park Rail, the team learned the principles that guided the church’s approach to mission and connecting with their neighbors.

“Over lunch we got to hear from Neil Scott, the senior minister. It was so valuable for us to hear Neil share his ministry insights from his time in the area and how it has come to bear fruit:

• Going where there was a great gospel need and trusting God to provide for him and his family;

• Listening well to learn about the people he was ministering to;

• The value of being in the community (with schools as a hub) and building trust;

• The principles behind their 1 to 1 Bible discipleship model for pastoral and training purposes.

“Thank God for how he has grown the church in a low-socioeconomic area, that in the brokenness of their lives they have a deep understanding of the gospel that brings forgiveness and salvation.”

Another stand out experience for the team was engaging with the community in Berkeley alongside members of Berkeley Life Centre. The team spent the morning offering free bread to the locals, and were surprised by how open people were. On multiple occasions, they heard about the different ways people struggled with the concept of God, usually due to the evil and suffering they saw in the world or that they had experienced firsthand.

“Door knocking and food delivering [was a highlight],” says Mr Orr, who notes the team was encouraged greatly by “the joy that church members had in serving together.”

Walking away from a week of mission, the students had plenty of lessons to reflect on and many ways of approaching ministry and evangelism that they could draw on for the future.

“We have been hugely challenged as we’ve reflected on the different models of ministry,” the team reflected on the blog. “This week has opened our eyes to the different ways churches can do evangelism to reach their community. Please pray we’ll take the principles that we’ve learnt with us wherever we end up serving.”

Top: The Normanhurst team run an SRE assembly. Bottom: The South Liverpool team spend time with locals.

Every student serving others

WHETHER it’s raising funds for Compassion sponsor children, visiting retirement villages, cleaning up local rivers and reserves, or travelling abroad to help local communities, Rouse Hill Anglican College believes every student should have an opportunity to serve others.

Inspired by Acts 20:35, the College strives to provide a number of ways for students to care for and contribute to the wellbeing of the poor, vulnerable and marginalized in society,

The impact of these opportunities and trips is two-fold. As students serve, their characters develop and grow and they are challenged to look beyond themselves and work for the benefit of others.

“In some cases, it is hard to get the students to stop talking about what they have seen, experienced and how they want to make a difference in the future,” says Brad Adams, Director of Student Wellbeing (Senior School). “The group that helps clean the Hawkesbury River are always amazed by what is thrown into the river, the groups that visit retirement villages will have different experiences depending on who they meet, and the international service trips always have an impact and students start to re-evaluate their personal priorities.”

The program has several core activities that allow students to get involved in helping others on many levels. Students are able to take part in donating and fundraising. Each year group sponsors a Compassion child, and students are invited to regularly donate and write letters. The school also encourages students to organise and participate in other fundraising events such as the 40 Hour Famine, and World’s Greatest Shave.

Several days a year are dedicated to organised service with local organisations, such as assembling the gift shoeboxes for the Samaritan’s Purse Christmas Shoebox Appeal, helping garden at a nearby school for students with disabilities, and cleaning up the Hawkesbury River. “All of these are aimed at the students doing something that serves others that is also outside of their own everyday experience – so they are learning about themselves and others in the process,” says Mr Adams.

When possible, the school offers several international service trips. In the past, groups of students have travelled to Cambodia, Hong Kong or Vietnam to link up with organisations that work among local communities. “Students always return from these trips changed by the experience. Having the opportunity to see how others live, experience it a little and most importantly, meet people from other parts of the world are real eye-opening opportunities for our students.”

The basis for the program stems from the calling of Christ and the example he set in the way he served others. “Christ called us to serve and serve without an agenda,” says Mr Adams. “These opportunities offer students the chance to do this and see the benefits it offers to themselves and to others. It helps students live fuller, richer lives and it is following Christ’s way.

“Learning about others and meeting others opens up different possibilities for the future for each student. It also helps students pause and reflect on their own circumstances and be more grateful. It changes perspective in a fairly self-absorbed age, and gives stories to help inspire resilience and persistence.”

An important part of having students serve is giving them the opportunity to reflect on their time helping others. Feedback and reflection sessions are facilitated within pastoral groups for students to identify challenging moments and moments of growth.

“We have time in different pastoral groups to talk and share about their experience and reflect on what they’ve done in their times of service,” says Mr Adams. “In one of the strands of our pastoral groups, we talk about Jesus and how he served [to help] link service to Christian character and calling.”

The parable of the Good Samaritan is an example of how the Christian calling to serve is unique, a concept Mr Adams hopes every student will grasp, whether they are in kindergarten or their final school year. “The Good Samaritan served across many different divides,” says Mr Adams. “It was about looking after the person rather than trying to do anything else. [The aim] is to serve the people you’re serving and help them in their situation.”

Rouse Hill students serve communities in Vietnam.

“These things cannot be done alone”

REFLECTIONS FROM A FORMER PRINCIPAL

OF YOUTHWORKS COLLEGE

Bill Salier

IT feels like a lifetime ago that I accepted the role as Principal of Youthworks College. The opportunity came about as a combination of circumstances where the College was looking for a Principal, and I had my own contemplations about a change. Theological education has always seemed to me a useful combination of my initial work as a primary school teacher and a long-term interest and involvement in children’s and youth ministry. Working at Youthworks College would take that synthesis a valuable step further. And so it was with excitement and trepidation that I took up the role in 2015.

I felt a little bit like a backyard environmentalist (regularly dividing cardboard, paper and glass and thinking I was doing my bit) only to be confronted with Greenpeace, as I entered the Youthworks’ world of thinking about children’s and youth ministry. Here was the real deal and it has been a privilege to work with, and learn from, thoughtful practitioners on the College staff and the Ministry Support team.

A lot has happened in six years. We moved the vocational courses to Newtown, with the Year 13 programme remaining at Loftus. We took over the online courses in our own right. We have developed a certificate course that is now available for use in partnership with local churches and schools.

Every year the Lord raises enough students to keep us going. Through that time we have seen an ever-increasing list of requests for children’s and youth ministers to fill various positions in Sydney, around Australia and occasionally overseas. We now have a graduate working in Hong Kong. We also managed a year blighted by the coronavirus, which we navigated with some alacrity thanks to the good systems we have in place. Looking back there is much to give thanks to God for.

When we developed our first strategic plan, one of our aspirations was we wanted people to say they are grateful that the College exists because it helps them keep focussed on the importance of ministry to young people in church and to think about how to do it more effectively. We also wanted them to confidently send people to study at Youthworks College, trusting the quality, faithfulness and

effectiveness of its programmes and being convinced by its mission. The move to Newtown has given the College – and therefore the ministry – greater visibility. As we look at the various statistics amassed over the years concerning numbers of conversions and drop-out rates, there seems more attention paid to the importance of a flourishing youth and children’s ministry for the health of a church. It continues to be a challenge to recruit new students. Every year I have had to explain in a string of calls how I am going to disappoint the caller by not fulfilling their request to put them in touch with a trained candidate. The workers are indeed few for a sizeable harvest field.

I am hopeless at remembering individual stories but a few things stand out: putting out a fire at Loftus; a seventy+ year old bloke from Toronto coming to do one of our children’s units after ‘getting his hip and heart done’; meeting a group of older citizens at a conference who started a youth and children’s ministry in their regional town because ‘they were it’; the buzz of students swapping ideas about ministry; the joy of College chapel, even though Jim French was always loudly interrupted by cockatoos at Loftus when preaching outdoors; a parade of students (and staff) overworked and under-appreciated, but nonetheless perpetually enthusiastic, creative and dedicated.

Personally, I have learnt I’m not a very good salesman, that these things cannot be done alone and that there is nothing more important than a good supportive and talented team to do ministry with. As Principal of a small college you get to wear a lot of hats and you find out that there are some things you are OK at and a lot of things where there is (considerable) room for improvement -- like life and any ministry really. The world of student numbers and budgets has improved my prayer life and given a very real sense of the truth of Jesus’ words…’apart from me you can do nothing’.

And so now another opportunity has arisen seemingly out of the blue in that God’s sovereignty kind of way. I am leaving reluctantly but what can I say…the timing seems right. There is a terrific team in place at the College, the work remains vital, and we are doing it a little better (under God) each year. The Lord keeps sending us quality students and our graduates are out there doing terrific ministry. The case for quality youth and children’s ministry seems more compelling than ever.

In my new role with Gafcon’s Theological Education Network, we are seeking to encourage and equip quality theological training at all levels to serve the Gafcon churches and beyond. Please pray that I would be able to get my head around the complexities, and that we as a family would be able to adjust to new work patterns and the unknown challenges that will doubtless come our way as a result of a change like this. But at the moment my mind is focused on finishing well at the College and taking time to give thanks to God for the many fabulous memories and experiences as well as the great things he has done in and through the College, staff and graduates.

Jesus is never irrelevant

CONNECTING SHORE STUDENTS TO CHRIST

Ben Gibson

IN a quickly secularising society, the growing perception that God’s word is ‘irrelevant’ is weighing heavily on Christian schools. This pressure can see Christian Studies lessons becoming less frequent on some schools’ timetables, sometimes completely absent in senior high. In Christian Studies, this pressure tempts us to dilute, minimise and reframe God’s truth; to keep an emphasis on wisdom and ethics and reduce our emphasis on Christ. The increasing hard-heartedness can leave us feeling this generation is uniquely resistant to the gospel, and rob us of prayerfulness and drive in our ministry.

The reality, of course, is that the gospel is perpetually relevant. The gospel of Christ is for every generation at every time and in every place. While it is true that young people are asking different questions in different ways even to what they did just a decade ago, Christ is still the answer to all of them. Christian schools must continue to proclaim this good news.

Secular culture’s story about who we are, what is wrong and what can be done about it has changed rapidly even in just the last few years, and it will continue to change. Christian schools must show that the gospel is a superior story to the one offered by secular culture. To do this well, we cannot neglect our duty to understand the cultural story our students are being discipled into, nor can we neglect our duty to speak God’s word into that story boldly and faithfully. Paul did both in Athens (Acts 17), and our schools must do both today. As Sam Chan has so helpfully said, we must understand and empathise with a cultural story before we can effectively challenge and fulfil it through Christ. Christian schools can do this work knowing it is ultimately God’s work.

What is the story of Gen Z? It sounds freeing to be told that you are free to become your own gods and provide for yourselves all that God said he would provide, but it is enslaving and impossible. These young people need God’s truth. They need it more clearly than ever.

We assume a lost relevance because we fail to recognise they think differently. Jesus is never irrelevant. He is relevant because he is God. We try to understand our senior school students better and understand where they are coming from so that we can show how Jesus is relevant to them.

Understanding the Bible is key, and so is understanding their culture. Otherwise, we are in danger of not communicating the right thing or speaking into the current culture in the right way. The Bible is God’s word to us. It is where he reveals his truth and design of the universe and life, where he describes the reality as he has made it and invites us into living according to that reality.

We never compromise on God’s word. God’s word speaks to the unanswered questions that this generation has. The unanswered questions this generation has might be different to when we were young. There are different pressures, movements and themes that they are living under. Jesus is the answer to them all. What causes students to understand the gospel is not that we skillfully and intelligently figure out how to reframe it in a particular way. There is no new way. We communicate God’s word faithfully to people who we are in community and God’s word changes hearts.

Our ministry efforts at Shore are informed by knowing our boys

well. Senior school surveying helps us see how this cultural moment is affecting students’ view on faith. More importantly, Christian Studies and Chaplaincy staff seek to know and walk with individual boys in their time here. Just as Paul shared his life and not just his teaching with his hearers (1 Thessalonians 2:8), our staff share life with the boys by coaching sport, acting as Housemasters and welfare coordinators, and through wide-ranging involvement in the boarding programme.

Our hope is that the boys will know us and we will know them and that they will see in the lives of Christians the truth of the gospel they’ve heard. This is why we ask that many would pray with us that we, and many other Christian schools, would not distort the word of God but set forth the truth plainly in the sight of God and that the Spirit would turn many to be saved through Christ. There is huge cultural pressure, so pray that staff, Principals and Heads, will be faithful to obey Christ and preach his word.

off-campus study is more than just online study. It includes full participation and interaction with lecturers and fellow students in live classes. No matter where you are –in Australia, or around the world – you’re welcome to join many of our classes and progress through your diploma, bachelor or masters course, or even just to audit classes. Learn more at: smbc.edu.au/study/off-campus-study

Mr Ben Gibson is Head of Christian Studies at Shore.

Pandemic sparks new end of year tradition for year 12

WHEN COVID meant that the Year 12 cohort of 2020 couldn’t end their education journey in the usual way, Penrith Anglican College got creative. With the installation of an old church bell at the front of the school, a new tradition was born. The ringing of the bell is an important moment for each student to signify the end of their final exam and let the student body and staff know they have concluded their time at the College.

This cohort missed out on a number of significant ‘lasts’ that usually characterise their final year of school, such as the Athletics Carnival, musical production, graduation ceremonies with family present and a Valedictory Dinner. The college wanted to provide a significant moment for each student to recognise their achievements and mark the end of their schooling in a special way. Parents, friends and loved ones were able to gather in a socially distanced way to participate in the experience of each student.

“We wanted to do something special for our Year 12 students who during a difficult year, truly displayed the College values of compassion, humility, integrity and most of all courage and perseverance,” says Mrs Felicity Grima, principal of Penrith Anglican College.

“The bell not only is a new tradition for our Year 12 students, who will look forward to ringing it each year but during a time of dislocation and ‘social distancing’ it brought our community together. We rejoice in this new tradition and the way it has been embraced by everyone at the College.”

For Max Cochrane, the opportunity to signify the end of his journey at Penrith Anglican College was enhanced by being surrounded by those who had supported him over the past thirteen years.

“Not only [did I] have my friends and family and some high school teachers there to watch me in my last moments of school, but also to have my kindergarten teacher there was such a great way to connect

Schools and Colleges Directory

SPONSORING

ANGLICAN SCHOOLS

Oran Park Anglican College 60 Central Ave, Oran Park NSW 2570 www.opac.nsw.edu.au

Penrith Anglican College 338-356 Wentworth Rd, Orchard Hills NSW 2748 www.penrith.nsw.edu.au

OTHER ANGLICAN SCHOOLS

Abbotsleigh

Arden Anglican School

Arndell Anglican College

Barker College

Blue Mountains Grammar School

Broughton Anglican College

Claremont College

Cranbrook School

Danebank

Kambala

Macarthur Anglican School

Macquarie Anglican Grammar School

Mamre Anglican School

Meriden Anglican School for Girls

Nowra Anglican College

Orange Anglican Grammar School

Richard Johnson Anglican School

Roseville College

Rouse Hill Anglican College

Shellharbour Anglican College

St Andrew’s Cathedral School

St Catherine’s School

St Luke’s Grammar School

St Peter’s Anglican Primary School

SCEGGS Darlinghurst

choices is a special supplement produced for Southern Cross

Editor: Tara Sing tara@anglicanmedia.com.au (02) 8860 8865

the beginning of the school to the end. To ring the bell felt like a special finish to my school career.”

The bell also signifies a partnership between the school and the saints at Kingswood Anglican Church. The Rev Steven Gooch, whose children all attended Penrith Anglican College, and his congregation were delighted to contribute the bell and take part in the establishment of a significant new tradition.

“It was a joy to watch the students ring the bell, marking an end to their schooling years,” Mr Gooch says. “It is very satisfying to see our historical bell back in use and for such a worthy cause.”

The bell was originally made in 1897 for a new church at Kingswood, which was commissioned in 1898. The bell resided in the church tower until 2000 when it was removed for renovations. It now proudly stands at the front of Penrith Anglican College, where many young students will see it and aspire to someday ring it for themselves.

SCECGS Redlands

Sydney Church of England Grammar School (Shore)

Tara Anglican School for Girls

The Illawarra Grammar School

The King’s School

Thomas Hassall Anglican College

Trinity Grammar School

Tudor House

William Clarke College

Wollondilly Anglican College

THEOLOGICAL COLLEGES

Mary Andrews College

Level 1, St Andrew’s House 464-480 Kent Street

Sydney NSW 2000 www.mac.edu.au

Moore Theological College 1 King Street

Newtown NSW 2042 www.moore.edu.au

Sydney Missionary and Bible College

43-45 Badminton Road

Croydon NSW 2132 www.smbc.edu.au

Youthworks College 22 Carillon Avenue

Newtown NSW 2042 www.youthworkscollege.edu.au

Year 13

11 Fifth Avenue

Loftus NSW 2232 www.year13.net

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Mr Tom Watkinson (left) and the Rev Steven Gooch stand by the historic bell.

Deep reading

Peter Hayward

The 27th April 2021 marked the centenary of John Stott’s birth. Rightly, there were celebrations to acknowledge and give thanks for how God used John Stott during his remarkable life. Stott’s legacy as a global evangelical leader is a testimony to his convictions, character, organisational capacity and godly ambition. Like many, I was profoundly impacted by the ministry of John Stott. At the 1986 CMS Summer School, when Stott led the Bible Studies on 1 Timothy, I was hit hard by God’s word as he expounded chapter three. After months of prayerful reflection with advice from others in ministry, this was the decisive moment that led to my decision to head towards full-time ministry. As I reflect on Stott’s ministry, I am reminded of how important his books have been for my Christian growth. The careful, close reading of his books was crucial in the early years of my Christan life.

Your Mind Matters - In my late teens, I became involved in a youth group on the South Coast that had focused on the growing surfing culture. As it grew in popularity, it multiplied in size. Though full of energy and excitement, it left me increasingly confused. I came across Stott’s Your Mind Matters and I was convinced it was written for me. I have since kept the following quote, “knowledge is indispensable to the Christian life and service. If we do not use the mind God has given us, we condemn ourselves to spiritual superficiality.”

Baptism and Fullness - I had several charismatic Christians who were keen to convince me that there was a spiritual lack in my walk that could only be rectified by allowing the Holy Spirit to fill me. I bought another of Stott’s books, Baptism and Fullness, and read through it slowly in one sitting. Though published in 1964, the argument hit me directly as if he spoke directly to my situation in 1982.

Ephesians - In the mid-1980’s late each Wednesday afternoon over four months, I met with the Minister of my church, and we worked through John Stott’s recently published commentary on Ephesians. I read the assigned passage, studied the relevant section of Stott’s commentary and then wrote Bible study questions. With this sustained close work on his Ephesians commentary, a foundation was developing that shaped my approach to the Bible. Stott laid foundational elements as a given that continue to have an

abiding influence on me. These include confidence that the Bible could be understood and was clear in what it said. Clarity might require hard work, but you study the Bible, dependent upon the Holy Spirit, with that conviction.

As I reflect on these three books, I was struck by how much my reading habits have changed. I read these books with an undistracted intensity that rarely occurs today.

For 500 years, much of the Christian faith has been strengthened and developed by the practice and learning that comes from reading. It is overstated to say we are entering into a post-literate age, but there is clear evidence that how we read has changed.

In his book The Shallows, Nicholas Carr explains how reading habits are changing. (Yes, it is ironic that reading a book helps explain how we read differently). Carr describes how our technology and information-rich age has changed how the mind responds to reading. “Calm focused, undistracted, the linear mind is being pushed aside by a new kind of mind that wants and needs to take in and dole out information in short, disjointed, overlapping bursts, the faster, the better.”

The consequence is that in this age of information and distraction, careful and close reading is rarer. Such reading happens when we are moved from our current circumstances and are absorbed by what we are reading. We inhabit the book to the extent that it forms us. It is here that I am aware of how much my reading habits have changed over the last 20 years.

T.S. Eliot wrote in 1934, “Where is the wisdom we have lost in knowledge? Where is the knowledge we have lost in information?” We might add in 2021, “What have we lost with disjointed, distracted and continuous information?” The capacity for reading that will result in wisdom and knowledge.

On the 100th anniversary of John Stott’s birth, I am reminded of the value of careful and undistracted reading of Christian books. I hope it may encourage you, as it reminded me, to make a few changes to how I use my time to recapture such reading. SC

Bishop Peter Hayward is the Administrator of the Diocese until the election of a new Archbishop.

Women working hard in the Lord

Tara Stenhouse

Ilove Romans 16. It’s a chapter of greetings that’s easily overlooked at the end of a theologically rich letter – a list of names that are hard to pronounce, let alone know what to do with. But it’s a chapter that communicates the relational richness of our partnership ‘in the Lord’ (repeated nine times), as women and men, young and old, Jew and Gentile.

Love, respect and dignity ooze from this chapter, as Paul sends his greetings to his beloved fellow workers in the Lord, including many women. We’re not told the details, but we see women and men who are united to Christ Jesus and empowered by the Spirit, using their different gifts in unity to build the body of Christ and glorify their Lord.

Just as this list of first century AD greetings powerfully communicates that women are integral to God’s mission, so does our Moore College graduation each year, one of my favourite times of the year. One by one I see the next generation of women gospel workers sent out into the harvest, along with their brothers in Christ. It’s such a thrill to hear of the variety of ministries and places these different women are actively serving in. Each one has a different story, but together they show that there are an abundance of gospel opportunities for women, including many opportunities for formal vocational ministry.

In order to illustrate this, let me briefly tell you a few of the stories of our most recent female graduates. There are 25 of them, which makes up a third of the graduates from the same courses this year.

Katie Stringer:

“I’m teaching and coordinating High School SRE at six inner west High Schools. I am passionate about good teaching pedagogy and love the opportunity to share the beauty of the gospel with the students in my classes. One of my favourite things about teaching SRE is that teenagers have the opportunity to say what they really think and find satisfying answers to their questions. Finding the right language, so that my students hear what I’m intending to say, is very important. I want them to discover and be strengthened by the truth of the gospel for themselves and to have that as a life-long treasure.”

Jennifer Cheung:

“I love serving alongside my husband at Georges Hall Anglican Church in the South West of Sydney, encouraging, discipling and equipping the saints - particularly the women - and seeking to engage the local community with the good news of Jesus. I love sharing Jesus with those who are the most thirsty. So I’d be keen to explore chaplaincy, or another context where I can engage non-Christians.”

Karina Brabham:

“I’m currently completing six months cross-cultural training at the Church Missionary Society’s (CMS). This is in preparation for heading out as a missionary. I’m planning to go to France to serve in the university ministry there. College reminded and taught me that Christlike ministry is about being a humble servant. As I prepare to serve crossculturally overseas I’m very conscious of my need to rely on

Taking gospel opportunities: Just some of the women serving God’s church - Katie Stringer, Jennifer Cheung, Karina Brabham, Carol Gilbert and Elise Anderson.

God in all things and to have a humble attitude rather than think that I know it all (which I certainly don’t).”

Carol Gilbert:

“I may not have a formal role yet, but God has given me many ways to serve Him. I’m a part of Auburn & Newington Anglican and am involved with ministry to women, coleading a Bible study, ‘welcoming’ and some kids’ ministry. I am also helping to train a K-3 leader. God has been teaching me to trust Him in the uncertainty. It has been hard learning patience, but it has also been a creative and interesting time. I’ve had to be more proactive as I have less formal structure and am more prepared to go wherever I can best glorify the Lord Jesus. I’m particularly interested in cross-cultural ministry and evangelism in the future.”

Elsie Anderson:

“I’m currently working with the AFES groups at the University of Tasmania in Hobart. My time is split between working with local students and international students. With both groups, my focus is mission on campus. I’ll be helping people read the Bible as well as training Christian students to share Jesus with their friends.”

I’m hoping that as you read through the stories of these women, it reminded you of Romans 16 and that your heart is full, like it is for me! And this is only a snapshot of the many different women serving in different types of ministries, in different places all around Australia, and a number heading overseas to serve in the next year – all working hard in the Lord.

Ministries to: children, women, youth, young adults, university students (undergraduate, postgraduate, internationals), those from different cultures and religions (Korean, Chinese, Muslims). Evangelism, discipleship/mentoring, small group ministry, training leaders, training apprentices, lecturing, pastoral care, chaplaincy, welcoming, hospitality, music, marriage preparation, conference organising. The intense and invaluable ministry of motherhood, and the privilege of serving alongside a husband who is a minister (in all its variety and complexity!). In churches (Anglican and independent), schools, hospitals, universities, homes, playgrounds, communities. All around Sydney (west, south west, south, inner west, eastern suburbs, north), NSW (Central Coast, Armidale), and Australia (Gold Coast, Melbourne, Hobart). With the support of different parachurch organisations, like AFES, Generate, Anglicare, Youthworks. An abundance of opportunities for women! And that’s just what the 25 women who graduated in 2021 are doing, let alone the generations of women who’ve gone before them!

Half of them are serving in vocational ministry positions (12 out of the 25), mostly full-time (nine out of 12), and mostly paid (11 out of 12 – although the one unpaid woman wasn’t looking for paid ministry). Only one of the women who is looking for paid vocational ministry hasn’t been able to find a paid position yet, but it is very early days – she continues to apply for positions, and currently has lots of different opportunities in her church and community in an unpaid capacity, like many of the other graduates.

This means that half of them are not serving in vocational ministry. Is that because there weren’t enough ministry positions when they finished college? No, I don’t think so. From what I understand, these women weren’t looking for a formal vocational ministry position coming straight out of college (apart from one, mentioned above). One studied the Advanced Diploma to be better equipped as a follower of Jesus in her local church and to return to the workforce as a music teacher. One transferred her studies to Queensland, where her fiancé lives. The rest (three-quarters)

are heavily involved in the unpaid ministry of caring for and discipling their young children (two born in the last few months), as well as serving alongside their husbands who are employed themselves as the minister of a church. On top of this, they are also actively involved in a variety of other local church and community ministries. As their children grow and become more independent these women are likely to do more of this local church and community ministries, and some may move into a paid vocational ministry position in the future.

I hope you can see that women are integral to God’s mission and that there are an abundance of different gospel opportunities – so many wonderful examples of women working hard in the Lord, alongside their brothers in Christ. There are also plenty of vocational ministry positions, in fact, enough paid positions for everyone who wanted one (besides one – and it is still early days for her…and not quite all the men who wanted paid positions got them, either). I know we’re just looking at small numbers here, but I could tell you similar stories from the last 12 years I’ve served at Moore, each telling a wonderful story of God’s grace at work bringing women to Christ and empowering them for a lifetime of serving Him, something that thrills my heart – what about you?

Please pray that God continues to raise up women who are equipped well at Moore College (and in other training colleges and programmes around the world), and then sent out with the gospel to the ends of the world - women who work hard in the Lord. SC

Tara Stenhouse is Dean of Women at Moore Theological College and lectures in Ministry.

The Great Rescue

John Lavender

This coming 26th May is the anniversary of perhaps one of the greatest rescues of all time.

World War had broken out in September 1939. Into 1940, the Nazi German army was surging across Western Europe with lightning speed and force. As the month of May progressed, over 300,000 troops from the British Expeditionary Force (BEF) along with Belgian, Canadian, and French soldiers, were trapped and encircled at the beach of Dunkirk in France. A terrible disaster seemed inevitable.

On Thursday 23rd May, the British Prime Minister, Winston Churchill, met with King George VI to brief him on a plan to evacuate troops from the beach. Yet, everything looked extremely grim. Few boats were available. The Nazi army was powerful. Allied troops were scrambling to reach Dunkirk. It was expected in the time available that only a tiny fraction of the 300,000 would be rescued.

In response, King George VI declared “We must pray! This next Sunday, I’m calling for a National Day of Prayer.” On May 24, the King addressed the nation: “Let us with one heart and soul, humbly, but confidently, commit our cause to God and ask his aid.”

What happened next is quite extraordinary. All over England tens of thousands of people gathered to pray that God would rescue those who were trapped. At Westminster Cathedral, there are pictures of hundreds of people queuing to pray!

A miracle was about to take place.

On Sunday 26th May, as boats set sail for Dunkirk, Hitler inexplicably halted his attack. The English Channel, notoriously rough, was strangely calm. Rain and clouds made it difficult for the German air force to attack the beach. The breeze collected smoke from previous bombing raids, which gave cover for soldiers being loaded into the boats. As word spread across England, hundreds and hundreds of would-be skippers responded, so that a flotilla of more than 860 boats sailed across the Channel to help with the rescue. The result was that when the evacuation came to an end, 338,000 troops were rescued from the beaches.

This extraordinary great rescue changed history and came to be known as the ‘Miracle of Dunkirk.’

Our world is in need of another ‘Miracle of Dunkirk’. People are in great danger and in urgent need of spiritual rescue. Everyone needs this rescue from the consequences of turning their backs

“Souls in need”: A group of evacuees on board three of the many small boats which brought trapped British soldiers from the shores around Dunkirk, to safety. photo: courtesy Imperial War Museums © IWM HU 41241

on God. Having ignored him, thinking they know best, they are cut off from God, lost, and in need of the great rescue that Jesus offers. People today are just like the crowds in Matthew chapter 9 who, when Jesus saw them, Matthew tells us, “he had compassion on them, because they are harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

Jesus’ passionate call to his disciples “The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out more workers into his harvest field” is just as relevant today as it was then!

Jesus’ call to pray is a challenge for us to earnestly pray as individuals and as a church for the lost world around us. Jesus is about rescue and God calls us to continue to be part of that rescue. Without Jesus, even if people do not know it, they are lost, horribly lost. Without Jesus, people are cut off from God, destined to spend eternity without him. This is a terrible thought! Therefore, will you who are Christians and who know Jesus, the Good Shepherd who has compassion on us, and who laid down his life to rescue us, will you pray? Will you pray at home and in your small groups? Will you gather to pray, even queuing up at our churches, passionately concerned for those who are lost and

We have the chance to take part in a miraculous rescue.

in desperate need to be connected with Jesus, the Saviour, the great rescuer?

And will you be the answer to your own prayer? Will you be like the many amateur skippers who set off to rescue the thousands stranded at Dunkirk? That is, will you prayerfully look for opportunities to speak of Jesus in your workplace? Or over the fence to your neighbour? At the school gate? Will you look for opportunities to be involved in your church as it seeks to take the good news of Jesus’ great rescue to our lost world? Will you look for opportunities to invite friends and family to your church so they too can hear the good news of Jesus and turn back to him?

Will you generously give of your time , your treasure and your talents to continue Jesus’ great rescue mission? This great rescue will save people from an eternity without God and his blessings, in order to give them an eternity with God and his blessings? SC

The Rev John Lavender is a consultant with Evangelism and New Churches, equipping people and churches to talk about Jesus.

WHAT HAPPENED TO THE ICED-VOVOS?

Over the past couple of decades, I have been a vocal and somewhat annoying, agitator for cross-cultural and multicultural ministry in Sydney. I say “somewhat annoying” because on a couple of occasions I’ve heard words to the effect of “Here he goes again!” as I rise to speak at Synod or Standing Committee or elsewhere on the issue. I’ve been told I’m always “raving on” about this. Though this usually spurs me on all the more, today it gives me pause. I have been very critical. I think it’s time for some encouragement. There is no doubt, in my opinion, that there has been a very great shift in the Diocese as a whole, and certainly in the Georges River Region about which I can speak with deeper knowledge, when it comes to making our churches more “ethnic friendly”. We have a long, long way to go, but we are doing much better. How? (Not in any order of importance except the last)

1. Over the years, I have certainly fielded more and more enquiries and requests to speak and train churches or leadership teams in cross-cultural and multi-cultural ministry. People have seen their parishes change, or noticed the change outside their walls but not inside, and they are addressing it. Churches are being intentional about starting or changing ministries to make them more accessible, more welcoming and more effective for those from different cultures.

2. I am seeing more and more non-Anglo faces at the front of churches – praying, reading the bible, playing the guitar, leading services, preaching and on welcoming duty (the other front of church). This is so important so that people do not think we are mainly an Anglo church. I was nearly in tears during a service at Liverpool a couple of years ago when John 3:16 was read in about 15 languages. It was a special anniversary service, but still indicative of what is happens there.

3. I’m seeing a trickle of churches providing translation through hearing loops or even just someone quietly translating the service sitting in the back pews with others. This can be tough to organise logistically, let alone finding a translator, but it is extremely loving and welcoming. A few years ago, I was so thrilled to hear how Yagoona church had a student minister’s wife fluent in Chinese and was able to translate the sermon

for Chinese speakers sitting in the foyer, where they could look straight into the church (through glass) and hear God’s word in their heart language and not whispered. Creative and caring.

4. I think the biggest and best improvement has been the food. To the ethnic person, nothing says “Nice to meet you, but don’t stay too long” better than a packet of Family Assorted Creams to feed 100 people and a half-filled Styrofoam cup of tea. This has been one of my pet peeves. Food is the love language for most cultures. Food says “I love you” or “I don’t love you”. Lots of food means you want people to stay. When people have food to eat, they stay. When people stay, they talk. When people talk, family happens.

Further, what you serve also says you want people to stay. It’s been just a delight to go from the weekly Iced Vovo to seeing baklava, spring rolls, cannoli and the like, thoughtfully bringing a welcoming familiarity to those we seek to reach.

I think the “coffee culture” has helpfully come into play here as well. But many churches (pre-covid) really stepped up their morning teas and suppers and reaped the spiritual benefits. Ministers seem happier (and more rotund). I’d really love to see churches (especially in the Georges River Region) competing to see who has the best morning tea/supper…for the sake of the gospel, of course!

There are other encouragements I could mention - like an Arabic service and an Assyrian service commencing pre-covid, refugee ministries and so forth. Not forgetting the amazing ministries of already established cross-cultural ministries in the Diocese. That would be another article. But for now, this somewhat annoying Bishop simply wanted to say, “Well done. Keep going! May I have another slice of baklava please?” SC

The Rt Rev Peter Lin is Bishop of the Georges River Region.

Cults pursue online converts

The false teaching has always been out there; here’s what the approach looks like in 2021, writes J udy A dA mson .

You get a friendly Instagram message from someone you don’t know who seems keen to make Christian friends. You receive a Facebook request to “like” a group that looks Christian and posts Bible verses; people you know have “liked” it, so you do the same.

A new contact approaches you via email or social media with an invitation to a Bible study, or to take part in online teaching, or to ask you about your church.

Seems harmless, right? It might be so, of course, but all the above are recent examples of approaches made by cults to Sydney Anglicans.

One of those contacted was Renee Sheedy, the kids’ and families minister at Blacktown. She received a “request to follow” from the Instagram account of a young woman she didn’t know. We’ll call the young woman Sue.

“She was already following some friends and a few other churches and Christian organisations like LiT [Leaders in Training],” Mrs Sheedy says. “So, I accepted her request and not long after she messaged me asking how my church was going. She must have gone through my photos because she knew what church I was at.”

After a few messages, Sue said she attended Zion Church. Mrs Sheedy recognised its name – in a negative way – but before making any quick judgements, she checked with other friends following Sue on Instagram. She found all of them had been approached by Sue, and all had begun following her because she was following mutual friends or Christian organisations.

“It makes me concerned how easily she, and others, can connect with young people who follow public Christian accounts,” Mrs Sheedy says. “My account is not public, but the fact that I follow

accounts [like LiT and KYCK] is the first step to knowing that I must be connected to a church.

“I decided to start pushing back and asked her questions about Zion Church. I mentioned I have been serving or working in the church for over 10 years and had never previously heard of Zion Church. When I asked her what the church’s theological beliefs were, she stopped responding. I believe she realised that I was not the easy target she was hoping for, so she moved on.”

OUR PEOPLE NEED TO BE PROTECTED

Tore Klevjer, a Christian counsellor who spent more than a decade caught up in the Children of God cult and specialises in caring for those who’ve also been cult members, says some important ways to protect people in our churches are:

• make them aware of what is happening – “There is active recruiting going on online, and some of these people will be seeking to get you to join groups that are quite controlling and manipulative”.

• employ critical thinking, such as, “Why is this person trying to get Christians out of this church [or Bible study] and into another church in the first place?”

• provide education about what to look out for.

“If people do get drawn into a doubtful Bible study group, or they’re having a chat with someone they don’t know on the telephone or over coffee, it’s helpful if they know what markers to look out for,”

Mr Klevjer says.

“Giving church members some markers for an initial meeting can be easier to implement than just picking up cues online, because it may be someone who actually wants more information

Cults are using social media to engage with Christians. [about Christianity] and you don’t want to chase them away if that’s genuine.”

Some examples of what to watch out for include the person evading questions about themselves, what they believe, the church they belong to and who the leader is.

“A classic response from a cult recruiter is likely to be, ‘We don’t have a leader, we’re just like the early disciples – we all just have different giftings and no one is our leader’,” Mr Klevjer says. “And that’s nonsense because someone has to organise a meeting and bring people together.

“When confronted they are often very evasive with specifics about what they believe. You only have to talk to Jehovah’s Witnesses and Mormons to hear how they look for common ground straight away: ‘Oh yes, we believe in Jesus! We believe the Bible’.

“You’ve really got to corner people and press for information in order to get answers from them, because the deceptiveness is like salesmanship – you tell people how you can meet their needs with the product that you’re selling. So, if a person is feeling lost spiritually, they look at how to target that.”

RANDOM CONTACT

Dr Chris Thomson, who lectures in Old Testament at Moore College, recently received a private Instagram message from someone he didn’t know, representing a group he hadn’t heard of, inviting him to join a New Testament Bible study. He declined.

He advises people – particularly those interested in Jesus or younger in the faith – to be wary of similar approaches from people they don’t know. “It’s great that people are keen to study the Bible but be aware that cults are using social media to reach out, and treat any approach with caution,” he says.

“If possible, I’d encourage people to study the Bible with their church, Christian Union or friends, rather than strangers. And before joining any group, ask whether it is affiliated to an organisation or has a statement of faith so you can research them. If they don’t [have one] or are cagey, that could be a warning sign. If you attend an in-person meeting, make sure someone knows where you’re going and when you expect to be back.”

Mr Klevjer adds that, in the past, Bible-based churches have often labelled something a cult that is not doctrinally sound, yet he regards this as only part of the problem.

“The definition that most ex-cult people agree on, including myself, is that the main issue is manipulation and control of their members, as well as doctrine,” he says.

“Any pastor who takes too much control and manipulates the congregation into believing that they can’t leave this particular

church because they’ll go to hell if they do – or that this is the only or best way to find truth – has the same elitism and legalistic control methods that we find in the cults.”

In addition, red flags that might warn people about a cult aren’t always obvious.

“Often, it isn’t black and white,” Mr Klevjer says. “It can be very close [to Bible teaching] doctrinally, or very loose doctrinally. It can be very dogmatic around the rules of the church and very strict obedience to rules, or they throw the rule book out altogether and say the Bible doesn’t really matter.

“They’ve also usually got a superior writing, over and above the Bible. And they emphasise that the Holy Spirit speaks today – which he does, but he doesn’t contradict the written word! And they believe that it can. This can be the beginning of taking people up the garden path in any sort of direction.”

RECRUITMENT AND DECEIT

A couple of months ago the rector of Hoxton Park, the Rev David Clarke, received a personal email from Ted, a member of Shincheonji Church of Jesus or SCJ. This group originated in South Korea but its members have been active on Australian campuses for some years and are becoming increasingly busy online.

Ted’s email said, among other things, that he had been a Christian all his life but then lost his way, and in seeking to reconnect with God he had found SCJ – which he was “proud to say... has mastered the book of the Bible”. He urged Mr Clarke

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Request to follow: Renee Sheedy checks her social media feeds.

to not believe “false rumours” about the organisation, saying its members “believe in God, Jesus and his word”.

Says Mr Clarke: “Having read online about Shincheonji I was surprised to receive a personalised email from someone claiming to be a member, proactively defending them against the claims being made against them. It reminds us to keep teaching our church members to be discerning about those advertising ‘Bible study’ on university campuses.

“It takes so little effort to send an email out to a mailing list these days. They hit [lots of people] with these things, so by statistical chance they might find someone who’s willing or who might not understand the difference between what they teach and the teaching of a Bible-based church.”

The Sydney International Christian Church – formerly known as the Sydney Church of Christ – has been diligently seeking converts here for decades. It, too, now approaches people online.

The rector at Fairfield with Bossley Park, the Rev Stephen Shead, says earlier this year a young guy connected with the church was invited to an SICC Bible study and he went.

“He found it strange and pushy... one of the first things that they talked about was baptism, which he thought was weird,” Mr Shead says. “To say that in the first Bible study – that you have to be baptised into their church!”

He notes that a common thread from this kind of approach includes encouragement not to tell your pastor about it – and that the way people are contacted almost invariably bypasses their support structures.

It sends Mr Shead straight back to the Scriptures, noting that the Apostle Paul tells Jesus’ followers to do nothing in an underhanded way: “Rather, we have renounced secret and shameful ways; we do not use deception, nor do we distort the word of God. On the contrary, by setting forth the truth plainly we commend ourselves to everyone’s conscience in the sight of God” (2 Corinthians 4:2).

BE WARNED

So, if you’ve been approached by someone online, what should quickly ring alarm bells is if they want to take you away from your own church family to join their church, their Bible study and their way of thinking.

Mr Klevjer says that cults are primarily about recruiting new members, adding: “They try to do this by using Bible text out of context to prove that they have a superior doctrinal truth or new revelation. Mainstream churches are aware of such verses, but they don’t make them a central verse and doctrine – for example, that you have to leave your parents or your church you prove you’re Christian.”

Mrs Sheedy has now contacted all the families at Blacktown Anglican to warn them that there are cults using Instagram to make contact. Four teens in the church have since come to her with messages that made them suspicious. Two of them were from Sue, and two from someone else.

In addition, when Mrs Sheedy talked about the issue with friends at a party, “six of them showed me messages they’ve received from random people. Their accounts have all looked very similar and the messages have almost always been the same!

“They ask about how church is, encourage [the person approached] to visit their church online if they’re looking for something more ‘their style’... One of our youth girls said she started feeling unsure when the girl was encouraging her to come and get baptised at her church!

“Just this morning I checked if [Sue] has followed anyone else I know and, sure enough, she’d started following another one of my youth girls, so I sent a quick message to her and she blocked the account instantly.”

Mrs Sheedy has noticed that the Instagram accounts of unknowns who make contact contain very little personal information but always include a Bible reference. Many also list they are “looking for Christian friends”.

“I just scrolled through the list of accounts that [Sue] in particular is following and counted at least 25 churches, youth group and Uni Christian group accounts,” she says. “[Sue] started following our youth group’s account, but after being blocked by the majority of our youth, she’s now unfollowed it.

“And then of course you can follow hashtags like #jesus, #biblecolouring #christianmemes and other ‘youthy’ hashtags that open the way to millions of possible people to connect with. It’s quite scary.

“It’s so important that churches and families are aware of what’s going on. I love Instagram and I really value having connections with our young people over social media, but I hate the thought of young people being pursued online by cults.” SC

HOW CULT MEMBERS ARE APPROACHING CHRISTIANS ONLINE

• They’re “looking for Christian friends”.

• They may “like” or “follow” your church, friends and a range of Christian organisations. Ask questions – see if anyone knows them personally.

• You may be asked how your church life is going.

• You may be invited to a Bible study, regardless of whether you are already in one.

• You may be invited to view or participate in online teaching, although the person will likely be evasive about the teaching itself.

• Personal information tends to be sparse – few posts/ photos, but almost always a Bible verse.

• There will be initial attempts to find common ground, but there may also be lures to learn fuller or greater truths about faith.

GENERAL CULT MARKERS

• Belief that their group is the sole arbiter of the truth.

• Secrecy about group leadership and/or what is taught.

• Constant, active recruitment.

• Control and manipulation of members.

• Additional teachings that are often regarded as superior to the Bible.

• Disengagement from friends, family, churches etc that disagree with the group’s teaching.

• Lying and deceit to further the cause (such as attending a Bible-based church but secretly drawing members away into another “study”).

• No questioning allowed of the group’s beliefs and practices.

Thank you to Dr Ballantine-Jones for his timely and insightful article in the April Southern Cross. The stories that are emerging would suggest that this is a problem that has been around for longer than the easy access to pornography provided by the Internet.

Indeed, the Bible makes it clear that the dysfunction of male and female relationships and the abuse of God’s good gift of sex are the result of sin. It is concerning that, at the very time when our boys and girls need the loving wisdom and guidance of their parents, church and teachers, our parliaments are introducing legislation to restrain parents and schools from providing godly wisdom on matters of sexuality.

Philip Cooney Wentworth Falls

I was taken by the anecdote in David Peterson’s article on confession: the visitor asking why confession was necessary when we are forgiven in Christ’s work.

There seems to be a pervading misunderstanding that Christian faith is a mere transaction. No, it is a relationship of the gathered repentant with the Lord Creator. We are in continuous fellowship with our Saviour and are conscious both of our failings and his delight in forgiving us as we grow in faith and discipleship.

Indeed as my Anglican experience really started in the ‘high’ division of our diocese, I was ‘soaked’ in the confession at least weekly. I found it then, and now still in the occasional use in more evangelical churches a wonderful and deepening part of my walk of faith.

Just as my wife and I affirm our love and commitment through the warp and woof of family life, so do we who are redeemed want to reaffirm our joy in faith in confession

at every opportunity because of both the peace and thrill of spiritual growth as we know we are forgiven our many failings.

David Green Turramurra

I read the article in the March 2021 edition of Southern Cross by John Lavender “That the deaf may hear!” with interest as I had watched the TV story about Dr Graeme Clark, referred to in the article. Although the article wasn’t actually about ‘physical hearing’ but rather hearing the gospel, I would like to take it back to physical hearing.

For those of us who are hearing impaired it doesn’t matter what is preached or talked about if we can’t physically hear what is being said.

(Matthew 20:1-15)

Standin’ in the sun, talkin’ to the blokes, gettin’ all the news, hearin’ all the jokes, waitin’ for the boss-man, ’ungry for a job.

’Oo will be so lucky, ’oo will earn a bob?

Maybe it is time preachers, prayers, Bible readers, announcement makers and those on the sound desk were considered how best to reach everyone and not just those with reasonable to good hearing.

Listen to most great speakers and you will notice their voices are very easy to listen to and so those of us challenged by hearing loss can relax, listen and hear what they are saying.

Name Withheld

VACANT PARISHES

List of parishes and provisional parishes, vacant or becoming vacant as at 15 April 2021

Cabramatta*

Cherrybrook

Cronulla

Eagle Vale

Figtree

Granville Greenacre*

Gymea

Harbour

Church**

• Huskisson

Katoomba

Keiraville**

Kellyville

Liverpool

Menangle Minto Mosman, St Clement’s

• Paddington

• Peakhurst/ Mortdale Pymble Rosemeadow*

• Ryde

• Toongabbie

• Wahroonga, St Paul’s** Wilberforce

* denotes Provisional Parishes or Archbishop’s appointments ** right of nomination suspended/on hold Letters, poem, vacant parishes, position

St Peter’s Anglican Church, Weston (Canberra) is built on evangelical foundations with a strong emphasis on Bible teaching, a personal commitment to Christ, sharing the gospel in word and deed and being open to the presence, power and gifts of the Holy Spirit. We are seeking a new Rector (full-time) who can support our parish’s mission and train our people in faith and ministry.

A parish profile is available upon request. For more information or to apply please contact Bishop Mark Short: mark.short@anglicancg.org.au Phone: (02) 6232 3612

Closing date: 31 May 2021

stpetersweston.org.au

Sharp at nine the first lot was quick to get the nod,

And then at twelve and six again some others joined the squad.

But some of us was still there like bread without the butter –

The Boss come out and saw us and raised a mighty splutter:

“Why stand there a-grumblin’ when all this work’s to do?”

“We’re ready, sir, and willin’ and we will work for you.”

“Get at it then,” he said, “you all can earn a buck.”

At last, we said, at last – now everyone’s in luck.

So out we went to pick the grapes and singin’ all the way

We took the heat and bore the load and did it all for pay!

And pay it came – but what a blast us blokes paid first what came there last!

A full day’s pay for us was great but other blokes was sore –told the boss that for a whole day’s work they surely wanted more.

“Unfair, unfair,” they said. “Your way of paying’s wonky. This unfair way of payment is very, very shonky.”

Then the boss spoke up and said, “This is the way I choose. You all got paid the same – there’s no one here to lose.

If you are mean, then I am not – you see my smilin’ face.

So, go back home and learn again the wonder of God’s grace.”

David Hewetson

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A weaker way ?

Hannah Thiem

A Week Away

The Christian romantic comedy genre attempts to balance entertaining content and theological depth. Often it misses the mark, trading Christian messages for ‘feelgood’ stories with vague Biblical undertones. Yet when the balance is successfully struck, these movies can have a great impact on young viewers by engaging them with the message of the Gospel.

Netflix’s A Week Away is the latest offering in the Christian movie market. It stars Kevin Quinn as Will, an orphaned teenager who is given the choice to attend a Christian summer camp instead of being sent to juvenile detention. While initially sceptical, Will ends up falling for the camp leader’s daughter, Avery. Ultimately, Will finds himself being truly welcomed into the community and decides to leave his past crimes behind to be with her.

The film boasts an attractive, likeable cast but is in many respects another cheesy Christian romantic comedy. Marketed as a Christian Camp Rock, it features a range of contemporary Christian songs performed as musical numbers, which often appear as gimmicks that add little to the plot.

Amidst these flaws, the film still contains helpful messages when we examine Will’s experience of joining a Christian community. Will is presented as the outsider in the film, which positions him to question many of the corny caricatures he finds. He is overwhelmed by the excitement of the campers to participate in team games, sing Christian songs, and follow the camp code. Will’s past life is also treated as a secret that he needs to disclose. While it is important for him to repent and believe, this environment does not appear welcoming to those who are different.

Will’s experience could be seen to reflect the experience of non-Christians joining a Church community. Just like the protagonist, our friends and family are confronted by an arsenal of new jargon, acronyms, and activities that are often presented as assumed knowledge. Viewing these experiences should remind

us of the importance of explaining our services and dropping our jargon to welcome newcomers into our churches.

With the overwhelming amount of camp norms to pick up, a large focus is on how Will learns to ‘fit in’. Aided by his new foster brother, Will learns Christian traits like playing the four guitar chords used in worship songs, wearing a shirt reading ‘too blessed to be stressed’, and participating in team sports. This leaves little time for him to be taught about the story of the Bible.

This helpfully reflects a danger for us in welcoming non-Christians into our community. We may be excited when our friends come to church and pick up on its culture, but it’s most important that they grasp the truth of salvation accurately.

Unfortunately, this never truly occurs in the film. Will’s ‘redemption’ moment comes when he is running away from camp, then realises that he feels welcome there and fits in - rather than actually grasping the depth of his sin or Jesus’ sacrifice for him.

Christian romantic comedies are not designed to deal with the complexity of biblical truths, and we shouldn’t expect them to. Still, it’s helpful to be aware of theological inaccuracies when we show them to our friends or youth groups. A musical number proclaiming that no one needs to be ‘good enough’ appears positive, but is actually discussing the merit needed to date a romantic interest. We should be careful not to equate God’s grace with the world’s messages of self-love and self-worth.

Avery also explains to Will that she is not certain of her eternal future in Heaven, but she ‘chooses to believe’. It’s important to correct this understanding of faith to acknowledge the wonderful assurance of salvation we have in Jesus.

Leaving these concerns aside, A Week Away is a helpful movie for teenagers grappling with their place in God’s Kingdom. It can be helpful for adult Christians, too. As we consider how to welcome newcomers into our churches, we should examine what barriers we may be creating to the Gospel.