Encounter April/May 2018

ENCOUNTER APRIL/MAY 2018 | ISSUE NO. 476

r i s s i e n e !

H SETTING TO WORK

HERALDING A NEW ERA

RESTORING LIFE

Bishop Peter shares his reflections on setting to work on repairing our life around love and filling the cracks of our ongoing story with a holy response fashioned in the image of Jesus

Encounter took some time to chat with Archdeacon Sonia and Archdeacon Charlie in the lead up to their Episcopal Ordination to find out their aspirations for their new ministry

As we look closer at restoring hope throughout the season of Easter, Samaritans has a touching story of overcoming hardship and addiction from their post-release services

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SETTING TO WORK

Setting to Work

"We will never forget the cracks but we can see them filled with a profoundly holy response fashioned in the image of Jesus."

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SETTING TO WORK

BISHOP PETER STUART bishoppeter@newcastleanglican.org.au

I am often asked if it is any different being the Diocesan Bishop rather than being the Administrator or the Assistant Bishop. The simple answer is "yes". For all of my episcopal ministry there has either been another bishop to look to or another bishop coming to lead. I feel that I have been given an incredible gift with the invitation to lead the Diocese of Newcastle but with that gift comes the vivid sense that I carry an incredible responsibility.

I am delighted that the Diocese has warmly embraced the idea that Sonia Roulston and Charlie Murry will join me in episcopal ministry here.

It will be a wonderful occasion on May 10 in the Cathedral. The retreat conductor and preacher will be Bishop Alison Taylor who is retiring as Assistant Bishop from the Diocese of Brisbane.

As I have begun my new ministry among you my invitation to the Diocese, based on Jesus' teaching, is that we might have abundant life. My prayer and my vision is that we will flourish by grace. There are some wonderful green shoots of creative change. It is a delight to see clergy and people re-energise existing ministries and embrace new opportunities. We are people of hope.

As a Diocese, we are still coming to terms with the case study report from the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. In a private conversation one of the Commissioners guided me towards our culture, indicating that the cultural issues were wider than that of child sexual abuse.

The accounting firm, Ernst and Young, prepared an interesting discussion paper on culture in 2016.

They define organisational culture as the collective values and beliefs that exist in an organisation, or parts of an organisation, that inform and influence behaviours, actions and decision making.

One of the risks for us is that we will do all of the work following the Royal Commission because we sense we have to rather because we want to.

Let me explain. We can have all of the policies, forms, and checklists in the world but if our hearts are not turned to keeping people safe these instruments will be to no avail.

One of the pivotal cultural questions from the Royal Commission to organisations across Australia was simply, "Do you make it a priority to keep children safe?"

As we respond we are taken to the heart of the Christian faith where we find the command to love. "Love one another as I have loved you."

"Love your neighbour as yourself."

Central to the command to love is the call to afford other people the highest esteem; to always seek the best for them. These are lofty ideals but they are also central. They shape our Christian identity. When love is our highest value, compassionate care should always follow. Keeping people safe is one expression of compassionate care.

Over the last few years, we as a Diocese, have been living with the knowledge that our living of love was and is fractured. We have been coming to terms with the fact that cracks have emerged in our life which are plain to see.

One response to something that is broken is to throw it away. Another response is to fix it. The Japanese have an art of repairing broken pottery called "Kintsugi" with filling mixed with something valuable such as gold dust. Once finished, the repairs are easy to see but the renewed object is as beautiful or perhaps more beautiful than before.

As a philosophical approach, the breaks are not disguised but openly part of an ongoing story.

Our call is to claim again the gift of love and make it a deep part of our response. We will never forget the cracks but we can see them filled

with a profoundly holy response fashioned in the image of Jesus.

When I think of enduring marks I am always drawn to the Easter stories in John's Gospel where we learn that the marks of the cross were on Jesus' resurrection body. The Risen One bears the mark of the journey but proves in himself that love conquers evil and sin. Love brings new life.

Repairing our life around love would be a profound ask on its own but more is being asked of us. In a large measure, much of the Diocese is structured as it was 25 years ago.

We have about the same number of parishes. At the same time the population around us has changed.

In 1991, 27% of the NSW claimed an Anglican affiliation. In 2016, this was 16%. There are villages, suburbs and towns with a strong Christian identity and others where Christianity clearly has less influence in the way people think, live and act. It is becoming increasingly clear that our inherited ways of being diocese cannot bear the weight of mission in the ways they once did. So much has changed around us that we need to further adapt in order that we might find the creative expression of 21st Century ministry.

In April, I will be holding five regional gatherings to explore these themes further and grapple with some of the proposed solutions. These will be important but not necessarily easy conversations. Our love for Christ, our love for Christ's Church, our love for each other and our love for the people we are called to serve must fashion this work together.

My prayer is that like a pot glistening with gold of repair, we might so grow and mature that we reflect the love of Christ to ourselves and the world around.

Easter blessings, + Peter

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THIS EDITION 2 Reflections 4

Topics

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Heralding a new era

10

Restoring hope after prison

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Modern Parenting

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Thinking About Faith

TOPICS

Top End Golden Jubilees Celebrated Downunder

18 Q+A 20

The Environment

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Meet the Ordinands

24

Around the Diocese

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What's On

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Review + Puzzle

The Anglican Encounter, the magazine of the Anglican Diocese of Newcastle, is published bimonthly from February to December. The Anglican Encounter is a member of the Australasian Religious Press Association.

Contact Details PO Box 817 Newcastle NSW 2300 P: 02 4926 3733 F: 02 4926 1968 E: editor@newcastleanglican.org.au www.newcastleanglican.org.au Production Team Editor/Designer: Louise Mackay Publisher: The Rev'd Murray Woolnough Editorial Committee: Robyn Ashley-Brown, Emma Clark, Dianne Rayson Proofreaders: Kath Dockrill, Pat Dring, Barbara Sweet, Judith Weaver, Pamela Lusty Printing & Distribution Printer: BlueStar Web Distribution: House With No Steps, Newcastle Subscriptions Local $30 per year; Overseas $40 AUD per year. To subscribe send your name, address and a cheque made out to the Anglican Diocese of Newcastle, to The Editor, PO Box 817, Newcastle NSW 2300.

Territory was marked by friends of the diocese with an afternoon tea hosted by St James', King Street, and attended by Bishop Ken Mason and some of his successors – the Rt Rev'ds Clyde Wood, Greg Thompson and Dr Greg Anderson, who has been the diocesan bishop since 2014.

In Brief

Advertising Advertise with us - great rates. Contact the editor for a rate card and bookings.

The Editor is not responsible for opinions expressed by contributors, nor do their views necessarily reflect the policy of this paper or of the Diocese. Acceptance of advertisements does not necessarily mean endorsement of product or service.

RETIREMENT: The Rev'd David Smith the current Rector of the Parish of Hamilton has announced that he will be retiring on May 20 2018.

Contributions Welcome The Editor and Editorial Committee welcome contributions of stories and photographs for consideration for publication. The Editor and Editorial Committee reserve the right to edit or cut all submitted material. Submissions can be emailed to the Editor (please send images as high res JPEG or TIFF attachments).

Articles should be a maximum of 250 words and are not guaranteed publication. Please supply your contact details.

Bishop Peter announced that the Rev'd Allan Bate has accepted the invitation to be the Canon for Evangelism and Evangelical Ministries. Canon Bate will exercise leadership in assisting the development of a diocesan expression of Anglican evangelicalism and offer support to clergy seeking to renew their work of evangelism.

Bishop Peter also announced that the Rev'd Kesh Govan has accepted the invitation to be the Canon for Fresh Expression and Ministry Innovation. Canon Govan will exercise leadership in promoting ministry innovation and offer support to clergy engaged in fresh expressions of ministry.

Canon Bate and Canon Govan join Canon Paul West who is the Canon for Theology, Mission and the Arts. Canon West exercises an important ministry as theologian which is also expressed in representing the Diocese to various arts communities and exploring ways in which the visual arts might be more deeply connected with the mission and ministry of parishes across the Diocese.

Next Deadline: May 11, 2018

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On March 4 celebrations for the 50th Anniversary of the Diocese of the Northern Territory were in full swing in Sydney. Four bishops of the diocese, including Bishop Greg Thompson, were present at the celebrations.

The anniversary of the establishment of the Diocese of the Northern

CANONS TO THE ORDINARY: The Diocesan Ordinances allow the Bishop to create three positions described as Canon to the Ordinary. These positions allow the Bishop to discern and call clergy who will focus on an area of ministry specialisation and be a resource to the Bishop and the whole Diocese.

TOPICS

Corrective Services farewell beloved Reverend Rod Counsellor. Confidant. And convict.

Corrective Services NSW Chaplaincy Co-ordinator Rev'd Rod Moore has been all those things, and after ministering to NSW inmates for a quarter of a century, he is hanging up his robes for retirement.

Minister for Corrections David Elliott thanked the Rev'd Rod for providing support, wisdom and succour to countless inmates and staff for over a quarter of a century.

"Rev'd Rod's devotion and understanding has been appreciated by inmates and staff alike. He's living proof of the power of hope, and he'll be dearly missed," Mr Elliott said.

Corrective Services NSW Commissioner Peter Severin also paid tribute to the much loved chaplain.

"With real understanding based on personal experience, coupled with deep compassion and a nononsense manner, prisoners and staff have alike come to trust Rev'd Rod, knowing he's 'the real deal'," Mr Severin said.

The Rev'd Rod said he'd miss his "challenging, exhausting and amazingly rewarding vocation" and especially all the friends he's made among staff, inmates and other chaplains.

"My advice to inmates is that there's a better life if you're willing to open yourself. Everyone's got a hope of changing, becoming better people, and of leading good lives of meaning

and positivity," he said.

"I encourage all of the wonderful staff at Corrective Services to help inmates to do that, and for inmates to take advantage of those opportunities."

Although you wouldn't know it to look at him, the avuncular, bespectacled priest was once an outlaw bikie.

After fleeing his broken home at 15, he rode with an outlaw motorcycle gang and struggled with a raging drug addiction, before doing a stint in the old Parramatta Prison and finding God. The Rev'd Rod Moore was ordained an Anglican priest in 1986, and worked at churches in Newcastle and the Hunter Valley for eight years until

becoming a prison chaplain in 1992.

From only half a dozen full-time chaplains 20 years ago, Corrective Services NSW now has Australia's largest prison chaplaincy program, with over 80 full-time and part-time chaplains from nearly every Christian denomination. Additionally, Jewish rabbis, Buddhist monks and nuns and Islamic imams also minister to inmates and offer them comfort and hope.

Before taking up duties as President of the International Prison Chaplains' Association, the Rev'd Rod was honoured with a retirement farewell at the Brush Farm Corrective Services Academy at Eastwood in Sydney's north-west on January 24 2018.

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Heralding a new

era

LOUISE MACKAY EDITOR, ENCOUNTER The Diocese of Newcastle will make history in 2018, not only appointing two Assistant Bishops to the Diocese, but it will also see the first woman bishop serve in the diocese. Bishop Peter Stuart announced on February 3 that Archdeacon Sonia Roulston, 52, and Archdeacon Charlie Murry, 48, had been appointed assistant bishops.

Encounter took some time to chat with Archdeacon Sonia and Archdeacon Charlie in the lead up to their Episcopal Ordination to find out their aspirations for their role and learn a little bit more about these two inspiring leaders.

Archdeacon Sonia Roulston In 2017, the Diocese of Newcastle celebrated the 30th Anniversary of the ordination of women in this diocese and we also saw the installation of The Very Rev'd Katherine Bowyer as the first female Dean of Newcastle on October 4. These significant milestones of women in ministry will continue in 2018 as we see Archdeacon Sonia Roulston ordained in the most senior role a woman has ever held in the 171 years of the diocese, the first female bishop of Newcastle.

For Archdeacon Sonia it is an honour to be part of the strengthening ministry of women in our diocese, "I believe this Diocese has been a very friendly home for men and women

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to minister together, honouring each other and drawing on our differing gifts. This is one of the strengths of our Diocesan life," Archdeacon Sonia said.

"When Bishop Peter first asked me to think about this ministry I felt quite overwhelmed."

But to her surprise, she also recognised this might be something she is being called to. "Both Bishop Peter and my spiritual director were very generous with me in giving me space to think, talk, and pray through this.

"So, when I said yes to Bishop Peter I felt I was say able to say as we do at ordinations, "I believe I am called to

this ministry".

The Episcopal Ordination will be one of even more significance, taking place on the same date as the first ordinations in 1986. "In this I feel strongly connected to that whole journey, and honoured to be a part of the natural next step," she added.

Ordained in the Diocese in 1995, Archdeacon Sonia Roulston draws upon wealth of experience and wisdom in her new role. Some of her earliest ministries in the Diocese were lay ministries including GFS leadership and youth group leadership. Since her ordination she has served as an assistant in Gosford and Singleton, and as Rector of

HERALDING A NEW ERA Windale, Cessnock-Wollombi and Morpeth.

"Each of those ministries has had its own flavour and I have enjoyed each in different ways and for different reasons," she said.

"Windale was unique in that it also involved a deep commitment to the local community through being involved in the Community Renewal Project, something I really enjoyed. I believe it is a great example of how church and community can work together.

"I have enjoyed the opportunities I have had to pay it forward."

"In the last couple of years I have been full time Diocesan Archdeacon and have found one of the gifts of this role is seeing the bigger picture of Diocesan life.

"This role has stretched me in my thinking about what it is to be church locally and regionally. It is causing me to think more about how we might support each other more as clergy and laity. And it has required me to develop new skills and strengths!"

Archdeacon Sonia has a passion for pastoral ministry, particularly being alongside people and sharing their lives with them.

"This has been a great privilege and has involved both happy and sad times," she said.

"I have always regarded this as important because I see in the Gospels that this was the heart of Jesus' daily ministry."

"I have had a passion for children's ministry, both because my own faith comes through children's ministry, and because it was my first ministry in leadership. I have enjoyed the opportunities I have had to "pay it forward" as the saying goes."

It is this diverse experience that will guide Archdeacon Sonia through her new role as Assistant Bishop for the Inland Episcopate.

"Initially I would like to get to know the people and parishes across the regions in which I will be ministering.

While it is true I do know many people in this region already, I will be working with them in a different context as I come to them as one of their bishops. There will be much to learn," she said.

"We know that the parish system

is under increasing pressure and that we will need to start working together to find new ways of working locally and regionally. How this will look is yet before us, and is a work we will all need to contribute to.

encouraged and nurtured our leadership."

"I look forward to working closely with Bishop Peter and soon-tobe Bishop Charlie as we together explore this work. I also look forward to being in parishes Sunday by Sunday and at other times as we work together towards this future," she said.

"I was deeply impressed by her compassion and care for the vulnerable young women with whom she ministered. It wasn't always easy, but I saw in her someone who really believed in those young women, who went the extra mile and who did so because that's how she understood God to be.

To guide her through this new ministry, Archdeacon Sonia will continue to draw upon the guidance and wisdom of her mentors, including her GFS branch leader who has been a very important role model in her spiritual journey.

"She was a great model of the Christian faith for me, modelling faithfulness, open generosity, inclusion and grace. She also

A Mercy sister, who she worked alongside in the community of Windale, also inspires Archdeacon Sonia.

"I think of a couple of those wise spiritual guides who have helped me understand the expansiveness of God's grace, and to know God's love as much larger and more generous than we are sometimes ready to let it be. They have sometimes been very patient!"

These remarkable women have been inspiring role models for ď ľ

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HERALDING A NEW ERA Archdeacon Sonia throughout her own spiritual journey, and sees her own role, alongside other women in leadership across the diocese, as significant.

"I think it is important for young women today to see women in leadership in our church," she said.

"I attended an all girls high school, and remember our teachers telling us how important it was that the school had a female principal because it enabled us to see modelled women in leadership. I think about this in a similar way.

"I would want to encourage anyone who feels called to ministry to

explore this vocation within their own context and with the Diocese.

if I can only solve his crosswords occasionally!)"

"This is a diocese where there is room for all and where we minister together as women and men equally.

I believe that moving towards having women in all three orders of ministry speaks of the genuine mutuality which has mostly been my experience."

To unwind she enjoys playing bridge and finds it's a great way to mix with people outside of church. Archdeacon Sonia has also developed a passion for jazz music, having come to appreciate it through the ecumenical Chapel Jazz Festival held each year at Morpeth.

Outside of her busy ministry, Archdeacon Sonia likes to relax with reading.

What Encounter readers might not know about Archdeacon Sonia is that she loves spending time with her family, including her parents, brother, sister and her family. She has three nephews and two nieces.

"I enjoying reading, particularly novels, history, and spirituality. I love solving cryptic crosswords and am a particular fan of DA (even

Archdeacon Charlie Murry Archdeacon Charlie Murry was "extremely surprised and awed but curiously delighted" when he was contacted by Bishop Peter. "It took a while for the reality to land," he said.

For those readers who don't know Archdeacon Charlie, he is a passionate, family-oriented man based in Singleton with a genuine commitment to the life of the diocese. Sharing life with his wife, Melissa, and their two children, Lucy and Jake, feeds the passions and interests of his life. He has a love for music "which is much more eclectic than the rocky-blues guitar he plays in bands."

Originally from North Queensland, Archdeacon Charlie has shared a life with the church from a young age.

"The parish of North Mackay formed me to see all of life as ministry, to bring all of my sense of self to worship on Sundays to see what God would do with it in the celebration," he said.

Peter Tinney, now rector of Taree, gave Archdeacon Charlie his first server's roster the year he started school.

"With my parents, he showed me, not in words, that taking part in the liturgy was for everybody as much as it was for me. I somehow got the sense that everything we do is

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ultimately meant to be like that."

It was these lessons that helped Archdeacon Charlie on the journey of being called to ordained ministry. His journey through theological college hit a couple of hurdles, with a medical scare that saw him need 12 three-week cycles of chemotherapy.

"One of the greatest ministry lessons I ever learnt came from the skilful nurses in the haematology/ oncology clinic. The best of them had the finest of fine-tuned instincts about presenting as cheer squad or goading coach at just the right moments. And they were reverent about the inherent dignity of human beings too," he said.

Archdeacon Charlie's ordained ministry in the Upper Hunter, and previously in outback southwest Queensland, has reinforced his conviction that Christian community really is possible anywhere.

"My chief passion is community. The thing about Messy Church is it invites an all-age community to flourish in gracious relationship with God the Holy Trinity, our one God who is a community of mutual self-giving. That allows the beliefs we bring to be generously provisional.

"Messy Church is a place to be formed in Christian life as understanding grows. We are

being formed, I hope virtuously, in a community that practises hospitable life together in the light of the story of God's people.

"Those of us who think we know what we believe are challenged to be a bit more open and sensitive to new things God is doing. That has been the gift of our Messy Church to its members and to our parish as a whole."

Archdeacon Charlie often draws upon the spiritual direction of a pair of Josephite Nuns he encountered in the "bush".

"They used to say their ministry was inspired by the conviction that everybody they encountered could have a personal relationship with Jesus and that they longed for people to know," he said.

Integration and spiritual direction continuously form Archdeacon Charlie's ministry, seeking soul friends and spiritual direction throughout his journey.

"It is who I am who is called, and who I am becoming. And I don't see myself except in community," he said.

"Without a trusted conversation partner who is not directly in my family or my ministry, I find it harder to see myself clearly in the messiness of life's overlapping spaces. With

HERALDING A NEW ERA direction I have always found I can delight in it all, take it seriously and wryly together, hold it and let go, care and have some fun.

"There will certainly be skills to learn as a bishop, and new ways of attending to our challenges and opportunities. I doubt I've imagined these entirely accurately. I'll need good conversation to refine my perceptions of who I am in all this."

"I have become very committed to the life of the diocese in the time I've been here."

Archdeacon Charlie is "thrilled" to take the job as Assistant Bishop to the Coastal Episcopate, stating that it's a "great honour, it's exciting, it's humbling and it's daunting".

"I have become very committed to the life of the diocese in the time I've been here. I have deep affection and concern for our life together bearing witness to the gospel in this part of the world," he said.

"It felt very affirming to discover that people concur with Bishop Peter's nominations of Sonia and I. Bishop Peter's re-imagining of the shape of episcopate, and his constant commitment to collaborative leadership had excited and encouraged me."

Archdeacon Charlie is looking forward to his new role serving the Coastal Episcopate, and looks forward to hearing the stories of the people within this region.

"There are a bunch of gifted and imaginative people, lay and ordained, who make up the coastal episcopate," he said.

"I want to come to hear them closely and the life we will share. I am confident our gifts can multiply, flourish by grace as Bishop Peter theologises it.

"As I come to know the faith communities of the Manning, Lake Macquarie and the Central Coast better, I will be looking for every opportunity for us to free ourselves

from what hinders God's mission, especially the challenges of deploying our resources effectively.

"At our recent clergy conference, it became clear there is much commitment to this work. That meeting also reinforced my belief that our different languages for conveying faith are what Paul Avis has called varied cultural, intellectual and theological hinterlands. I like the metaphor. Our varied expressions

are hinterlands to that coast where we have all glimpsed Christ reigning.

(Which is not to say Christ doesn't reign in the inland episcopate.)

"I don't pretend that Anglicans don't hold truly varied positions on many issues, but I am equally confident we have Christ in common. Our call will continue to call us together to celebrate, to wrestle, to strive, lament and care and so I want to work hard together at that." ď‚ž

The service of Episcopal Ordination will take place in the Cathedral Church of Christ the King, Newcastle at 6pm on Ascension Day (10 May). Please continue to pray for the Archdeacon Sonia and Archdeacon Charlie, and their families as they prepare for their episcopal ordinations.

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ASSISTANT BISHOPS

Restoring life after prison

As we look closer at restoring hope throughout the season of Easter, Samaritans has a touching story of overcoming hardship and addiction from their post-release services.

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SAMARITANS Samaritans post release services have been working with men and women who have come out of prison for over 25 years. The services offer holistic help for a person in their journey back into the community. This includes help with housing, therapy and group programs to ensure they can reintegrate into the community and stay out of jail.

"I've had a long history of drugs in my life. I lived on the streets in Sydney, it was a long way away from my family in Port Macquarie. Your heart aches when you don't have a family.

When you walk past a house being homeless you can smell the home cooked meals, but you know you have to go to a shelter to eat.

Drugs go hand in hand with jail.

When I was first released everything was good, my partner and I had been clean for a lot of years and then I brought it back into the home.

It crept in and it ruined my family.

My son ended up going to my mum and my sister. I was in an out of jail, using (drugs) and for a lot of the years we were homeless we relied on Samaritans a lot. We just wandered the streets in despair when we were homeless and that went on for about five years. It's not an easy life.

Samaritans were a big part of changing our life. When you can't stand on your own two feet, you need support. Helen (from Samaritans) never gave up on us, she never

closed the door. Samaritans has helped us out so many times, given us so much support and even love.

We've come a long way and we're really happy where we are. I've been clean for two years and I'm getting my life back.

I've got my son, we've got a home.

My partner has just got a job. God's been amazing. I've started going to church and everything we've got now we really appreciate because we'd been homeless for so long.

We've struggled for a lot of years and I just want my future to be happy.

I'm happy that my family is proud of us and that I have love and family around me."

Chauntelle describes her latest painting: "This is the circle of violence. I've made it into a teardrop because it's a subject that affects a lot of people. That's the message I wanted to get across. The white represents the people that have suffered through domestic violence.

The little dots are for the children.

(It shows) each stage of the violence, starting with the honeymoon period, then as it goes on it escalates.

Some days you can't see any light.

The lightning bolts represent words or hitting or even worse violence from weapons. Both parties are heartbroken and your heart can kind of mend and then it starts all over again until you get out of that relationship. I've experienced it. I've based it on how it's affected me.

Helen at Samaritans got me the paints and the canvas and lets me paint here. I love painting; you drift away, you're in thought, it's relaxing for me. I really wanted to do this one because I think it's important.

I've painted for 15 years, I used to have exhibitions. Every painting I've done is about my life or my experiences, my family. They have meaning. Sometimes it's hard to sell part of you because it's a bit of you going and it goes to another home or office. It's a bit hard sometimes to see something go that you love." ď‚ž

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MODERN PARENTING

Good News for Modern Parents Modern parents like me live in a swirling sea of advice and information. We are desperately trying to keep up with the Ten Things Every Parent Must Know, the Twelve Mistakes New Parents Make, and the Seventeen Habits of Highly Happy Families. But we end up feeling confused by conflicting advice, guilty about our imperfections, and afraid of damaging our children.

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MODERN PARENTING

Modern parents are desperate for good news

BY HARRIET CONNOR LAKES GRAMMAR - AN ANGLICAN SCHOOL I hit the lowest point of my parenting journey after the birth of our second son. I was struggling to manage a sleepless newborn and an emotional toddler. I felt like I was adrift in a flimsy boat without an anchor, tossed about by the waves of parenting "shoulds" and "shouldn'ts".

According to author Sue Palmer, author of Toxic Childhood, this is typical: "Most parents are frantically doing their best in a world where the goal posts are not just moving—they've actually disappeared . . . In a world of tumultuous change, confidence is thin on the ground. The moral and social certainties (of previous generations) have disintegrated, and there seems to be nothing to put in their place."

When I was desperate for guidance, I reached for the ancient wisdom of my ancestors—the Bible. I was sick of the internet's fickle fads and craving the kind of unchanging, timeless wisdom that my grandmothers gave.

I came to the Bible looking for little pieces of advice, but I found something much better. The Bible showed me a grand vision—a "big picture"—that has put life and parenthood into perspective. The Bible has good news for modern parents!

WE WERE MADE FOR MORE THAN HAPPINESS Our modern world is working hard to convince us that the goal of life is happiness. We are constantly told, "Do whatever makes you happy; follow your heart." When you ask modern parents what we want for our children, we respond in unison: "We just want them to be happy!" And so we can become anxiously dependent on our children's emotions, doing everything to make sure they feel perpetually happy and successful.

It follows that parenting is not about making our children feel happy all the time, but about helping them to know and live out their God-given purpose.

Interestingly, recent research into happiness shows that simply chasing good feelings and running away from bad ones does not bring long-term satisfaction. Rather, the secret to a truly happy life is connection—finding our meaning in relationship to others, and to a bigger purpose in life.

In his book The Happiness Trap, Russ Harris writes:

But there is a problem: the more we chase happiness, the less we seem to find it. In the West, rates of depression and mental illness among both adults and children have never been higher. If life is just about feeling happy, then most of us are failing badly.

"When we clarify what we stand for in life and act accordingly, then our lives become rich and full and meaningful, and we experience a powerful sense of vitality. This is not some fleeting feeling—it is a profound sense of a life well lived." (p15)

But the good news of the Bible is that we and our children were created for more than happiness. The Bible's opening chapters show that humans were made in the image of our Maker for a bigger purpose—to honour God by living well in his creation and doing good to other people.

Ironically, if we stop focusing on making our children feel good, and start helping them to do good in line with their purpose, we will actually be giving them the best chance of finding happiness that lasts. 

Meet Harriet Connor Harriet Connor graduated with a Master of Divinity from Sydney Missionary & Bible College in 2008. Since then, she has served as a lay pastor and teacher in several parishes within the Anglican Diocese of Newcastle. Her husband, Daniel, is an Anglican priest and now serves as the Principal Chaplain to the NSW Police Force. The Connors have three sons and enjoy being part of the parent community at Lakes Grammar An Anglican School.

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MODERN PARENTING WE DON'T HAVE TO BE PERFECT If modern pop psychology has taught us anything, it's that "It's all your parents' fault!" Naturally, when we become parents, we start to worry about what our children will be telling their therapist in twenty years' time. We are afraid that our mistakes and imperfections will "scar" our children for life.

Parents and children were made for the purpose of honouring God, living well in his creation, and doing good to others. But we have a problem: we are human. The third chapter of the Bible describes how the first human couple disobeyed God and were sent out of the Garden of Eden, where sin and death work against us.

It was there—outside the Garden— that the first children were born. In this fallen world, parents can never be perfect—we will have both a positive and negative impact on our children. It follows that human children aren't perfect either.

And here, in this fallen world, we cannot always stop bad things from happening to our children. All of this can leave us feeling guilty and afraid.

But the good news of the Bible is that there is one perfect parent: God. He invites us to stop being grown-ups for a moment, and come to him like little children. If we humbly confess our failings, God adopts us into his spiritual family. He forgives us through the death of his perfect Son, Jesus, and fills us with his Holy Spirit to try again tomorrow. We are not in control of our children's world, but our Father is. And he is working all things—both good and bad—for the good of his spiritual children.

When we reach the limits of our human capabilities—when we are too small and frail to be the kind of parents we want to be—we can look up towards our Father in heaven and rest in his endless compassion and strength. Experiencing the perfect fatherhood of God day-to-day can help us to become better parents too.

The experts are urging modern parents to give up the damaging mindset of perfectionism, and aim simply to be "good enough".

We need to recognise that our shortcomings and mistakes can become opportunities to show our children how to navigate life as imperfect people in this imperfect world.

"But the good news of the Bible is that there is one perfect parent: God. He invites us to stop being grown-ups for a moment, and come to him like little children."

About the Book Last year, Harriet published her first book, Big Picture Parents: Ancient Wisdom for Modern Life. The book provides an opportunity for modern parents to step back from all the parenting "shoulds" and "shouldn'ts" and reflect on the bigger questions. She hopes that her book will help many families to see how the big truths of the Bible can help them to make sense of life and parenthood. Big Picture Parents was shortlisted for the 2017 Australian Christian Book of the Year Award and is available from Koorong and Amazon.

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WE DON'T HAVE TO READ ALL THOSE ARTICLES In this age of information, it's tempting to take our parenting dilemmas straight to "Dr Google" and start clicking on an endless trail of articles. But when we do this, it's easy to become preoccupied by the tiny details of our children's lives. We forget to stop and question whether the articles we are reading actually support our family's values.

But the good news is that in the Bible, God has established a framework of timeless values that can help us to prioritise what truly matters when it comes to raising our children.

God's values are easy to sum up.

Jesus said that all of the laws and commandments in the Bible are expressions of love—love for God, and love for other people (Matthew 22:37-39). Loving God means acknowledging him as our Creator, and worshipping him alone. Loving other people means committing ourselves to their good, even if they don't deserve it.

When our minds are spinning with too much parenting information, we can step back and remind ourselves of the kind of people that God wants us and our children to be. Prioritising love for God and love for other people will help us to ground our parenting in the things that really matter.

MODERN PARENTING

WE DON'T HAVE TO DO THIS ALONE One of the major reasons that modern parenthood is so hard is that, for the first time in history, we are trying to do it alone.

Many of us have moved away from our extended families, and now feel isolated. Besides the problem of distance, many of our parents are still working full-time and are not around to help during the week. Our relationships with our neighbours are also more transient and superficial than in previous generations.

On a day-to-day basis, it can feel like it's just us—mum, dad and the kids—battling against the world.

But the good news of the Bible is that we weren't meant to do this alone.

God has always called individuals to be part of a bigger community that is bound together by God's values, and consciously passing them on to the next generation.

Jesus invited all people, whether young or old, married or single, to become children of God by faith.

This new family of believers is characterised by love—putting other people's needs before one's own.

We can reassure parents that they don't need to be perfect— our imperfections can become opportunities to show our children how to humbly seek God's forgiveness and strength.

As parents, we can bring our nuclear family into God's big family of faith.

There we find spiritual brothers and sisters, aunts and uncles, grandmothers and grandfathers, who can encourage and support us in our parenting.

We can help parents and children to prioritise God's values: loving God and loving others.

ANGLICANS HAVE GOOD NEWS FOR PARENTS

Finally, our churches and schools can provide loving communities to support parents in their task of bringing up the next generation to know and live out their God-given purpose on earth. 

Anglican churches and schools can play a vital role in sharing the Bible's good news with modern parents, who often struggle with guilt, fear, confusion and isolation. We can help parents and children to understand that life is about more than simply chasing happiness—we were made for the bigger purpose of connection to God, his creation, and other people.

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THINKING ABOUT FAITH

"Our Diocese has been through a time of grieving, very much living in Holy Saturday...

Holy Saturday has nothing and it has everything."

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THINKING ABOUT FAITH

Thinking About Faith THE REV'D KESH GOVAN RECTOR, NELSON BAY Imagine something absolutely amazing has happened in your life, only to lose it all. Maybe you don't have to imagine. Maybe you have a story of something amazing in your life only to have lost it all? This is the story of the crucifixion and the resurrection. The worst thing ever, followed by the best thing ever. You see, the resurrection story is not about a restoration of old things, it's about the introduction of something completely new. When Jesus was resurrected, he was not merely raised from the dead. He returned transformed, to the extent that his followers, his closest companions, did not immediately recognise him.

He was changed. He was a version of himself, one who still bore the wounds from his past, but he was not the same.

What does living a life of resurrection look like for us? It is a life in which we live from an awareness that the cycle of life is such that we all experience death, resurrection and rebirth.

Whether it is the death of a loved one, a job, a relationship, an illness or any other experience that changes our lives as we have known it. We must open ourselves to a new way of living and being as we rise up from grief, disappointment and doubt to accept a new life. As we do so, we may not know where we are going or how things may look but we continue to move forward.

And what of the church? Those of us in Western culture who are over age 30 were born into a culture that could conceivably still be called

"Christian". Now, in Australia, people who are churchless (having no church affiliation) have eclipsed the churched.

So what will the future church be like and how should you and I respond? I realise making predictions can be a dangerous thing. Maybe even a bit ridiculous but I want to offer a few thoughts because I'm passionate about the mission of the church in this new age.

The present church-model is not working in all places and we need to explore new ways of doing church.

Parish priests will have to imagine new expressions of how to do church; and not just to imagine, to actually implement the plans that God gives them for his church in their particular community. The day of picking a model and following it to a "T", expecting that it will get you where you want to be, is over. Things are happening so fast and communities are changing so much that even the model you design today will have to be redesigned and re-engineered tomorrow.

Nobody wants a church to die out but sometimes it happens. There is a time of loss and grief; but the message of Easter is a new beginning and where churches have closed we must plant a new community of Christians to rise up and continue the work.

Our Diocese has been through a time of grieving, very much living in Holy Saturday. It's the day where everything is heartache and loss and where the redemption we hope for is uncertain. It is the ache of being

trapped between a place we used to know and a place we long to be.

Holy Saturday has nothing and it has everything. After the weeping and distress of Good Friday and after the silence, laden with expectation, of Holy Saturday, here is the wonderful announcement: "The Lord has risen indeed, and has appeared to Simon!"

(Lk 24:34).

Isaiah 43 verse 18 reminds us, "Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the desert and streams in the wasteland." God has not finished with us – he is just getting started!

New springs of life are already springing up around the Diocese. You only have to see the articles in this magazine and the photographs from Around the Diocese on the Diocesan website.

Let me finish with some words from Pope Benedict XVI's speech in a book entitled Faith and the Future words that will help to encourage us. He says, "From the crisis of today the Church of tomorrow will emerge — a Church that has lost much. She will become small and will have to start afresh more or less from the beginning. She will lose many of her social privileges. But in all of the changes, the Church will find her essence afresh and with full conviction in that which was always at her centre: faith in the triune God, in Jesus Christ, the Son of God made man, in the presence of the Spirit until the end of the world." 

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Q&A

What is forgiveness?

ZEBULAN MCKRELL INTERN – PARISH OF MUSWELLBROOK

To forgive another can be one of the hardest things we can do. The pain experienced by the action of another can leave lasting wounds on the soul.

These gashes can be a constant

reminder of the trauma experienced by us. Forgiveness is that act in which we start the healing process. When we seek or give forgiveness the wounds that mark our inner self begin to heal.

When we speak to another or hear the words, "I forgive you" (and truly believe it), the weight of trauma begins to be lifted. If we do not attend to the open gaping wounds that we have, we cannot be free. As wounded people we tend to pick, scratch, rub and disturb the healing process; clinging to the anger and resentment of those who we feel have wronged us or who we feel we

have wronged. Our identity becomes intertwined with the story of our pain; distorting our true self.

When our story moves away from the trauma experienced in those relationships, when we truly hear and speak the words of reconciliation we are released from the festering pain within us. Forgiveness unbinds all those involved, liberating the soul, healing our wounded selves.

If you ever find it hard to forgive another, think on the Lord's Prayer.

But rather replace the "our", "us", and "we" with "my", "me", and "I".

"Forgive me my sins as I forgive those who sin against me."

"In this place our sense of hope, love and trust in the world is uplifted beyond our personal resources..."

JOSEPHINE SNOWDON CHAPLAIN - SAMARITANS FOUNDATION St Ignatius of Loyola talks about the states of desolation and of consolation. Desolation is living in a state of being unforgiven and unforgiving. In desolation one stands turned away from the light and experiences living in our own shadow. We may feel in this place as if we are sinking in sand, in a murky place.

Margaret Silf describes the process of turning toward the light, toward consolation, as turning toward the one which is our purpose and source of life and creation, toward God. It is the state of being forgiven and is also the place of being forgiving of another. In this place our sense of hope, love and trust in the world is uplifted beyond our personal

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resources and we can begin to reflect the light we face.

Forgiveness is what one experiences when turning toward Christ on the Cross, to embrace the deep pain and suffering God took on for our fallen humanity. God incarnate on the cross and then risen again, is our full consolation, our full forgiveness. Accepting this deep love and satisfaction can be difficult for those who have suffered. Such experiences can mean that the giving and receiving of food or the provision and reception of shelter for example, such simple things, may be like beginning to face the light, beginning to experience tangibly, God's forgiveness.

Accepting the forgiveness that God gives in everyday life is to knowingly take seriously what Jesus says, "My yoke is easy and my burden is light,"(Matt 11:30): It means allowing God's law of love to surround and embrace all that one does (Matt 22:37).

Q&A REV'D ANDREW EATON RECTOR, ST LUKE'S WALLSEND Forgiveness is God's to give. In her Holy Week reflections a couple of years ago, theologian Sarah Coakley writes that when Jesus is hanging on the cross and asks his Father to "forgive them for they know not what they do", we are reminded that our capacity to forgive is intimately tied into the divine exchange between Father and Son. That we are asked to forgive generously and abundantly because Jesus first did so from the place of shame.

Jesus' forgiveness of others was often so surprising because forgiveness of sins was considered divine. "Why does this fellow speak in this way? It is blasphemy! Who can forgive sins but God alone?" (Mark 2:7). And to be forgiven is something fearful. "If you, O LORD, should mark iniquities,

Lord, who could stand? But there is forgiveness with you, so that you may be revered" (Psalm 130). But we are not only invited to forgive, we are commanded to forgive. "Forgive and you will be forgiven"(Luke 6:37). And that forgiveness is to be so persistent and abundant it will bring change in the one who forgives and the one who is forgiven.

To read the reports from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission in post-apartheid South Africa is to read stories of horror, abuse and death, but also to read remarkable stories of forgiveness. Mothers forgiving in embrace men who had killed their children, stories which break the human cycle of violence and hurt followed by retaliation, with abundant and fearful forgiveness.

Forgiveness is God's to give, but through Christ's death and resurrection, through our participation in the Body of Christ, it is ours to give and receive as well. ď‚ž

"Mothers forgiving in embrace men who had killed their children. Stories which break the human cycle of violence and hurt followed by retaliation, with abundant and fearful forgiveness."

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THE ENVIRONMENT

Anglicans, Permaculture and Ecological Sustainability A call to live like APES THE REV'D GREG COLBY ENVIRONMENTAL TASK FORCE

I've written this article to encourage as many of us Anglicans as possible to start thinking like and behaving like APES; Anglicans using Permaculture to work toward Ecological Sustainability (look out for the website coming soon). The science (art?) of Permaculture is not new, in fact it's based upon research on how humans have successfully worked with nature and not against it for centuries. Permaculture is a term originally coined by Bill Mollison and David Holmgren in the mid 1970s to describe an "integrated, evolving system of perennial or self-perpetuating plant and animal species useful to man." I have heard it said that Permaculture is the best tool to help humans live in a way which creates opportunity for abundant life throughout all of creation. Although not a spiritual concept, Permaculture is a life design model which fits us to carry out the biblical mandate to be stewards of God's creation.

We Christians model our lives on the teachings of Jesus and the instructions of sacred scripture.

However the way we read and understand the words of our sacred texts is shaped by how much we can understand of the lives of the people who wrote them. A major overarching connector between the biblical authors is that they lived in an agrarian society, a society which ordered life in such a way that the health of the land and of living

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creatures is paramount. This was not just a matter of survival for them, but a matter of spiritual discipline as well. The biblical writers wrote as if earth's physical health and security are also a key to ours.

When we take note of the biblical writer's careful attention to the care of the land we begin to see that obedience to God includes caring for and ensuring the health of this earth.

Ezekiel speaks of our sin as having polluted the land. Abel's blood cried out for justice from the ground. Our spiritual health is deeply rooted in the physical health of the earth.

Permaculture helps us be the best humans we can in terms of caring for this earth. There are three ethical and twelve design principles that go into being a "Permie" – a user of the science/art of permaculture. The three permaculture ethics are: • • •

Care of the Earth Care of People Fair Share (Set limits to consumption and reproduction, and redistribute surplus) Do these ethics remind you of how we are instructed to live as Christians? The design principles have been developed to aid us in making decisions about how we live and act on this planet to ensure we can carry out the ethical principles.

The twelve permaculture design principles are: • • • •

Observe and interact Catch and store energy Obtain a yield Apply self-regulation and accept feedback • Use and value renewable resources and services • Produce no waste • Design from patterns to details • Integrate rather than segregate • Use small and slow solutions • Use and value diversity • Use edges and value the marginal • Creatively use and respond to change Want to learn more? I will soon be running introductory permaculture workshops as well as facilitating the completion of Permaculture Design Certificates.

Here in Encounter, members of the Diocesan Environmental Commission will be writing regular articles about how parishes and individuals can best work with, and not against, nature.  To go deeper sooner, the following websites will give you some brilliant information about Permaculture: www.landcraftpermaculture.com www.permacultureaustralia.org.au

www.permaculturenews.org

THE ENVIRONMENT

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MEET THE ORDINANDS

Meet the Ordinands Mark Thornton WHICH PARISH ARE YOU IN?

WHAT IS YOUR PASSION?

My position is held at St John's, Cooks Hill.

I'm passionate about relationship and about the transformation and healing that occurs in the space people make for one another. I'm passionate about community and the ways people are more fully themselves when they focus on others. Most of all I'm passionate about the ways and means by which human flourishing comes about – how people, sometimes despite themselves, become better reflections of a loving God. This is good news!

WHERE WERE YOU BORN? I was born in Sydney.

WHERE DID YOU GROW UP? I spent most of my early years in the UK before my family returned to Australia when my brother was born. I grew up on the Central Coast.

WHERE DID YOU GO TO SCHOOL? I was raised catholic so my primary years were split between St Cecilia's Wyong and the Central Coast Grammar School. In High School I attended Gosford High.

WHAT GETS YOU OUT OF BED IN THE MORNING? I'm a very early riser, and have been for as long as I can remember. I find that the early morning is a fantastic time to do the things that might otherwise fall by the wayside in a busy day, like exercise, planning, responding to emails and, most important of all, prayer!

WHAT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU LEARNED FROM YOUR PARENTS? The value of hard work.

ARE YOU AN INTROVERT OR AN EXTROVERT? I fall very close to the centreline on the introversion/extraversion scale and tend to dislike the polarity. I'm very open to new experiences and curious, but tend to be organised and efficient at the same time. So perhaps both and neither might be the most true of me.

WHICH TRAITS DO YOU MOST VALUE IN PEOPLE? Conviction, resilience and a heart for others.

WHAT ARE YOU READING AT THE MOMENT? Being a Deacon today by Rosalind Brown and Crime and Punishment by Fydor Dostevsky.

DID YOU HAVE A CAREER BEFORE CONSIDERING JOINING THE PRIESTHOOD? Yes, before considering ordination my career was in finance. I also have a passion for leadership and advocacy in the health services space, particularly around fiscal deployment and the support provided to people who are most in need of funding for crucial services.

HOW DID YOU COME TO REALISE YOUR VOCATION WAS AS A PRIEST? Someone wise once said, "Vocation is what's left when all the games have stopped". I think this is a good way of looking at any calling in life.

The biggest realisation for me was understanding that the call on my life, and I suppose any calling God has

for us, wasn't really about me. It was something I entered into, but it would be impossible to make sense of without the love and input of others and of God. WHAT DOES THE PRIESTHOOD MEAN TO YOU? It's about being present for people, bringing the reality of scripture before people and helping them to inhabit that space, it's about leadership and seeking out God's plan for the world and cultivating a life of prayerful attentiveness, it's about offering the invitation and challenge of the good news of Jesus in all manner of spaces and places - it's about all these things and so much more – I imagine this will take a lifetime to work out!

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO MOST ABOUT BEING AN ORDAINED PRIEST/DEACON? Working out what God is doing and joining in!

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE SOMEONE WHO FINDS THEMSELVES CALLED TO THE PRIESTHOOD? Trust God! What ever the outcome, God is faithful. If we trust in God then we will become more fully who we are created to be – however that might look for each of us!

"Most of all I'm passionate about the ways and means by which human flourishing comes about: how people, sometimes despite themselves, become better reflections of a loving God." 22

Angela Peverell WHICH PARISH ARE YOU IN? Saint Peter's, East Maitland WHERE DID YOU GROW UP? Epping in Sydney, NSW WHAT'S THE MOST IMPORTANT THING YOU LEARNED FROM YOUR PARENTS? Perseverance and the value of family relationships. My parents both grew up during WWII with very real experiences of what it is like to be raised in the post-depression world. They know what it is like to really "go without" and in both cases they had some trauma associated with that experience and in my mother's case, she lost her father at a very young age. They value family relationships, working hard and persevering even during adversity and challenges. They also brought my Grandmother to live with us when I was two years old and she was the catalyst for my lifetime of faith in God. ARE YOU AN INTROVERT OR AN EXTROVERT? I am an extreme extrovert BUT I love my silent time with God and the solitude of my personal space after a day packed with interactions and continuous participation in activities.

WHAT IS YOUR PASSION? Following the commands of Jesus to love the Lord our God with all our hearts, souls and minds and to love our neighbour as ourselves, my passion is living out my faith through my work, family life, friendships and the community. I have never been so passionate about study as I have been since I commenced my Theology Degree and I am passionate about building up our capacity and capability in the local church to support the needs of our community both in spiritual and pastoral ways, especially those in need due to adversity, misfortune or illness. I am passionate about the Church stepping up and taking a more leading role in our communities. I also love liturgy and am passionate about worship that dignifies our Lord God. WHICH TRAITS DO YOU MOST VALUE IN PEOPLE? I highly value authenticity in others and demand it of myself. When someone has the courage to be vulnerable, open and transparent, it is a sign of great strength of character. We all wear a mask of some sort in different situations but if we can let down our guard and see ourselves and each other more like God sees us, it makes for stronger and more mutually giving relationships.

WHAT ARE YOU READING AT THE MOMENT? Oh my goodness! I am reading so much at the moment for Uni on the Reformation, Genesis and 1 Corinthians and we are reading for Intense Formation and I have reading to do for Sermon preparation and Spirituality groups so I seem to be reading A LOT just at the moment. When I am not reading for my vocation, I really enjoy fiction based on characters from the Bible, especially the Old Testament, although my favourite Bible fiction story ever is about Mary Magdalene, my personal hero.

DID YOU HAVE A CAREER BEFORE CONSIDERING JOINING THE PRIESTHOOD? I have actually had a very long career before "finally" responding to God's call on all of my life. I have mainly worked in client facing roles in Sales & Marketing, Communications Consulting, Learning & Organisational Development, Product Development, General Management and Customer Experience. During the last five years I worked in Telecommunications in various roles.

HOW DID YOU COME TO REALISE YOUR VOCATION WAS AS A PRIEST? I have always known the call of God on my life. I have wrestled with it initially because I was living in a diocese that would not and will not priest women and I made other choices in response to that situation until God steered me to the Diocese of Newcastle. Since I became a professed tertiary of the Third Order of the Society of St Francis, particularly at a retreat at the Monastery at Stroud, I knew there was no other choice for my life's work. I enrolled at University and was blessed to be invited to meet with the Director of Ordination to discuss options to enter into the discernment process and the rest is now the beginning of a wonderful journey of discovery and now in Intense Formation.

WHAT DOES THE PRIESTHOOD MEAN TO YOU? God willing, in the passage of time, I will be ordained Priest and ultimately take on the role of leading a parish within this diocese. I cannot imagine any greater honour but to serve in a leadership role in the Church of God, working alongside other ordained and lay people to build up a community of active, faithful Christian people and to take on the challenge to grow that community through active service beyond the congregation. I have a

very strong leaning towards pastoral care, particularly for our aging and infirmed community and for others in need, whatever it is. I see pastoral ministry and community engagement as the key to building up the Church and re-establishing our church's role in our community. I don't see any of this through rose-coloured glasses and it is working through the challenges this presents that I can make the greatest contribution, sharing God's love and nurturing future leaders of the Church.

WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING FORWARD TO MOST ABOUT BEING AN ORDAINED DEACON? What an honour it will be, God willing, to serve in ordained ministry and especially as a Deacon. The servant role of the Deacon is for life, and I believe it is the calling to servant ministry that I am responding to, whatever future role I may be ordained for and/or that I may take on in the Church. In addition to the ordination formation role I am doing now as a Ministry Apprentice, it will be an intense time of learning and development. It will also be such an honour to take a more hands on role with people seeking marriage and baptism and of course to care for the sick, the dying and those whose loved ones have died.

WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE SOMEONE WHO FINDS THEMSELVES CALLED TO THE PRIESTHOOD? My first reaction is, listen to God and be open to listening some more. My experience is that I heard the call many, many times. Some louder and more obvious than others and I had to stop allowing the perceived and some real barriers to responding to the call to silence the voice of God. Thankfully, my human obstacles and the noise that I could create to prevent me from really listening could not silence him. Pray, listen, pray, seek the counsel of trusted advisors and pray some more. Trust his call and be prepared to be more vulnerable than you have ever been and pray some more. God will show you the way forward.

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Around the Diocese GFS Australian Council 2018 Newcastle Diocese GFS family recently welcomed 45 people who attended the Tri-Annual GFS Australian Council, at Hunter Valley Hotel Academy. Every Diocese where GFS is currently operating was represented. This is the time when our GFS elect office bearers and do some planning for the next three years.

In response to a need to make GFS relevant to the wider faith community and the society in which we live, the Executive decided that we would do some work on celebrating the past, present and future for GFS in Australia. This was conducted

by Archdeacon David Battrick on a couple of occasions over the week. It provided an opportunity for everyone who attended Council to participate in the visioning for the way forward.

It was enthusiastically received, and I think put the incoming Executive on the journey, which they are more than happy to proceed with.

As with most Conferences, this one provided an opportunity for networking, renewing friendships and making new ones. The social aspect of Council as always was an important part – we built in times

when people could just sit and talk, read, drink coffee etc each day. It was good to see this happening.

The excursions to Tyrrells' Vineyard, a walking tour of Kurri Kurri Murals, and Historic Morpeth were about even in numbers and everyone enjoyed the time out. In fact, some who did not go to Kurri Kurri went down to the town later in the week to do the tour themselves, so they did not miss out.

Our workshops and guest speakers were arranged around aspects of GFS Ministry throughout Australia: • Children's Ministry • Community Ministry

• •

Children's Spirituality Townsend Ministry

The workshops on Prayer and Spirituality, Craft, Leader Development and Pastoral Care were very well attended.

After a day in Newcastle we had the Commissioning Service for the next three years at Christ Church Cathedral where the incoming Executive were commissioned. It was a pleasure to have Dean Katherine Bowyer with us at the Cathedral to share in this service. Katherine & David joined us later that night at Kurri Kurri for tea.

LEAVE A GIFT IN YOUR WILL TO THE CHURCH Once you have made provision for your loved ones, you have the opportunity to make a lasting gift to God, by leaving a bequest to his church.

A gift in your will is one of the most valuable and lasting ways you can continue to support its mission and ministry within your community.

Contact Linda Wilson at the Diocesan Office for more information on 4926 3733.

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AROUND THE DIOCESE

Retreats feed, challenge and encourage The two Silent Retreats organised by Anglican Women in February 2018 provided a precious time to 'be still and be open to God' – a time to rest, reflect, pray, worship and listen.

All this in the beautiful surrounds of the Catalina Conference Centre at Rathmines.

We had glorious weather, so could also enjoy the outdoors, whether in eating a meal or a coffee outside, sitting in the shade of a tree to read, just be still, or to go on long or short walks.

Fr Mel Nelson, the Retreat Conductor, helped us to reflect, and

be challenged, as we considered the theme: "We will face tomorrow in the Spirit's power".

One of Fr Mel's comments was, "A retreat is designed to help a person… to see where they are with God – to reflect on their longing for God. So we deliberately cut ourselves off from the things that clutter up our lives, things that get in the way and distract us from facing up to ourselves and to God, things that cushion us from reality.

"Like any true mirror, the gaze of God receives us exactly as we are, without judgement or distortion,

and reflects that back to us ... To be totally received as we truly are is what we wait and long for all our lives."

In another of the talks he said, "It is not when we are comfortable and all seems right with the world that the Spirit shows up, but it is when we are at our most vulnerable. It is then that the Spirit's power is most manifest, strengthening us to face whatever tomorrow will bring."

There was much to feed, challenge and encourage us as we each made our own journey.

WDP services affirm that "All God's creation is very good" March 2 saw the annual World Day of Prayer celebrated by the churches of Swansea, just as it is in thousands of churches, in hundreds of countries worldwide.

The service this year was prepared by the Christian women of Suriname, a small country on the northeastern coast of South America.

It has a multi-ethnic population of approx. 540,000, consisting of indigenous peoples - African descendants, Asians, Javanese and Chinese, European and Lebanese descendants, as well as "new" immigrants. This ethnic diversity indicates a variety of cultures, religions, and languages.

The service was hosted by St Patrick's Roman Catholic Church in Swansea, with members of the Anglican, Uniting, Baptist and Seventh Day

Adventists taking part. The church was beautifully decorated, and there was a good attendance.

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AROUND THE DIOCESE

Anglican Care farewells visionary leader The staff and residents of Anglican Care and members of the Anglican Diocese will later this month farewell their much-admired Chairman of the Board, Mr John Kilpatrick AM. Mr Kilpatrick has dedicated the past 47 years to Anglican Care, having been appointed to the Board of Directors in 1971 and Chairman in 1980.

During that time, Mr Kilpatrick has led Anglican Care's significant growth – from having just one residential aged care home and servicing 150 residents, to today providing a suite of aged care services including twelve residential aged care homes across the Hunter, Central Coast and Mid Coast regions of NSW, servicing over 1400 people.

CEO of Anglican Care, Mr Colin Osborne said Mr Kilpatrick has been a visionary leader, diversifying the business and ensuring they remain a market leader in aged care services.

"John has been a stalwart leader of Anglican Care and leaves us in a strong position for continued growth, particularly in the areas of Home Care and Retirement Living services.

"We are very grateful for the time, dedication and wisdom he has brought not only to the leadership team, but to the many residents and consumers of Anglican Care whose lives he has had a profound impact upon," Mr Osborne said.

During his time as Chairman of Anglican Care, Mr Kilpatrick also served as a Councillor at Lake Macquarie City Council for 21 years,

11 of those years as Mayor. He also served as Chairman of Greater Bank and the Greater Bank Charitable Foundation (then Greater Building Society) and the Samaritans.

In reflecting on his time with Anglican Care, Mr Kilpatrick said he was proud of the staff, residents and consumers who bring every facility and service to life and make Anglican Care the outstanding organisation it is today.

"The Executive Leadership team have done outstanding work to build the organisation and position itself as one of the leading aged care providers in NSW. But ultimately it's the people on the ground – the carers in our aged care homes or out in the community, the kitchen staff, facilities management teams and all the wonderful people who work tirelessly day-in-and-day-out to make our residents feel loved and supported; they are the true heroes

of our organisation," Mr Kilpatrick said.

Newcastle Anglican Bishop Dr Peter Stuart said the Diocese was grateful for Mr Kilpatrick's years of service.

"The Kilpatrick family have dedicated so much of their life to public service in the Hunter region, and as a community, we are so much richer for their unwavering commitment to see our community thrive.

"I wish John and Ellen and their family every blessing," Bishop Peter Stuart said.

Mr Malcolm McDonald will take over from Mr Kilpatrick as Chairman in March 2018. Mr McDonald has been an Anglican Care board member from 2003 – 2016 and is the Chairperson of the Audit & Risk Committee. He also has several other Directorships and memberships with Hunter based organisations.

Professional • Experienced • Competitive

THE ANGLICAN CHURCH OF NEWCASTLE TAKES ALLEGATIONS OF MISCONDUCT AND ABUSE SERIOUSLY We welcome and encourage people with concerns to come forward For a confidential discussion please call 1800 774 945

If you need immediate support call Lifeline on 13 11 14

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• Conveyancing & Commercial • Wills, Probate & Estates • Family Law & Criminal Law • Driving Offences etc Phone: 4954 7288 25 Marianne St, Cardiff email: admin@warlandsolicitors.com.au

AROUND THE DIOCESE

Scone Grammar make a stand together against bullying The school community of Scone Grammar School made a stand against bullying on Tuesday March 13, uniting in pink for Pink Shirt Day. Scone Grammar School joined forces with schools across the Upper Hunter as part of an initiative of the Upper Hunter Youth Council to recognise Pink Shirt Day. Pink Shirt Day raises awareness and takes a stand against bullying.

The Pink Shirt Day movement started in 2017 when a student in the USA was bullied for wearing a pink shirt.

His fellow students decided to take a stand, they each bought pink shirts to show they support.

The playground and classrooms across the Scone Grammar School campus were a sea of pink. Well done everyone for being part of raising this awareness!

YOUTH MINISTRY INTERNSHIPS

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NEWCASTLE CITY CHOIR is urgently seeking the services of an accompanist for their weekly Wednesday night rehearsals, monthly aged care nursing home performances on weekdays and two public Sunday concerts this year. Our repertoire is eclectic and membership numbers 25. An honorarium is paid.

Interested pianists can contact Ruth Gay on 0414 521 599 or email hturyyag1945@gmail.com or our website www. newcastlecitychoir.org for more information.

With over 130 years of experience in tailoring funeral goodbyes to the needs of families in and around Newcastle, we can help you say goodbye to the one you’ve cherished with a funeral that celebrates what life meant to them and what they have meant to you.

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WHAT'S ON

Dates For Your Diary May 10 Episcopal Ordination

May 17-20 Inspiracy II

The service of Episcopal Ordination of the Venerable Canon Sonia Roulston and the Venerable Charlie Murry will take place at Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle at 6pm on Ascension Day (May 10 2018).

The Venerable Canon Sonia Roulston will become Assistant Bishop (Inland Episcopate) to exercise episcopal ministry in the Upper Hunter, Maitland and Paterson Deaneries as well as working closely with the Diocesan Ministry Council.

The Venerable Charlie Murry will become the Assistant Bishop (Coastal Episcopate) to exercise episcopal ministry in the Central Coast, Lake Macquarie and Manning Deaneries as well as working closely with the Newcastle Anglican Church Corporation Board.

A four day Festival in Newcastle during May 17-20, 2018. Exploring Justice, Spirituality, Music and Art for the Common Good.

Set in the beautiful and edgy steel and coal town turned activism hub of Newcastle, this festival now in its second year, will provide a unique conversation around justice, climate change, spirituality, music and art.

This conversation seeks to find ways to work for the common good, where diverse communities reclaim the future in hopeful and creative ways.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS: • Dr Anne Elvey – poet & ecofeminist theologian.

• Dr Di Rayson – theologian.

• Dr Byron Smith – climate change ethicist.

• Dr Mick Pope – meteorologist & climate justice advocate.

• Tau'alofa Anga'aelangi – Justice advocate, originally from Tonga.

And many more! Young film-makers are also invited to submit a short film of up to four minutes that addresses the subject of social justice that will be apart of the INSPIRACY Festival.

Date: Thursday May 10 2018 Time: 6pm Venue: Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle

Date: May 17-20 Venues: Adamstown Uniting Church 228 Brunker Rd Adamstown & Merewether Uniting Church 178 Glebe Rd Merewether Find out more: www.inspiracy.org.au

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May 18-20 Anglican Men's Weekend

The annual Diocesan Men's Weekend is back again in 2018. Early stage planning has commenced for the event which will take place at Tahlee May 18-20, 2018.

This year Arthur Copeman will speak from Ecclesiates with the theme “Living in the Real World”. There will be various talks from other guest speakers to encourage believers of all ages, as well as men still considering the claims of Jesus.

Bring a tent, stay in a cabin, or bring your campervan. The Tahlee site has affordable camping and cabins to suit all ages and all budgets.

There will be plenty of free time over the weekend for fellowship with men from around the Hunter. We’ll kickoff with a BBQ on Friday night, followed by activities that make the most of Tahlee’s environment such as fishing, bushwalking, and a bonfire on Saturday night.

Date: May 18-20 2018 Venue: Tahlee Cost: $105 to $210- Price depends on accommodation & concession RSVP by 23rd April to Steve Parson 0408 116 225 Find out more: www. anglicanmensweekend.com

WHAT'S ON

June 5 Morpeth Lecture

The Morpeth Lecture returns in 2018 with keynote speaker Professor Juliana Claassens.

The lecture series was founded to bring theological engagement into the issues of contemporary life.

KEYNOTE SPEAKER: Prof Juliana Claassens is Professor in Old Testament and Head of the Gender Unit at the Faculty of Theology, Stellenbosch University. Her most recent book Claiming Her Dignity: Female Resistance in the Old Testament has been published with Liturgical Press in 2016, and won third prize in the Gender section of the Catholic Book Association Book Awards. She is also the author of Mourner, Mother, Midwife: Reimagining God's Liberating Presence (Westminster John Knox 2012) and The God who Provides: Biblical Images of Divine Nourishment (Abingdon, 2004). Her research and teaching interests include Gender, Postcolonial and Trauma Hermeneutics and the Old Testament.

She has written across the canon, but particularly enjoys teaching and writing on the Prophets and the Pentateuch. She is an ordained minister in the Dutch Reformed Church in South Africa with special assignment Theological Education.

Date: Tuesday June 5 2018 Time: 6pm Venue: Christ Church Cathedral, Newcastle

June 5 Diocesan AW Service

June 7-8 Bonhoeffer Conference

On Tuesday June 5, the annual service for ALL women in the Diocese will take place at St Peter's, 47 William Street, East Maitland.

This year's Conference will focus on the theme Bonhoeffer and Public Theology. What lessons can be drawn from the writings of Dietrich Bonhoeffer in addressing global challenges such as racism, poverty and climate change? At this year's Bonhoeffer Conference, guest speakers from South Africa and the United States bring fresh insights from their research in public theology on these contemporary challenges.

KEYNOTE SPEAKERS: Professor Robert Vosloo, Stellenbosch University: Bonhoeffer, our contemporary? Bonhoeffer on time, the times, and public life. • Professor Juliana Claassens, Stellenbosch University: Towards a Feminist Public Theology: On Wounds, Scars and Healing in the Book of Jeremiah and Beyond. • Professor Barry Harvey, Baylor University: A Hard Habit to Break: Re-envisioning Public Theology in a World After Christendom.

Date: June 7-8 2018 Time: 9am-5pm on Day 1 9am-3:30pm on Day 2 Venue: Mary MacKillop Place, 80 William Street, North Sydney Find out more: www.bbi.catholic. edu.au/short-courses/2018Bonhoeffer-Conference

KEYNOTE SPEAKER: The guest speaker will be Nicki Stuart, a physiotherapist with the Cerebral Palsy Alliance, working in the Maitland and Upper Hunter with children and adults living with a disability.

Born in New Zealand, Nicki grew up in Morpeth. She has also lived in the United Kingdom, South Africa, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia. She is part of the Cathedral and Cooks Hill congregations.

The mother of Ben and Rebekah, she also happens to be married to Bishop Peter. In her "spare time", amongst many things, she managers Bek's soccer team and creates mosaics.

Nicki has a deep love of God's creation and wonders at how God's love and grace are continuously moving in and through our world.

Morning Tea will be available from 9.15, with the Eucharist, to be celebrated by Bishop Peter Stuart, commencing at 10am. It is hoped to have a musical program after lunch, finishing at 2.30pm.

Date: June 5 2018 Time: 9.15am - 2.30pm Venue: St Peter's, East Maitland

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BOOK REVIEW

Jerome's Gift

BY LYNN MULLEY PARISH OF RAYMOND TERRACE

Jerome's Gift - A new release book by Trent Denham Many readers of Encounter will know, or know of, Don and Susanna Denham who are long time worshippers at St John's, Raymond Terrace. Susanna is well known for playing the organ and teaching music and both are known for choir singing. It seems talent runs in this family as their son Trent has written a book, Jerome's Gift.

"On the surface it is a simple adventure story about a young boy called Jerome," Trent said.

"He grows up in difficult times and has to find inspiration from around him, and find creative ways to solve his problems. Underneath, it is much, much more!"

I feel blessed to know Trent and we have emailed back and forth a few times since my first reading of this book. I have read it six times now and know I will read it many more times.

Plus I could look at the incredible artwork (all done by Trent) for hours.

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It has added to my life in the most amazing ways.

In one email back to me Trent asked, "What is Jerome's Gift? Is it simply the materials given to him by the village folk? Or is it more the combined legacy (in mind and deed and spirit and intent) of the people who gave his life to him?

"Is his gift the people themselves: his friends, family, strangers, the animals? Or is it what he can do for his people? Is it his ability to solve problems, his creativity? Or his patience and observation that lead him to those conclusions?

"Or is it his connection to the one and the everything that enables him to see it? Is it the gift of his hands or of his heart?

"Jerome's Gift is all these things, and more. He sees through the veil of doubt, to his own personal epiphany, one that will lead him to many wisdoms, and open the door to many

new mysteries."

At different times when reading this book the words from the hymn Great is Thy faithfulness by Thomas Chisholm have come to mind.

Especially, "All I have needed thy hand hath provided" and "blessings all mine, with ten thousand beside!"

It's all there and so many times we miss it. But giving thanks when we do see, it is the most important thing of all. I'm very thankful/grateful and feeling totally blessed at the moment!

With gold embossed linen hard cover and stitch binding, and 48 pages of detailed, highly crafted illustrations, this book is a feast of quality artwork and storytelling. It doesn't matter if you are 3 or 103, this is a story that will resonate with any age with its gentle rhythm, detailed imagery and expansive landscapes. Jerome's Gift is available for purchase at www.jeromesgift.com

PUZZLE

Together in Song

BY THE REV'D JUDY WALSH PARISH OF CESSNOCK

Easter Hymns Crossword ACROSS 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

8.

9.

In the hymn "My song is love unknown," what did the Lord take – – and die. (5+5) The second verse of the hymn "Jesus Christ is risen today" begins with the word? (5) In the hymn "Lift high the cross', what should we do with Christ's love? (8) Name the word in many Easter hymns which means "God be praised". (8) The hymn "Were you there when they crucified my Lord?" asks in verse three, were you there when they (7) in the side?

Describe the cross we survey in Isaac Watts' famous hymn? (8) In the hymn "Come let us with our Lord arise" how did Christ rise from the dead? (10) "Come, let us with the Lord?

-----" (5) "Alleluia, Christ is risen!" Where on the road with us is he? (6)

DOWN 1.

In the Easter Hymn "Christ the Lord is risen today" what work of love is done? (9) 2. "At the dawning of ---------?"

(9) 3. "Come let us with our Lord arise" with joyful hearts and voices -----? (5)

4. "The strife is ----, the battle done." (4) 5. "Christ is alive" who should sing?

(10) 6. "He is risen, he is risen." What sort of voice should we tell it with? (6) 7. "His ----- no longer has a sting" (5)

8. "Christ the Lord is risen again."

What did the angels do for joy?

(5) 9. "The head that once was crowned with……..?" (6) 10. "He lives, to bless me with his?

----" (4) 11. (Verse 3)"On the third day he rose -----?" (5)

Solution to the February puzzle: "RESURRECTION OF JESUS"

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SETTING TO WORK

REGIONAL MEETINGS Dear sisters and brothers I invite the people of the Diocese to Regional Meetings to explore Jesus' call that we might have abundant life. My prayer and my vision for the Diocese is that we will flourish by grace.

There are, across the Diocese, some wonderful green shoots of creative change. It is a delight to see clergy and people reenergise existing ministries and embrace new opportunities.

In February, the clergy met and we listened carefully to one another and we believe also to the Spirit. We recognised that for the Diocese to flourish there was a need to embrace further significant and even radical change. The changes in society, the impact of the disclosures of abuse in the church and our sense of vulnerability meant that there was an urgency to be different in and as a Diocese.

An emerging view that this was essential to our mission and ministry viability.

I am convening 5 regional meetings for clergy, Synod reps, church wardens and other lay leaders to share a vision for the diocese, some key directions and to tackle some strategic questions.

RSVP for catering is an important courtesy. Please feel warmly invited to come and share in this important work. +Peter

10 April: Manning

17 April: Central Coast

Venue: Taree Parish 4.30pm-6.30pm: Meet with clergy 6pm-6.30pm: Soup and sandwiches 6.30pm-8pm: Meet with clergy & Laity

Venue: Wyong Parish 5pm-6.15pm: Meet with clergy 6.15pm-6.45pm: Soup and sandwiches 6.45pm-8.15pm: Meet with clergy & Laity

12 April: Upper Hunter

18 April: Maitland-Paterson

Venue: Muswellbrook Parish 4.30pm-6.30pm: Meet with clergy 6pm-6.30pm: Soup and sandwiches 6.30pm-8pm: Meet with clergy & Laity

Venue: Raymond Terrace Parish 4.30pm-6.30pm: Meet with clergy 6pm-6.30pm: Soup and sandwiches 6.30pm-8pm: Meet with clergy & Laity

19 April: Newcastle Venue: New Lambton Parish 4.30pm-6.30pm: Meet with clergy 6pm-6.30pm: Soup and sandwiches 6.30pm-8pm: Meet with clergy & Laity

RSVP for catering is an important courtesy. Please RSVP to BishopSecretary@newcastleanglican.org.au by Friday 6 April Please feel warmly invited to come and share in this important work.

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