Spring 2024 Issue 58 / No 4
Editor: Bridget Ransome
Advertising: Engagement Team
Design: Alex Gatley
Print: Access Print
Print circulation: 6,200
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Phone: (08) 8236 4249
Email: engagement@sa.uca.org.au
Mail: The Editor, New Times GPO Box 2145
Adelaide SA 5001
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Synod of South Australia
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In this Spring edition of New Times, you will find a range of articles about the recent Synod Meeting. The meeting is a time for the church to come together to discuss and discern and make decisions about the future of the church, and the summary articles reflect the key deliberations and decisions made at this year’s meeting.
Prior to the Synod Meeting in September, I was fortunate to attend the 50th anniversary of the Australasian Religious Press Association (ARPA) conference. This conference was the last for the association as it had decided to wind up its operation. Despite the bittersweet ending of the association, I was warmly welcomed and met some wonderful people from a variety of different denominations, all committed to Christian media, writing, editing and publishing.
It was an opportunity for me to also hear about some of the history of the New Times magazine and I pay tribute to previous editors and to ARPA on page 36 of this issue.
As with any ending there are also new beginnings; and the commitment from those that participated at the ARPA conference was to continue to network and share information, ideas and opportunities to continue to promote Christian media across Australia and New Zealand.
In mentioning ‘new beginnings’ this Spring edition of New Times will also be my last as editor. I have been with the Uniting Church in South Australia now for nearly 5 years, and I have always enjoyed being a part of writing, editing and communications, in particular producing New Times. It seems I am a dedicated ‘word nerd’ and so I have embraced the opportunity to edit each issue of the magazine during my time with the Synod office as Executive Officer Engagement.
As mentioned with every ending there is the opportunity for new beginnings, and my new beginning will see me return to local government as CEO of a local government association. I look forward to my new challenge, and in leaving my current role, I acknowledge the Engagement team, and I thank the Uniting Church and wish you all the very best for the future.
Bridget Ransome Executive Officer Engagement
Many years ago, whilst undertaking introductory courses in Philosophy, I read Albert Camus’ ‘The Myth of Sisyphus.’ According to the Greek myth, Sisyphus is condemned to roll a rock up to the top of a mountain, only to have the rock roll back down to the bottom every time he reaches the top. In reflecting upon this myth, Camus explores absurdity, struggle, hopelessness, hope and ultimately happiness as some of the themes of human existence.
Why mention this as we lead into a season of celebration, of the joy of the Incarnation – the birth of Jesus, the promise of God with us? It is a season of highlighting love, joy, peace and hope as we centre our lives on God’s presence and ongoing witness through his Spirit.
I highlight the themes of struggle because we have too many stories of pain and suffering, personally and corporately. We cannot deny or explain away these experiences however we can continue to live in the Joy of the Gospel of Jesus. This is not a naïve understanding of joy, it can however be, as New Testament Theologian Willie Jennings describes, ‘An act of resistance against despair and its forces.’
This joy is fundamental to our faith as it confronts and stands in contrast to the potential overwhelm of our circumstances. It is not reliant upon our immediate experiences of pleasure, happiness or deep sadness. It is however grounded in the deep and abiding relationship we have with God through the person and work of Jesus Christ.
This joy is not transient, however there will be times our experience of joy may feel as though it has been significantly ‘interrupted.’ There is much for which we have to be grateful for, and for which we will have a heightened sense of joy. At the same time, we join in lament with those who suffer and question faith in times of profound loss. We also continue praying for Peace around our world, and for shelter and protection for those who have lost so much through acts of war, and of natural disasters.
As the Apostle Paul writes let us ‘Rejoice in hope; be patient in affliction; persevere in prayer (Romans 12:12).
Peter Morel Moderator
I remember vividly attending a meeting of a national group that discussed and worked on our theology of mission. It was the Tuesday after the Bali bombings. One of the local ministers we were meeting in Melbourne, tossed a copy of The Age into the middle of the table and said, ‘How are we going to respond to this?’ After some tentative attempts at answering his question, we put our agenda aside for the next couple of hours to discuss, ‘What does it mean to follow Jesus in the light of these attacks?’ ‘How do these changed circumstances influence the way we live out the gospel, and grow disciples?’
The same kind of questions are raised by our current circumstances with the 7th October attacks and the subsequent war in Gaza.
Some helpful reflections on these questions might arise from the traditional Advent themes of hope, peace, joy and love. During Advent we are given the opportunity to reflect on the meaning of this season of waiting and the meaning of Jesus’ coming into the world. We reflect on God’s promises to the people of Israel and how they are fulfilled in the life of Jesus.
We might also begin to think about how we embody the good news that Jesus is our hope and peace, source of joy and love. What practices might help us grow as disciples who live out these Advent themes and gifts?
The answer to these questions will vary from person to person and community to community. It helps though to reflect on them.
I find reading and memorising God’s promises from Scripture helps build my sense of hope. Deep breathing, especially associated with prayer exercises deepens my sense of peace. Though so does giving thought to what I say and how I say it.
I heard recently in a lecture how the Stoic Philosopher Epictetus encouraged his students to memorise helpful phrases so they could give appropriate responses under pressure. Christians have followed similar practices so that they speak peacefully under pressure.
We might also begin to think about how we embody the good news that Jesus is our hope and peace, source of joy and love. What practices might help us grow as disciples who live out these Advent themes and gifts?
Another time-honoured practice is taking time at the end of the day to recall where you have experienced God’s grace and giving thanks, developing gratitude and learning to experience joy in everyday moments. Similarly praying for others, giving generously to others and practicing acts of kindness might all help embody God’s love. This is not an exhaustive list – the Christian tradition is filled with practices that help us embody the good news. Our responsibility is to find those that work for us –and practice them!
By Rev Robert Cartridge
Friday 20th September was the beginning of a new chapter of my journey from candidate to ordained Minister.
This night could have easily focused on me, but instead, I want to emphasise God's call on my life and all the small threads that have been woven together to form this story. My journey stretches across all three presbyteries in South Australia, each contributing to the path that has led me here.
I hadn’t given much thought to the timing of my ordination, but September felt right—perhaps because 14 years ago, I was a 21-year-old soldier with everything packed and ready to deploy to Afghanistan. If you had told me then that I’d be standing here today, I would have laughed. The idea of becoming an ordained minister was far from my mind. Little did I know that the experiences I would face in Afghanistan would shape and change my life in profound ways.
After leaving the army, I began a journey of discovering faith and calling, eventually finding myself at Corro Uniting Church, where I also began to sense a leading to a mission organisation. Which meant study! At first, I rejected the idea of studying, largely because I had always struggled with reading and writing. But in 2017, after losing my job and feeling God’s prompting, I found myself praying. The word that came to me was ‘trust.’ So, I very hesitantly enrolled in the intern year at Uniting College and an internship at Seeds.
I was hesitant and if there had been a college subject on hiding in the kitchen and washing dishes, I’m sure I would have earned a high distinction! I vividly remembered one evening at the 6.00 pm service I was on the welcome team, standing on the steps looking out into the community and thinking, Who is out there meeting those where they are?
This always stuck with me.
In September 2018, after a conversation with Ann at the college, I began my Period of Discernment (POD). My first journal entry on September 14th, 2018, captured my uncertainty but also
Tayla Priebbenow & Robert Cartridge
The idea of becoming an ordained minister was far from my mind. Little did I know that the experiences I would face in Afghanistan would shape and change my life in profound ways.
my sense that God was using this journey to begin something deeper in me.
In 2019 that journey took me to Clarendon Uniting Church, more study and into two units of Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE). This time was filled with self-reflection, learning, forgiving, and growth. I started volunteer chaplaincy at RSL Care, the Jamie Larcombe Centre and Ashford Hospital.
I can look back on several things that have stayed with me from CPE. One is the Zulu greeting Sawubona, meaning ‘I see you’—I acknowledge you, I recognise you. It has become a guiding principle for me in ministry: the other is to meet people where they are, to see the unseen, and to hear the unheard.
‘We love because He first loved us.’ (1 John 4:19)
‘Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing so some have entertained angels without knowing it.’
(Hebrews 13:2)
Thank you to those who attended and shared in my ordination with me. This is just the beginning of a new chapter of what God has in store, and I’m grateful to be walking this path with all of you.
Presbytery of Southern SA
Our Presbytery (often known as POSSA) has 54 congregations in the Southern geographical area of South Australia, all the way to Mount Gambier.
We have small faithful country communities to large diverse city CBD congregations and everything in between.
Throughout the year PoSSA representatives visit congregations to preach, worship and enjoy the generous hospitality of each community.
by Jenny Esots Secretary Presbytery of Southern SA
Our presbytery values networking together to share the joys and challenges of ministry.
Our presbytery staff are Rev Lawrie Linggood, Chair of the Pastoral Relations Committee, Rev Peter McDonald Chairperson, Rev Anne Hewitt interim Presbytery Minister, Bronte Wilson Presbytery Pooled Ministry Project Officer and me as Secretary.
Our presbytery values networking together to share the joys and challenges of ministry. There are many opportunities for this including the PoSSA socials held each month at the Maid of Auckland Hotel in Edwardstown, where we have a private room made available to us.
We have pizza and a beverage or two and talk about what’s happening in our lives and ministry. It is every third Friday of the month at 3.00 pm. Shared meals occur throughout the year, the next one is our end of year gathering on Friday, November 15th @ Ascot @ 6.00 pm.
PoSSA tries to offer a variety of events at different times for those who cannot attend during the day.
We host regular workshops at our presbytery meetings. In 2025 we will be hosting four meetings/workshop events. At our upcoming AGM on November 16th @ Colonel Light Gardens we will have Peter McDonald talking on superannuation and AI; Anne Hewitt on congregational vitality; Elizabeth Vreugdenhil talking on church gatekeepers and Paul Goh (President Elect) on Intercultural Christianity.
In July of this year, our workshop included an interview and conversations with Carolyn and Fuzz Kitto on their ‘Be Slavery Free’ campaign to abolish modern day slavery. This included discussion on practical ways our community can assist in this campaign. We also held a clothes swap to highlight the complex
issue of fast fashion in cooperation with Carolyn Kitto. The workshop format builds capacity, makes connections and gives our own leaders a chance to share a ministry topic about which they are passionate.
PoSSA recognises the need for spiritual replenishment and has offered a spiritual retreat in 2023 and 2024, with plans for another in 2025. These happen in springtime, so stay tuned for news on the next one. We thank Rev Mandy Harvey for her leading in 2023 and David and Sue Woods in 2024.
Our Presbytery engages in property applications to seek how best resources can be used to fulfil all our obligations regarding safety, viability and vitality. Our presbytery is reliant on its leaders and those who generously offer their time on the Standing Committee, Pastoral Relations Committee, formation panels and a variety of other working groups. We thank all who offer their time, questions and explorations of how we as a presbytery can support our congregations.
PoSSA was recently able to joyfully celebrate the ordination of Robert Cartridge and his induction to the Wimala Presbytery at Woodville Uniting Church. We send our ongoing love and prayers for Robert in his ministry as a Deacon.
As secretary one of my jobs is to communicate news and information, this is principally done by a monthly newsletter and social media. If you would like to receive this regular update, please let me know: southern.secretary@sa.uca.org.au.
Every blessing to you all for Advent, Christmas and new adventures in Ministry in 2025.
2: Carolyn Kitto Be Slavery Free event
3: Max Howland at POSSA clothes swap event
The leadership of Wimala Presbytery changed in April as I was inducted as Chairperson.
At this meeting, we took time to talk to the people of Wimala about their hopes and dreams moving forward and building on the firm foundation of the previous Chairperson. Presbytery leadership considered this further at a Retreat Day in May.
It became very clear that some common themes were emerging:
• Let’s share more openly and regularly the good news stories of the Presbytery
• Let’s empower our congregations with more resources and connections so they can live more meaningfully into their local call from God, especially those which are lay-led
By Rev Dianne Holden
• Let’s encourage each other to think, dream and pray more innovatively as we move forward together into ‘new things’ God might be calling us to in a time of great change within the life of the church.
It has been delightful to see how God is growing people and congregations within the life of Wimala.
And some great stuff has been happening!
It has been delightful to see how God is growing people and congregations within the life of Wimala.
We have gathered and connected as we met for Presbytery meetings and returned to our congregations refreshed, encouraged and resourced to continue to minister in our diverse areas.
Now, we have also had to begin some hard conversations within the life of the Presbytery around building safety and missional viability as we consider the challenge that is the ‘new thing’ of Isaiah 43:18-19 that God might be calling us to in our specific contexts, particularly if our future might be looking grim.
The theme constantly emerges how do we survive this time and continue to worship and serve as God intends?
While the needs are immense and varied, we return to our initial mandate as a Presbytery – to care for the congregations and ministry agents within our bounds.
Considering this, what would it mean for our Presbytery to FLOURISH?
To FLOURISH as disciples.
To FLOURISH as congregations.
To FLOURISH as ministry agents.
To FLOURISH is to thrive, not just survive. It is to grow. It is to bear fruit. It is to prune what is superfluous.
This theme of FLOURISH will underpin our strategic planning into the new year; looking for signs of new growth and renewal and how to best support and educate each other in this to better go into the world as disciples of Jesus and share the good news.
By Rev Scott Button
Time and again we hear stories of how God’s people in the local church are doing the things Jesus has called them to do.
Generate Presbytery has now been in existence for 5 years. At the beginning of Generate Presbytery, Graham Humphris said ‘Being on God’s mission was an adventure of joy.’ The people of Generate Presbytery will attest to that being true! We summarise that mission this way:
‘Making Disciples Who Make Disciples.’ It underpins and guides:
• All that we do and teach
• How we steward our finances
• How we structure our staffing
• How we structure our gatherings.
This is lived out through our focus on:
• Seeing people Come to Faith in Jesus
• Growing Passionate Disciples
• Raising Courageous Leaders
• Planting and Renewing Churches.
While not all our congregations are thriving, many are on an adventure of joy as they reach out to a broken world and lost people with Jesus’ love and the Holy Spirit’s power.
Time and again we hear stories of how God’s people in the local church are doing the things Jesus has called them to do. As the Holy Spirit ministers in power and grace and lives are redeemed and transformed, extending God’s kingdom in their communities through those transformed lives. We continue to see many people, across all ages and diverse cultural and religious backgrounds come to faith in Jesus through a range of connections:
• The Alpha Course - in person and online, locally and internationally.
• Youth and children’s ministry and church based sports clubs
3: Multi-Cultural Mix
4: Evangelistic Bible Study Group in Retirement Village
• Congregational Websites and Live Streamed Services
• Personal witness, prayer and invitation
• Requests for infant baptism
• Coffee shop and op shop ministry
• Evangelical preaching
• Reading the Bible with non-Christian friends.
Through our Presbytery Gatherings (Online and in Person) we minimise business and major on worship, body ministry, relational connection, supported by focussed input to encourage mission focussed ministry.
Generate Presbytery’s leaders have the joy of supporting and encouraging our local Ministers, Pastors and lay leaders in their ministry and leadership in their communities. One way we do this is through our annual Pastor’s Retreat. This year we were blessed to have Tina Waldrom from Evangelism in Australia encourage us to lead by example in sharing our faith in ordinary everyday ways.
In maintaining our focus on our key themes, Generate Presbytery over 5 years has:
1. Supported six church plants with more being planned. The latest being Encounter Henley, who are being hosted by
Grange UC in their building and the Gardens Uniting Church as a replant with the Windsor Gardens UC
2. Local churches engage in missionally strategic partnerships with other congregations, some across Presbyteries
3. Seen a growing number of congregations participate in the renewal process
4. Seen dozens of people enter the leadership pipeline with over ten candidates for ordained ministry with more coming through the PoD
5. Have welcomed many into the role of MoP, including several different denominational backgrounds
6. Seen a growing number of migrants, finding their spiritual home with our congregations
7. Progressed strategic plans, in partnership with the Synod leadership, to develop missionally fruitful congregations, church plants and developed simple and replicable disciple making tools.
This we know. Few things are guaranteed in life. However, Jesus’ promise to support us when we engage in his mission remains as one that guarantees! We look forward to the adventure of joy, that is Jesus’ mission, continuing through 2025 and beyond.
The congregation at Port Vincent would like to highlight the contributions that Peter and Meg Bilney make to those of us living in Southern Yorke Peninsula (SYP) and surrounds. Peter and Meg are loyal and steadfast and they are inspiring in how they go about their daily lives.
At an SYP Finance meeting it was suggested that a remuneration be made to cover the Bilneys’ vehicle use in their many services to the churches. Peter and Meg refused to accept any money saying ‘this is their way of showing gratitude to God for His grace and mercy towards them.’
The following was written for the local SYP newsletter by Meg in May 2024. ‘Yesterday I wandered around the house trying to remember what has happened in our church (at Stansbury) during the past 3 months. Later, after a very hectic day I found time to gaze at the diary for inspiration. Then I imagined God saying, “I didn’t say it would be easy. I said it would be worth it.” And it is.’ Then Meg went on to comment how ‘everyone in our church helps and supports each other’ by giving examples of how everyone contributes, especially those members who have excellent leadership skills ‘which Peter and I don’t have.’
... this is their way of showing gratitude to God for His grace and mercy towards them.
We love the work that God has called us to do, knowing that only He gives us the strength to continue for the time He has allotted to us. He has given us a real love for each congregation that we visit.
Peter and Meg both served the community by becoming Volunteer Ambulance Officers for many years [Peter 34 yrs and Meg 21], Peter also was a CFS volunteer for 18 years until they shifted from Yorketown to Oaklands.
Peter and Meg now volunteer for the Stansbury Information Centre and are members of the Warooka Garden Club. On their extensive home block their once several hundreds of lavender plants have dwindled into about 55 bushes, but these are enough to fill sachets with dried seed over the coming year.
Meg also helps at Harvest Corner, Minlaton, and takes a Know Your Bible (KYB) study during the Autumn/Winter terms in Yorketown.
In his younger days, Peter worked as a shearer and then in the workforce of Adelaide Brighton Cement Quarry/Mine site. Meg was a schoolteacher at Yorketown Area School (YAS), later as a Director of the Yorketown Kindergarten and finally as a Training Officer for St John.
They met at a Rural Youth Christmas dance at Yorketown and were married in Pirie Street Methodist Church two years later. Peter and Meg take services each month for those in care at South Park Home and Melaleuca Nursing Home at Minlaton and Ardrossan Seaview Home.
They also take the services at Port Vincent, Edithburgh and Curramulka one Sunday a month, as well as being an active part of their home church at Stansbury. Meg also plays the organ at Port Vincent and will quite often assist Peter in bringing God’s word to the congregation. She supports the Stansbury Anglican congregation by playing the organ for a combined service every other month as well as leading the Warooka U/C service when the Stansbury Church goes to Warooka to support the congregation there.
They are both involved with Scripture Union and help bring the Scripture Union Family Beach Mission to Port Vincent for a week during January. Peter and Meg are always available to offer a listening ear, and to impart reflections and wisdom of their life experiences.
In Meg’s words … ‘We love the work that God has called us to do, knowing that only He gives us the strength to continue for the time He has allotted to us. He has given us a real love for each congregation that we visit.’
We are thankful and grateful for all that they do.
Peter leads the Stansbury’s Anzac Service for locals and visitors, with approximately 300 attending, and then conducts the Remembrance service in November each year.
I didn’t say it would be easy. I said it would be worth it.
For 75 years, church communities have been uniting through the Christmas Bowl Appeal to give hope to families who are displaced.
In 1949 Rev Frank Byatt first laid a bowl of remembrance on the Christmas dinner table asking his family to ‘share your good dinner with hungry children in other lands.’ The Christmas Bowl appeal was born.
Brian and Jillian Polkinghorne have been supporting the Christmas Bowl since Brian was the congregational minister in a South Australian country Uniting Church Parish in 1965.
‘It’s probably the most effective witness to Jesus. Love for the poor, the outcast, the widows, and the orphans. It is a matter of applying the love of God on a global dimension,’ said Brian.
For the Polkinghorne’s, their faith in action has defined their lives. Fifty years ago, the Christmas Bowl supported them to start an agriculture production and training centre in Tanzania.
‘It's part of the call of the gospel to be there for your neighbour. I just think we're so lucky in this country. We have so many blessings, and we see the injustices. We see the oppression, we see the unfairness of it all, and we just feel that we have to respond.’
Across oceans, families like Brian’s have been providing muchneeded support for families displaced by conflict and disaster. Families like Jane’s in Zimbabwe.
When Cyclone Idai hit in 2019, Jane lost everything.
She lost her three children in the cyclone. She spent two years living in a tent after the disaster and was one of 700 displaced families who required relocation.
For 75 years, generous families like Brian’s have been helping families like Jane’s to rebuild their lives.
Thanks to Christmas Bowl supporters, Act for Peace’s partner the Zimbabwe Council of Churches (ZCC) help to improve services like electricity, water, schools, health clinics and sanitation and hygiene for relocated families.
‘The cyclone started around 8.00 pm when I was asleep with the children in the house. I woke up to find the house shaking and about to collapse. I was taken up with the water. I fractured my skull and hurt my leg,’ said Jane.
Please join us in praying and acting for peace in the world as we celebrate the 75th anniversary of the Christmas Bowl. Please give today, by visiting: https://christmasbowl.actforpeace.org.au/
Many readers of New Times will recall the hungry weekend experience of the World Vision ‘40 Hour Famine,’ where participants went without food from Friday tea-time until Sunday lunch.
‘Well,’ says Rev Phil Hoffmann, Chaplain at Westminster School, ‘fundraising for international charity has got a lot harder.’
This year Phil was one of the six staff and the twenty-five students who recently shared in the Act for Peace [formerly ‘Christmas Bowl’] ‘Food Ration Challenge’ in which, for 3-5 days, students ate only the same rations as a refugee living in United Nations Relief camps: just a small amount of rice, flour, lentils, chickpeas, beans, fish and oil.
Phil noted to students his own personal connection to going without, ‘having personally seen those huge camps on the border between Jordan and Syria, a tent city for as far as the eye can see.’
I have never thought about food as much as I did over those few days. A piece of fruit looked like a delectable treat!
For several years Westminster School has been one of the major Australian school supporters of the ‘Food Ration Challenge,’ this year’s challenge raising a further $13,895 for refugee programs. This prompted Elijah Buol, CEO of Act for Peace to visit the school for a recent Senior Assembly, where he told Westminster’s 800 students of his experience of growing up in a war zone in South Sudan before coming to Australia as a lone 16-year-old, having lost both his parents before he turned 10.
But more than the money raised, Phil says, was the awareness gained by staff and students alike of the privilege of readily taking our next meal for granted. ‘I have never thought about food as much as I did over those few days. A piece of fruit looked like a delectable treat!’
$13,895 raised for refugee programs
24th-26th October
By Bridget Ransome
Day 1 of the Synod meeting opened with Allen Edwards giving a beautiful performance on the didgeridoo. He commented on a year that has gone by so fast and once again, we come together to celebrate as a church.
He welcomed all from other areas, from other cultures, respecting all and welcoming everyone's presence as we met on the land of the Kaurna. He paid his respects to all, and to elders, past, present and emerging.
Elissa Inglis welcomed all to worship.
‘May the grace and love of God call us; we are here because of the Lord; and his mercy has drawn us into his presence. We come together from many places, bringing our stories, hopes and challenges, yet united as one. The God who made us, and who walks with us, he invites us to worship with him.
As we enter into this time of worship, his love endures forever, through every generation and across every land. Let us remember it is the Lord who believes us, we are his people, the sheep of his pasture.’
Moderator Rev Peter Morel, spoke of the teachings of St Bernard of Clairvaux, asking us to consider the canal or the reservoir. Better that we are reservoirs - canals pour out what it receives, the reservoir retains the water and contains the overflow without reference to itself. We are called to be the very reservoirs as we come together and let us bring the fullness of Jesus Christ into this sacrament.
President Rev Charissa Suli gave a prayer in her native Tongan language. President Elect Rev Paul Goh followed with a prayer in Korean and Denis Msema prayed in French. Deidre Palmer prayed for all suffering in war and conflict, violence, and for those seeking refuge. For those living in fear and for those experiencing domestic violence and for the First Peoples of Australia.
The meeting took a moment of silence to acknowledge those that had passed away since the previous Synod meeting, thanking them for their faithful service to the church throughout their lives. A full list of names is available on the Synod website at this link:
https://sa.uca.org.au/synod-meeting-2024/A - Synod Meeting 2024
In forty years, much has changed in publishing and MediaCom has come to an end. Items that will continue to be offered include Upper Room; replacement of Seasons of the Spirit (lectionary-based curriculum); with the development of L3 Liturgy Learning and Purposeful Life, with website ordering now available at this link: https://www.liturgylearninglife.com/
Words for Worship is also lectionary based, and arrangements are being made for this to continue. Individuals and congregations were encouraged to tap into and utilise these resources.
A publishing company in South Australia will continue to print certificates and resources for the Uniting Church, and these are available at this link: https://www.wayzgoose.au/
President Rev Charissa Suli presented her Assembly Report. Acknowledging that this was the first time that she and Andrew Johnson, as new Assembly General Secretary, were able to present together.
Rev Suli reported on a very busy period in the life of the Assembly since the last report to this Synod. Most notable during this time was the 17th Assembly meeting, which took place in Parramatta in July. One important outcome of that meeting was the appointment of Mr Andrew Johnson as the new General Secretary of the Assembly and the opportunity to celebrate the election of Rev Dr Paul Goh as President-Elect of the Assembly.
Rev Suli thanked all who contributed to the recent call for prayer for the Middle East. Urging us as a church to be called to pray at this time. She also thanked the Moderators for their prompt response to this important initiative.
Andrew Johnson as General Secretary of the Assembly spoke about the three national agencies: Frontier Services, UnitingCare Network and UnitingWorld.
He also noted that the primary piece of business for the 17th Assembly was the passage of many parts of the Act2 proposals. He explained the three Act2 streams:
• Stream A: Life-giving Communities of Discipleship and Mission
• Stream B: A Network for a Flourishing Theological Culture
• Stream C: Sharing our Common Life and Wealth.
Two commissions are to be established to advance the work of Act2. The General Secretary urged all to sign up now for the National Update so-as to stay up-to-date with national news and national progress, and this can be done at this link: https://uniting.church/#subscribe.
The Strategy and Planning Mission and Property Report is the next stage in a long conversation of fifteen plus years in relation to on-going conversations about congregational mapping. The Working Group within the Synod office has been tasked to map missionally viable congregations that are fit for purpose.
The General Secretary has overseen the ongoing work of the Working Group which has continued to be resourced by experts in mission planning, property and planning, and key Synod staff. Representatives from the three presbyteries (nominated by each presbytery) have been added to the group this past year.
In the past 12 months the Working Group has engaged with presbyteries to conduct desktop analyses of congregations and their buildings.
The next steps are for the Presbyteries to continue having conversations with their congregations about where they are in terms of missional viability and building safety. These conversations will be supported and in part resourced by the Synod. The full report is available at this link: https://sa.uca.org.au/synod-meeting-2024/
Rev Doug Hosking
Rev Alan Jones
Rev Barry Oakley
Rev Brian Polkinghorne
Rev Baldwin Van der LindenDhont
By Prof Bart Bruehler
Would you like a tidbit of theology to chew on during your drive home from work on a Thursday evening? Well, you can find it at 5:30pm on Life FM (107.9) with ‘Theology Thursday.’ Theology Thursday is a 7–10-minute segment that airs every other week as part of Life FM’s regular weekday evening program The Takeover. Theology Thursday started with Tim Hein from UCLT, and when I arrived in my new position as Director of Biblical Studies at the College, he passed the baton onto me.
Theology Thursday aims to bring the insights of a serious theological and biblical study into dialogue with relevant issues in the public sphere. The radio segment gives the college a voice in the larger Christian community of Adelaide. I have been introduced to a number of people who then said, ‘Hey, I heard you on the radio!’ The segment provides a small taste to a large audience of the kind of careful and contextual theological thinking we do at UCLT. How we seek to bring the deep and profound process of faith seeking understanding to bear on topics of conversation in broader society.
The early segments in 2024 covered a wide variety of topics: The different branches of Christianity, violence in the Bible, the history of Easter celebrations, and the tragedy of domestic abuse. Over the winter and spring, we have been discussing the tenets of Moral Therapeutic Deism—a perspective that was developed through a major study of what young people believe.
These five tenets are: A God exists who created the world and watches over it. God wants people to be good, nice, and fair. The central goal of life is to be happy and to feel good about oneself. God is not particularly involved in one's life except when needed to resolve a problem. And good people go to heaven when they die. We cover each one over two weeks. Week one explores the claim itself and some of its Christian connections. Week two presents correction and critique, noting the problematic elements of each claim and how we might reply to them with a more fully Christian perspective.
Stay tuned! The Takeover now has new leadership, and more changes will be coming. We will have new topics and some other developments in 2025.
By Rev Prof Vicky Balabanski
A Bachelor of Ministry (Social Work Pathway) through the Uniting College integrates a year of social and behavioural sciences into an excellent ministry degree. This degree through the University of Divinity not only prepares students for a seamless transition to professional work serving the wider community, but also equips them with the skills to address diverse social challenges through a Christian lens.
Admission into the BMin (SW pathway) is not by ATAR, but by interview. Upon completing the BMin (SW pathway), students are eligible for direct admission into the Master of Social Work at Flinders University.
This new award is attractive to school leavers, as it offers a clear employment pathway into secular employment, while also deepening their knowledge of, and formation within the Christian faith. With a three-year BMin and a two-year Master of Social Work, the graduates will be well equipped for servant leadership. There is a real need for Social Workers who are also theologically trained and competent. This combination enables a bi-vocational pathway. Fewer congregations are able to support a full-time minister. With bi-vocational training, graduates can work for Church or government organisations, but also be competent to encourage and serve faith communities in rural and urban contexts.
The Government has identified the need for more trained workers in the Allied Health sector and Social Work. The BMin (SW pathway) offers an educational pathway for those who work in denominational organisations/agencies that are involved in the fields of social welfare. Graduates of the BMin (SW pathway) who proceed to a Master of SW would enable a greater number of theologically educated employees in these organisations/ agencies.
BMin (SW pathway) brings the benefits of theological/ministry studies to a wider cohort of students and extends the appeal of the BMin in practical ways, without losing its robust theological edge.
By Dr Rosemary Dewerse
There’s been an extra buzz around our community this year. Students and practitioners have been mixing and mingling, all around the topic of Community Ministry.
It’s the brainchild of Rev Scott Litchfield, who is passionate to see a renewal of not just training and professional development for Deacons and Chaplains, but for all people keen to live out their faith in service of and with others in their local communities.
Scott has crafted three units for study that explore the biblical, historical and contemporary stories of Community Ministry, or the diakonia of all believers, justice and community development, and the formation of people for ministry in liminal spaces (between church and community, in both-ways learning).
There’s been lots of discussion spilling into corridors during intensives and heaps of creative activity. (So far, alongside group presentations, online discussions and written reflections there has been a short film, podcast and visual offerings produced too).
The class has visited community projects and local churches and had stimulating evenings with chaplains and networks of active practitioners. Some other highlights so far have included visits to Murray Bridge, Scott’s Church, Cityview, Kurlana Tampawardli, and the Junction Community Centre; a restaurant dinner with a panel of chaplains, and opportunity to glean from the wisdom of Uncle Ken Sumner, Rev Paul Goh, Mark Waters and Rev Sandy Boyce, President of the Diakonia World Federation who flew in to give a keynote address to our class and practitioners from across the Synod!
Two students joined us from other states this year. Next year students from Uniting Theological College in Sydney will also join us, and one of our intensives will be on location there. It’s been great to have the UCA Assembly endorse this Community Ministry Pathway for Deacon training nationally, as well as professional development. Exciting times!
By Dr Toar Hutagalung
According to the Missional Review, one of the five strategies that the Uniting Church in South Australia needs to develop is intercultural capacity. What does it mean to be intercultural? Does ‘intercultural’ refer to something we do that builds bridges between different cultures, or is it about the way we should be, thus connecting with who we are? A related question is: Does one become intercultural by being born with multiple identities, or through moving between different worlds? I think the answer is both-and …
Born from Minahasa and Batak ethnicities, I have experienced at least two different worlds of languages, customs, and even foods. With my migration from island to island, nation to nation, and continent to continent, I have realised that my life has constantly existed in-between these multiple worlds. That in-between space enables me to partake in the various sacraments of God’s body, such as multiple churches or communities as the re-presentations of Christ. My constant movement in and out of these spaces demonstrates the power of that liminal (in-between) experience.
In that liminal space, I began the process of savouring different tastes. While kimchi (a Korean dish) tasted sour at first, it now tastes refreshing. A burrito (a Mexican dish) seemed strange initially, but now it’s addictive! When it comes to language, I learned that ‘fair dinkum’ means genuine in Australian slang, and ‘Fanum Tax’ means ‘to steal food’ among Generation Alpha. We all live in this ‘inter-‘space, where we need to develop our taste buds and reinterpret things. Developing intercultural awareness and experience is somehow incarnated in how I relate to matter/creation.
Living in Kaurna Country, I have begun to learn the importance of ‘respecting Country,’ a practice rooted in ancient traditions. The memory of Country is passed down from generation to generation among Indigenous peoples, much like Christians learning the sacred story of Jesus. This invites me to re-think the importance of practicing my Christian faith interculturally through engaging with liminal spaces. Perhaps we need to cultivate our intercultural capacity by focusing on where this ‘inter-‘space exists. Perhaps we can start by doing simple things like eating nasi goreng or a yam? Perhaps whenever we eat nasi goreng or a yam, can we challenge ourselves to find more about the history and the meaning behind the food?
By Rev Dr Tim Hein
We are thrilled to have launched a new, exciting partnership in 2024 between Arrow Leadership, Uniting College and the University of Divinity. This means a peak leadership development program for young leaders is now available as an accredited tertiary course, as part of the Diploma or Bachelor of Ministry. Many Uniting Church people have benefited from the Arrow Emerging Leaders program over the past 25 years, including Stu Cameron, Andy Hogarth, Ashlee Littleford and Peter Riggs. This partnership means that the program – with some further academic reflection – can be taken under the oversight of Uniting College.
Students complete four units: Leading Self, Leading Organisations, Leadership Development and Influencing Beyond. The new partnership brings that expertise into academic reflection and rigour.
Arrow describes the purpose of this program as being to transform the leadership of emerging Christian leaders, equipping them with the skills, resilience, capability and the Christ-centred foundation needed to navigate complex challenges and lead transformative change in their communities and beyond.
Seven new Uniting College students began their studies with Arrow Leadership in mid-2024.
‘I’m loving the course, and finding the academic reflection excellent and stretching, I’m learning so much and implementing lots of it already,’ said Bachelor of Ministry student Alyce Gardner.
If you are interested in the program, or know a young leader who might be, please contact Lynda Leitner at Uniting College: (08) 8416 8420 or email: info@untingcollege.edu.au.
Would you like to learn from Indigenous wisdom and go Walking on Country with Elders?
Two new units are on offer in 2025.
Yarta Wandatha, with Rev Dr Aunty Denise Champion, and Kungan Kaldowinyeri, with Rev Uncle Ken Sumner. Each unit is a 12-week journey through readings and yarning before and after a 4-day immersion on Country. These units can be studied for credit as part of an award (with assessment) or for audit (without assessment). Each is capped at 10 students.
For more information, please contact Lynda Leitner, Uniting College Registrar on (08) 8416 8464, or email lleitner@unitingcollege.edu.au
By Rev Dr Sean Gilbert
During 2024 I led three contemplative retreats. The first was with ministry candidates and faculty from the Victorian/Tasmanian Synod. The second with ministry candidates and faculty colleagues from South Australia; and most recently I led a contemplative retreat with members of Pilgrim Uniting Church. I have also participated in a week-long silent retreat interstate.
Why am I drawn to this unique form of ministry?
It started in 1995 when as a graduate student I took part in an immersive experience at Glastonbury Abbey, a Benedictine monastery south of Boston. The monks fascinated me! They were nothing like I imagined. In short, they were very human, yet alive to the desire to worship and serve God in community over a lifetime. There was nothing showy about them and I didn’t hear any great claims of personal transformation. But what they practiced was pressingly real. It obviously stuck!
Since then, I have returned regularly to centres of spiritual retreat; Sevenhill in the Clare Valley, the Monastery at Urrbrae,
Jamberoo Abbey near Kiama, Tarrawarra in the Yarra Valley and even back to Glastonbury numerous times. Why? I find that to read, reflect and meander, and to pray with the sisters or brothers primarily through chant or in silence, is the stuff of my centring – a needed catalyst for faith formation as a Christian and as a minister/teacher in the Uniting Church.
Granted, this practice might not appeal to all. But the distilled wisdom and grace that I have received over the years is suggestive that something of the richness of the monastic tradition is worthy of sharing, albeit in abbreviated form!
The underlying theme in all three retreats I led this year revolved around the Song of Songs and its celebration of desirous love (eros). Edgy perhaps, yet thoroughly biblical. A gifting of the Spirit that, ’carries yearning hearts from over here to there, launching the [imaginative] mind on a story.’ (Ann Carson). In other words, a goodly energy and direction of heart that arises without coercion and cannot be domesticated easily.
In this dynamic, yet patient context, faith formation takes on a whole new dimension. It is fuelled by desire and accompanied by indwelling Grace. It is a slow and steady growing. Indeed, it is a deepening and enlargement of soul within worlds of superficiality and wish dreaming.
... the distilled wisdom and grace that I have received over the years is suggestive that something of the richness of the monastic tradition is worthy of sharing, albeit in abbreviated form!
By Anita Woods
A special Thanksgiving Service was held on Sunday 4th August to celebrate 150 years since the Moonta Wesleyan Methodist (now Uniting) Church was officially opened on 2nd and 3rd August 1874.
The Church Council chairman, Doug Warmington, welcomed everyone from the high pulpit. Many old Methodist hymns were a highlight of the service, accompanied by organist Lorraine Burford, with prayers and the Bible reading read by longstanding lay preachers Roger Norris-Green, Doug Warmington, Gordon Woods, Christine Thornton and Marlene Thatcher, as well as current Ministers, Revs Sandy Webb and June Ladner.
A brief history of the church and its people over the 150 years was read by Anita Woods and a solo was sung by Craig Woodward, accompanied by pianist Coralynne Jones. Special guest preacher for the occasion was the Moderator for the Uniting Church in South Australia, Rev Peter Morel.
The first Wesleyan Chapel in the township of Moonta had been built on the Robert Street site, facing Queen Square, in February 1867, and extended in 1870, but was still too small, so the present larger church was built. The architect for this
grand Gothic-style building was Rowland Rees, CE, JP. Building contractors were Messrs Rossiter and Davies, with Messrs Nettleton and Thorne. History leaflets were given to those attending the service and are still available.
After the service those present moved into the hall (the original chapel) for afternoon tea. A special welcome was given to the past ministers who were able to attend, to past members and to guests from other churches. Amongst those present was Mrs Jenn Beckmann, a direct descendant of Samuel Rossiter, the third Moonta Mayor and one of the church’s builders. Greetings were given by Rev Sue Ellis, the chair of the Wimala Presbytery of the Uniting Church, Rev Diane Holden, and Acting Mayor Mr Peter Simms.
The anniversary cake was cut by Mrs Gwen Elsworthy, who spoke about her association with this church since her Sunday School days.
The launch of two books celebrating the life and writings of Rev Dr G Robert Iles held on Sunday October 13th was a great success so much so, that a reprint of one had to be arranged to ensure that both books could still be available for the recent Synod 2024 Meeting.
The books cover Robert’s life including key sermons and a separate volume is a series of lectures delivered to Defence Force Chaplains on the Danish Philosopher, Soren Kierkegaard.
140 people attended the Book Launch and were encouraged by a video presentation from former Uniting Church President Rev Professor James Haire. Professor Haire’s video was also used at Synod as he commended both books to those in attendance.
Robert was known as ‘George’ before moving to the United States in 1988. That may have confused some, but Robert knew who he was. He was Janis’s husband and God’s man. Every ministerial calling was marked by congregational growth and requests for he and Janis to extend their stay.
The books are a compilation of his life, his sermons and his lectures, and they are only $10 each.
Anyone wanting to access them should contact the Walkerville Uniting Church office on (08) 8342 5875 and leave a message for Janis Iles or Neil Andrew.
In the Australian outback, Christmas can be quiet. In some remote communities, there won’t be Christmas carols in the air. In some faraway properties, children won’t have presents to unwrap come Christmas morning. The sad reality is that children in rural and remote areas often miss out—not just at Christmas, but all year round.
According to the 2024 Child Social Exclusion Index, a report by UnitingCare and the University of Canberra, nearly half of children living in regional communities face high or very high risk of social exclusion. The report states:
‘Many children experience disadvantage on multiple fronts, lacking the opportunities and family resources to be socially connected and to be able to participate fully in their local communities.’
This is no surprise to Frontier Services Bush Chaplains, the frontline staff who live and work among these remote communities every day. It confirms what we’ve seen and known for a long time: our kids living in the outback are not given a level playing field.
Bush Chaplains work day and night to be the connection and support that families and children in the bush need. They travel vast distances to be physically and emotionally there for those who feel alone and disconnected from society.
And they will be working hard this Christmas. Bush Chaplain Jennie will be travelling the outback to bring songs, presents, and the
Bush Chaplains work day and night to be the connection and support that families and children in the bush need.
Christmas spirit to isolated communities in Queensland. In South Australia, Bush Chaplains Sunny and Julia will be delivering food hampers and presents. In Western Australia, Bush Chaplain Lindsay and a few of his teenage music students will be doing a special Christmas performance for elderly people in Kalgoorlie. In a small community in Far North Queensland, Bush Chaplain Joe will be hosting a humble barbeque and bringing presents to children who often go without.
We are so grateful to our community of supporters for helping Bush Chaplains bring the spirit of Christmas to people in remote areas, showing children in the bush that they are not forgotten and that kind and determined people are there for them - at Christmas and beyond.
Your donation of $20 today could buy a book, an art set, or an educational toy for a child in the bush. It could help pay for 10 litres of fuel to help Bush Chaplains travel the distance to families and children on remote properties. Please donate before Christmas at frontierservices.org/donate
Together with her sister Jane, Naomi volunteered to help Bruce and Mary on their cattle farm in central western NSW. Naomi is a nurse in the outback, but she and Jane grew up on a broadacre farm for crops and sheep.
‘We’re country girls through and through. We wanted to give back to people out in the bush.’ Bruce and Mary are getting older, and Bruce was recovering from a bad accident. He wasn’t able to get to all the jobs he usually could.
It was rewarding for us as well. We got a lot out of it.
‘And Mary’s an absolute trooper, a true lady of the land,’ says Naomi. ‘She hadn’t left the farm in years except for essential shopping trips. I think it was a little bit of a break for them to have some help. It was hard for them to have a long list of things to do, but not be able to do them.’
Naomi and Jane got stuck straight into it, helping with fencing and repairing creek lines.
‘We brought youth and energy, but we learned so much in that time. Mary and Bruce have been on the land for that long and have so much experience and so much to share. They were really generous and put us up in their house. Even at the start of the day, you might sit down for an hour and chat or share a meal at night and sit around and chat then. You’re not just giving to them through skills, but also socially. And for me, hearing amazing stories and having those chats was very meaningful.
It was rewarding for us as well. We got a lot out of it.’ Naomi says she would thoroughly recommend volunteering with Outback Links.
You
give back a little bit and make a big difference
By Frontier Services
It was a lifelong dream for Naomi to volunteer with Frontier Services, and late last year, she finally did. Was it everything she dreamed of?
‘And more!’
You’re not just giving to them through skills, but also socially. And for me, hearing amazing stories and having those chats was very meaningful.
'There are people like Bruce and Mary who won’t ask for help, but the need is definitely, definitely there. You can give back a little bit and make a big difference. You meet amazing people doing it as well.’
Your support helps fund the Outback Links program. Thank you so much for making this work possible.
To register your interest in Outback Links go to: https://frontierservices.org/volunteering-to-change-lives/
By Frontier Services
Thanks to the ongoing support of Frontier Services’ Bush Chaplains, Julia and the community of Oodnadatta will soon have a dedicated place to gather in fellowship and mateship.
Here in this little community, we have to come together as one, because we have no one else to turn to.
In Bush Chaplain Julia’s patch of Oodnadatta in South Australia, the nearest town is over two hours’ drive away. That kind of isolation makes finding connection tough.
This is why Julia is looking forward to the completion of the new church, a project that kicked off last year, led by Julia.
‘Here in this little community, we have to come together as one, because we have no one else to turn to.’ [We’ve needed] a place where people can find healing in themselves. It’s so disconnected here, and having this church will really bring people together.’
Building a church in one of the hottest and remotest parts of the country isn’t easy. But knowing that there is an entire world of support extending far beyond the dirt road into Oodnadatta, Julia has kept faith. Faith that the humble church will be a haven where people can connect, heal, and celebrate in the Outback.
With the church almost ready, she is so thankful for the care and generosity of people across the Uniting Church that has helped them get over the line. Julia says that without it, her work in Oodnadatta and projects like this just wouldn’t be possible.
By Bridget Ransome
In 1974 our world was a very different place to what it is now.
It was the year of the Watergate scandal which toppled President Richard Nixon; the Berlin wall still separated East from West Germany; and Muhammad Ali fought George Foreman!
Post-It notes were invented that year along with the Rubik’s Cube! ‘The Way We Were’ by Barbra Streisand topped the charts; and Towering Inferno was popular at the box office; with Stephen King releasing his first novel Carrie!
In Australia, the Prime Minister was Gough Whitlam and Cyclone Tracy devastated Darwin.
It was also the year that the Australasian Religious Press Association (ARPA) was first established. An association designed to provide those that are called to Christian media to have a platform to collaborate, network and the opportunity to exchange ideas and information, whether a large religious denomination or smaller organisation, it was for all involved in Christian media in Australia.
Move to September 2024 and ARPA at its most recent conference held in the Gold Coast, has just celebrated 50 years.
As the Editor of New Times I was invited to attend this last ‘swan song’ for the association as it sought to wind up its activities. The association is coming to an end for various reasons, including the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and the advent of more and more online digital communications; so it was a bittersweet moment, as those denominations gathered at the conference and shared a rich history of people, publications, stories and camaraderie across 50 years.
Journalists, editors, writers gathered together, and I was humbled to be a part of understanding those that have come before me as writers and editors of New Times
Tony Nancarrow was acknowledged as a past President of the association, and this was also at a time when New Times was called Central Times. Nick Kerr and David Bausch were also acknowledged for their contribution in growing and developing New Times during their editorships.
From my time at the conference, I found ecumenical diversity, with an understanding that we are all sharing significance from a Christian base. As ARPA grew a New Zealand chapter was formed, a Religious Press Directory was created and education and the sharing of ideas and networking support became a driving characteristic of the association.
ARPA developed an annual conference, and then added to their activities by creating awards recognising excellence in Christian communications. New Times has been a significant recipient of these awards, including the top award – the Gutenberg – for overall excellence in Christian communication.
One of the speakers at the conference spoke of the future of Christian media. That regardless of the relentless march of technology, religion is relevant, and we need creativity and courage to take those messages out into the world.
As the conference came to a close, there was a collective desire to continue to connect with colleagues from Australia and New Zealand
‘Christian journalism is a calling. We write what we see from a God perspective, emphasising and leading into a life of faith,’ said Peter Bentley who was the convenor of this final ARPA conference.
Christian journalism is a calling. We write what we see from a God perspective, emphasising and leading into a life of faith.
We love because God first loved us.
1 John 4:19
Each year the Uniting Church in South Australia provides congregations and individuals with lectionary readings and important dates related to the life of the church within its annual Calendar publication.
The 2025 Calendar is well advanced in design and content. The inspiration for next year is a focus on the church 'through their eyes,' and continues the Moderator's theme of Love, Hope, Peace and Joy - not just at Christmas time, but throughout the year.
All congregations and organisations wishing to order printed calendars can do so by placing their orders up until 1st December 2024 (inclusive). Printed calendars will be priced at $10 each (however all orders received after the early bird ordering period –which closes on the 1st December – will be priced at $12 each).
Calendars can be picked up from the Synod office (Level 2, 212 Pirie Street, Adelaide) from Monday, 2nd December 2024 onwards. They may also be posted at an additional cost for postage and handling.
Orders must be placed using the Calendar order form which is available via this link: https://ucasa.org.au/calendars
Please note, orders must be paid for by a credit or debit card, as we do not have the capacity to issue invoices.
For more information or if you have any questions or queries please send them through via email only to the Engagement team at: engagement@sa.uca.org.au
Postcards are a great way to inform congregations and your wider local communities about Christmas service times.
The Uniting Church Synod of South Australia’s Engagement Ministry Centre has designed a postcard for your use across the Christmas and New Year period.
Also on offer are a range of resources to encourage congregations to build relationships with their immediate community and to provide a place of welcome where all can share in the companionship of the season. Postcards and accompanying posters can be ordered from the Engagement Ministry Centre and can be sent directly to your congregation from the printer or can be picked up from the Synod office on Level 2, 212 Pirie Street, Adelaide. The Moderator's Christmas message is now available, along with a collection of free, downloadable PowerPoint slides and social media graphics for congregational use, accessible on the Synod website at this link: https://sa.uca.org.au/christmas
The CMLA will be giving away a full subscription to the Walk as One Music Packs to one new follower to their Facebook page between now and the end of November 2024. This giveaway includes all 5 music packs plus bonus songs, a total of 29 songs. Please ‘follow’ their page and tag them in a post on your Facebook profile. One new follower will be selected randomly on 1st December 2024. The link to their page is: https://facebook.com/cmlaunitingchurchsa.
The fifth pack of contemporary Australian worship music will be released in early December. Songs by Rosie O'Reilly, Sharonne Price, Steve Bevis and Robin Mann from the Walk as One songbook are available as audio files, lyric videos, sheet music, PowerPoint files and text files. Each pack is $35 or $150 for all five packs plus bonus songs. For details please visit: https://www.cmla.org.au/
On Tuesday 21st January 2025, the CMLA will host a day of creativity and reflection. Explore watercolour painting as an expression of your own life story or experiences - to interpret a recent event, a special place, a memory, or some other moment. Morning and afternoon sessions with Karan Hudson. Express your creativity with poetry, prose or other reflective writing in a retreat space. Led by Paul Turley, Bridgewater Uniting Church from 10.00am - 3.30pm. More details to come in early December.
In January 2025 CMLA will be publishing From Advent to Emmaus, a book of drama scripts for the Year of Luke, by Jim Hayward. Each script features Dr Luke narrating a gospel passage to his faithful scribe, with a dialogue between the two about the text. The scripts arise from Jim's worship leadership over several years. They are insightful, witty, humorous and thought -provoking. More details soon.
CMLA would love to stay in touch with you. Visit their website and subscribe to their newsletter - www.cmla.org.au.
Follow on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/cmlaunitingchurchsa
Join their Facebook Group https://www.facebook.com/groups/734120111894737
Are you looking for a place where your faith, knowledge, and personal growth can thrive?
Studying with us will equip you to lead effectively, deepen your faith and theological understanding, and enable you to inspire positive change within the community.
Study Areas:
• Biblical Studies
• Church History
• Practical Theology & Ministry
• Leadership
• Theology
• Mission
• Indigenous Studies
• Sociology
• Pastoral Care
• Community Ministry
• Spirituality
• Chaplaincy
Specialised Pathways:
• Social Work
• Community Ministry
• Graduate Certificate in Leadership
• Undergraduate studies through Arrow Leadership
• Experienced Faculty: Learn from highly qualified and passionate educators dedicated to your growth.
• Personalised Support: Engage in a community where you are known, supported and valued.
• Hands-on Learning: Real-world experience with community placements and practical training.
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FEE-HELP is available to all Australian citizens to pay tuition fees. Numerous scholarships are also available to assist with the cost of study or fees.
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Morialta Charitable Trust Fund has been supporting disadvantaged children, young people and their families in South Australia through its annual program of distributions for 40 years. To enable the Fund to continue this support through community organisations in South Australia, Morialta Charitable Trust Fund seeks donations from the public. Donations of $2 and above are tax deductible and can be forwarded to the Morialta Charitable Trust Fund at PO Box 92, Crafers SA 5152
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Placements Finalised as at 22nd October 2024
Rev Mark Dickens to Chaplaincy and Supervision Officer (0.5) from 1 January 2025
Rev Anne Hewitt to Blackwood UC from 1 January 2025
Darian Jones (MOP) to County Jervois from 1 November 2024
Rev Barry Luke to Western Eyre from 1 January 2025
Generate Presbytery
Ceduna UC (0.6)
Echunga UC
Flinders(0.6)
Booleroo Centre UC, Booleroo Whim UC, Quorn UC, Wirrabara UC, Wilmington UC
Goolwa UC
Kangaroo Island Linked Congregations from January 2025
Naracoorte UC
The Vines UC (0.7)
Woodside UC
Presbytery of Southern SA
Rosefield UC
Seacliff UC
Unley UC (0.3)
Pool Ministry (up to 3 placements)
Wimala Presbytery
Morialta UC
Placements Across Two Presbyteries
South West Fleurieu (0.5-0.6)
Presbytery of Southern SA and Generate
Generate Presbytery
Lighthouse, Port Pirie UC (0.5) from 1 January 2025
Port Augusta UC (0.5)
Waikerie UC (0.6)
Presbytery of Southern SA
Noarlunga UC (0.8)
Yilki UC (0.3) from 1 January 2025
Wimala Presbytery
Goyder Ministry Area (0.8) from 1 November 2024
Lefevre UC (0.2)
For more information about placements, please visit sa.uca.org.au
