The Lutheran April-May 2023 Digital Edition

LUTHERAN CHURCH OF AUSTRALIA

EDITORIAL

Editor Lisa McIntosh

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e lisa.mcintosh@lca.org.au

Executive Editor Linda Macqueen

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LUTHERAN CHURCH OF AUSTRALIA

The Lutheran informs the members of the LCANZ about the church’s teaching, life, mission and people, helping them to grow in faith and commitment to Jesus Christ. The Lutheran also provides a forum for a range of opinions, which do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editor or the policies of the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand.

Trans-Tasman ties (well … tie)

Lutheran Church of New Zealand Bishop Mark Whitfield, left, found time amongst the busyness of the recent Convention of General Synod in Melbourne to catch up on some important reading with Australian-based LCANZ Bishop Paul Smith. Bishop Mark, who is retiring from his role at the LCNZ Synod in June, also has been leading the church’s call for prayer and support for people affected by this year’s devastating weather events in the North Island of Aotearoa-New Zealand.

People like YOU bring love to life

Bethlehem Lutheran Church Adelaide SA

Works as a nanny and in events and education for Nature Play SA

Most treasured Bible text: Lamentations 3:22,23

‘Because of the Lord’s great love we are not consumed, for his compassions never fail. They are new every morning; great is your faithfulness.’

St Pauls Lutheran Church Oakey Qld

Reporter for the Oakey Champion newspaper

Most treasured Bible text: John 1:1–14

‘In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God ... The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us.’

Christ Church Lutheran Church Murray Bridge SA

Bachelor of Ministry student at ALC

Most treasured Bible text: Romans 5:1–5

‘Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ ... God’s love has been poured out into our hearts …’

Let

As I write this, I’m aware that this coming Sunday (26 March) is the International Day of Remembrance of the Victims of Slavery and the Transatlantic Slave Trade.

Such awareness days can be sobering reminders of the issues facing our world. So, as well as bringing you the news, views, resolutions and next steps for the LCANZ after the recent General Synod, in this edition we’re putting a spotlight on slavery.

Slavery is an evil we’d like to think has been consigned to history. But tragically, that’s not the reality – even in the 21st century. The latest Global Estimates of Modern Slavery states that in 2021 almost 50 million people were living in modern slavery.

Modern-day slavery is less public than ancient iterations – we don’t see people nowadays in chains working on roads or in fields or building pyramids.

Children sold into prostitution or early marriage or forced to work in hard labour conditions are among today’s enslaved people. They may work in overseas ‘sweatshops’ manufacturing the cheap clothing we love to buy, or as bonded agricultural labourers on cocoa farms or tea plantations which produce our favourite beverages or chocolate. If we can afford to, are we prepared to pay extra to ensure the goods we buy are without slavery in their supply chain?

We’d like to think this couldn’t happen in Australia and New Zealand but, according to the Global Slavery Index, 15,000 people are living in ‘illegal conditions of modern slavery’ in Australia, with a further 3,000 in New Zealand.

In 2015, the LCA joined 14 other Australian religious organisations and communities in signing a joint declaration against modern slavery and called on the government to enact the Modern Slavery Bill. The church’s submission said in part, ‘Godly conduct rules out exploiting and humiliating others ... Jesus … urged us all to see God’s own suffering in the face of those in need, and to respond to them with kindness and generosity. He might well say to us today, “Where were you when I appeared to you in the form of a victim of modern slavery?”’

As Christians, we know that we, too, have been slaves in the spiritual sense – slaves to sin. We know that, through his death and resurrection on that first Easter, Jesus redeemed us, freeing us from our slavery. As free people, he calls on us to share his love with those who are still enslaved – whether physically, spiritually, or both. I pray that this Easter we will rejoice in ‘living as free people’ (1 Peter 2:16) while doing what we can to ensure justice for the oppressed (Micah 6:8, Isaiah 58:6).

PS – Due to our coverage of General Synod, some of our regular features are missing from this edition. They will return next time. Thank you for your understanding.

Our cover: Artwork by Elysia McEwen

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander readers are advised that the following pages may contain images of people who have died.

Because we bear your name

It is finished.

One Easter morning, in my first country parish in South Australia, I had an encounter at the door of the church that I will never forget. It was a moment that gathered me into the way that the good news of the resurrection of our Lord changes us to be people of hope. At the church door before that Easter Sunday service, I was met by an older member who announced, ‘Pastor, I felt Easter!’ She continued, ‘I felt the resurrection of our Lord Jesus for the first time.’ What had happened to this faithful member, that she would make such a declaration?

That story began with Good Friday just days before. For our worship service in the parish, we had used a form called ‘Tenebrae’. This order of worship is focused on light in the darkness. During the service, candles are extinguished one by one, as relevant scriptures are read. The last candle is hidden behind the altar, and then the people leave the church in darkness.

Since the congregation’s worship committee had decided to use this Tenebrae-style service for Good Friday, they had to deal with a bit of a problem. A worship service at 9am in the morning, in the South Australian countryside, is very bright and sunny, so it would be easy for the significant symbol of extinguishing candles and of darkness to be lost. A couple of the men in the congregation came up with a creative solution. They decided that as each candle was extinguished, they would cover each of the six church windows one by one with specially prepared cardboard.

And their idea worked. When all the candles were extinguished, and we had put up their cardboard, we had a very dark church indeed. After putting the last candle behind the altar, we all left in silence. It was like walking out of a tomb.

That was the experience of the parish member who had met me at the door on Easter morning. She was rostered on church cleaning that weekend, so the day before, when she went to clean, the cardboard hadn’t been taken down yet, and she found herself entering the empty darkness. As a Christian, she knew the good news that the empty tomb at Calvary meant for all humankind and it was those ‘tidings of great joy’ that she had discovered.

BISHOP PAUL’S LETTER

REV PAUL SMITH

Only from the darkness of Good Friday can our eyes recognise the dawning light of Easter resurrection.

When the Apostle John recorded the story of Jesus in his gospel nearly 2000 years ago, he told us his purpose was that we would believe that Jesus is the Christ and, by believing, we would have life in his name.

John is the only gospel writer to record certain words of our Lord from the cross – ‘When Jesus had received the wine, he said, “It is finished”.’ What has been finished? John has given the parameters to understand these words, from the very beginning of his gospel. It is another John, the Baptist, who sees Jesus and proclaims: ‘Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’

When Jesus was crucified, he declared that his work taking away the sin of the world was complete. ‘It is finished.’ We gather for worship on Good Friday to hear Jesus’ response to our struggle for God’s acceptance: 'It is finished. Sin is forgiven once and for all. I have done all that is required for you to have peace with God.’ He does this for me out of love.

At the beginning of John’s Gospel, we hear the deepest assurance of Good Friday faith: ‘In him was life, and that life was the light of all humankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it.’ In the Tenebrae service, the light of the last candle is hidden behind the altar to remind us that behind the darkness of sin and death of Good Friday, there was always God’s purpose to forgive sin and defeat death and the power of the devil.

In our Lutheran witness, we confess that this message of Good Friday is the first and chief article of faith, out of which comes all other teachings of faith. This truth that, on the cross, Christ Jesus finishes what is required for faith, can never be watered down or modified.

Only from the darkness of Good Friday can our eyes recognise the dawning light of Easter resurrection.

In Christ, Paul

Lord Jesus, we belong to you, you live in us, we live in you; we live and work f or you –because we bear your name

ONLY FROM THE DARKNESS OF GOOD FRIDAY CAN OUR EYES RECOGNISE THE DAWNING LIGHT OF EASTER RESURRECTION.

Bishop, Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand

TODAY’S SLAVERY

BY LISA MCINTOSH

Slavery is not just a long-ago scourge confined to the ancient biblical account of the Israelites captive in Egypt, or the horrors of the trans-Atlantic slave trade between the 16th and 19th centuries.

Nor has it been restricted closer to home to the terrible practice of ‘blackbirding’, in which people from South Pacific islands were shipped off to work in indentured labour schemes on sugar plantations in Queensland or New South Wales, or flax mills near Auckland, from the mid-1800s until the first decade of the 20th century.

And the United Nations Association of Australia (UNAA) says that First Nations Australians have had an even ‘more enduring experience of slavery, originally in the pearling industry in Western Australia and the Torres Strait and then in the cattle industry’, as well as the pastoral industry, in which some Aboriginal workers ‘were bought and sold as chattels’.

Slavery is also a modern global evil. Specialist legal practice, research and policy centre Antislavery Australia estimates that 40.3 million people worldwide live in modern slavery which it says is ‘often hidden’ in everyday locations such as homes, restaurants, farms and building sites, as well as in places such as brothels.

Refugees, other displaced people and those living in poverty are among the most at risk of slavery, says Craig Heidenreich, who serves as Cross-Cultural Ministry Facilitator for the LCANZ and formerly worked with the Australian Refugee Association.

Craig does not doubt the ongoing devastating effects on the lives of people around the world of modern-day slavery, which includes such brutalities as human trafficking, early marriage, debt bondage, domestic servitude, sexual exploitation, forced criminality, child labour and sweatshop working conditions, ‘To say it couldn’t and wouldn’t happen today is fanciful’, he says, ‘Some families are so desperate they even sell their teenage daughters to survive, not always knowing the outcome for those girls.’

Nick Schwarz, the LCANZ’s Assistant to the Bishop for Public Theology, says that while ‘on the international scene slavery certainly hasn’t been abolished, in Australia various safeguards exist’ that should prevent such exploitative practices. These include the Modern Slavery Act (2018), last year’s ratification of the International Labour Organisation’s Protocol on Forced Labour and various child-protection laws. However, he says, people are still exploited, with some migrant workers in Australia reportedly being so poorly paid that their income doesn’t cover basic living expenses, so they don’t have the choice to leave.

Other critical but often unclear factors in attempts to eradicate slavery are the supply chains behind the products we buy and use, which may be manufactured by slave labour.

‘Slavery is something that we empower with our choices’, Craig says. And Nick adds: ‘Consumers are wanting to buy from fair-trade labour supply chains.’ ‘But’, he says, ‘it’s not always easy to establish the provenance of a product.’

‘SLAVERY IS SOMETHING THAT WE EMPOWER WITH OUR CHOICES.’

BIMALI DEVI LOHAR’S STORY in her words

My mother died when I was 11, and so my father then made me be married. My husband was 18. When I was 16, I had my first child.

My husband and I became Haliya when he borrowed 6000 Rupees (less than USD 100) to pay for the treatment of his brother who was sick. My husband goes to plough the land for the landlord and did farming work and ironsmith repairing tools to barter for food. I went as a labourer to another place.

We had to tie together the legs of the children and leave them in the house. I was weeping every day that I had to do this to my children. When I returned from work their clothes were filled with urine and stools. I cannot express in words how this made me feel as a mother. But there is nothing else I can do.

One day my husband was ploughing the landlord’s land, and he died in the field. On the day I finished the funeral ritual, the landlord came to me and said I must come to his house and work to pay the loan because my husband had died. I feel real pressure from the landlord, but there is no choice. I have to work.

I work to pay this loan for 22 years.

Later there was an Haliya group formed by the Lutherans. They support me to go in the legal process. The government office decided to dismiss the debt. Because of interest, the loan at that time was 20,000 Rupees (USD 300). Then I am free.

The responsibility for such information usually lies with the corporate sector, a fact highlighted by Australian anti-slavery advocate and mining magnate Andrew ‘Twiggy’ Forrest, whose Walk Free initiative is an international human rights group committed to the eradication of all modern slavery within a generation.

Walk Free successfully campaigned for Australia’s Modern Slavery Act and encouraged world religious leaders to sign a declaration against modern slavery, forming the Global Freedom Network as its faith-based arm. The LCA is one of 15 Australian religious organisations and communities which in 2015 became part of the Australian chapter by signing the Joint Declaration of Religious Leaders against Modern Slavery, which committed signatories to work actively against slavery.

One of the ways the Lutheran church does this is through its overseas aid and development agency, Australian Lutheran World Service (ALWS). Jonathan Krause from ALWS has seen first-hand the tragedy of bonded labour in countries such as Nepal and recounts the heartbreaking story of Bimali Devi Lohar, a woman who was a ‘Haliya’, or agricultural bonded labourer, for more than 20 years (see breakout).

‘A Haliya has taken a loan from a landlord and works for that landlord until the loan is repaid’, Jonathan explains. ‘Because of exorbitant interest rates, the debt can last for generations. In 2021 the Nepalese Government freed the Haliya, but for many, there are no support systems to help them rejoin free society.

‘(ALWS partner) the Lutheran World Federation team has been working with the Haliya, providing household loans, training in kitchen gardening, seeds to plant and taps for drinking water. There has also been training provided in furniture making, embroidery and candle-making, and support for semi-commercial farming.

‘And even as that system changes, those people have been in poverty for so long, that they're still enslaved by what they've suffered and lost and so ALWS is working with them to train them in businesses, help them become independent and build a new life.’

As individuals, we may choose to support credible organisations which actively work for the eradication of modern slavery. We also may make this a consideration in the products and services we choose to buy if we have the financial means to do so.

The official Fairtrade website shows products that are fair trade and so less likely to involve exploitation

(https://fairtradeanz.org/product-finder)

Walk Free offers a suite of resources, including reports, policy documents, submissions and more information on the Global Freedom Network at www.walkfree.org/resources

We know you love The Lutheran … now there’s another way to enjoy our award-winning LCANZ magazine with our digital edition! Go to www.thelutheran.com.au/subscribe

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‘EVEN AS THAT SYSTEM CHANGES, THOSE PEOPLE HAVE BEEN IN POVERTY FOR SO LONG, THAT THEY'RE STILL ENSLAVED BY WHAT THEY'VE SUFFERED.’

UKRAINE – your ALWS action

163,008 people helped – thank you!

What Where Who

It is now one year since Russia began its illegal attempted invasion of Ukraine.

Our Lutheran Church in Australia and New Zealand joined Lutheran churches in the countries surrounding Ukraine, and inside Ukraine itself, to provide life-protecting emergency aid through the ACT Alliance of churches worldwide. Our contribution through ALWS is more than $300,000 worth of aid. Each person you have helped is someone like Victoria:

‘I dread to even think what could have happened. I do not want to go home right now. I am safe here and my children are safe here, too. My children and their future are my top priority.

In the school my children attend, I met Polish and Ukrainian parents with whom I am in contact. They also try to help me …

I received financial support from the LWF, vouchers for the purchase of medicines, non-food items, training … … I am glad that there is such a place.’

Photo: LWF ACT Alliance

Welcome TO YOUR NEW HOME!

BY HELENE SCHULZ

Imagine spending five years or more without a home. It sounds incredibly tough, even unbearable. And yet this is the reality for millions of refugees across the globe.

Refugee numbers continue to increase – they have more than doubled in the past 10 years and the United Nations refugee agency (UNHCR) now estimates that more than 90 million people are living as refugees. More than 90 million people fleeing war and persecution and human rights violations; more than 90 million people looking for a place to call home. The top five countries of origin are Syria, Ukraine, Afghanistan, South Sudan and Myanmar.

How can we reach out and respond to help refugee families? In Australia, about 17,875 refugees will be accepted on humanitarian visas in this current financial year, including 1,400 people who can be welcomed through a new community support program. And that is one way in which we as everyday Australians can respond.

The Community Refugee Integration and Settlement Pilot (CRISP) program, introduced by the Australian government in 2022, is testing whether locally based community groups are interested in supporting our refugee intake by offering time and financial support to people in their first year of arrival. In Canada, a similar program has been successfully established for some years and has almost doubled the number of refugees that have been resettled each year within their local communities.

The LCANZ’s Cross-Cultural Ministry Facilitator, Craig Heidenreich, is passionate about CRISP and has been following the development and implementation of the program through the LCANZ’s involvement with the Australian Council of Churches Refugee Taskforce. This initiative is also supported by the church’s newly formed Refugee Action Group, which is part of the Commission on Social and Bioethical Questions.

Craig says that, as Christians, ‘we are to show love to the poor and the stranger’. ‘The CRISP program is an ideal way

for church communities to become actively involved with helping a refugee family, starting from meeting them at the airport and guiding them through the issues and challenges of their first year in their local community’, he says. ‘It only requires a group of at least five people to come together to support a refugee family to settle in their local area.’ A not-for-profit organisation, Community Refugee Sponsorship Australia (CRSA), has been funded by the Australian government to provide information, training and support for local community groups.

The basic requirements for acceptance into CRISP include:

1. The group needs to include at least five adults who live near each other.

2. The group needs to nominate a leader to liaise with CRSA.

3. Members must participate in two half-day training sessions.

4. The group agrees to support a family selected by CRSA (you can nominate a preferred religious background).

5. The group needs to commit to about 10 hours per week for a year for tasks such as arranging interim accommodation, transport from the airport, registering with Centrelink and Medicare, setting up bank accounts, arranging school enrolments, English lessons, neighbourhood orientation, understanding our medical system, assistance to find permanent accommodation and employment and providing social connections.

‘IT PROVIDES A UNIQUE AND TRULY BEAUTIFUL OPPORTUNITY TO BRING GOD'S LOVE TO LIFE.’

6. The group will need to open a dedicated bank account and raise funds to cover some basic needs, such as temporary accommodation, secondhand furniture and whitegoods and initial food requirements. The family will be eligible for Centrelink and to work, so financial support is supplementary. A minimum fundraising goal of $5,000–20,000 is required.

At least two LCANZ congregations are already taking steps to become involved with CRISP.

Stacey Bradtke, a member of The Ark at Salisbury in South Australia, has been inspired to see the CRISP program become part of the congregation’s service to others. She says members have been focusing on being an active part of their vibrant multicultural community. The congregation desires to reflect this diverse community and grow into a truly multi-ethnic church.

‘Sponsoring a refugee family through CRISP fits into this story of wanting to serve and engage in the community’, Stacey says. ‘It provides a unique and truly beautiful opportunity to bring God's love to life.’

The Ark is still in the early stages of putting together its support team. ‘There are a large number of refugees living in the area, so helping a family to settle here would provide more opportunities to connect with organisations and become increasingly connected with our wider community’, Stacey says. ‘We are excited that CRISP provides a simple, clear and relational avenue to give practical support to a family who desperately needs to be shown God's love during a difficult transition to a new country and a new home.’

Monika Tropiano, from Western Australia’s Rockingham Mandurah congregation, says one person in their home group found out about CRISP and shared their interest with other members. The group then started to explore the possibilities.

An older church, Monika says they have realised their situation can be used to bless others. ‘As a group, we feel we are uniquely placed – mostly retired with a greater flexibility with our time’, Monika says. ‘We could see that we would have the ability to care for a newly arrived family for 12 months.’

They have been assessing how they can help a refugee family settle in – from determining a fundraising target outside their congregation’s budget, how to assist with initial accommodation, working out what household furniture and goods will be needed, to finding out who can help with skills such as teaching people to drive.

Becoming involved in welcoming a refugee family was also a good fit with four of the five key areas the congregation plans to focus on in 2023–2024: worship, service, small groups, community engagement and cross-cultural outreach.

They have formed a group, attended the sponsorship training and hoped to welcome their first refugee family this month or next. ‘We constantly remember that we are not doing this for ourselves, and we shouldn’t expect thanks or appreciation for what we do’, Monika says. ‘We are excited by this opportunity and are looking forward to how God will stretch us and use us to be his people in our local area.’

Helene Schulz is a member of the LCANZ Refugee Action Group.

If you would like to support these congregations or start your own CRISP support group, please contact Craig Heidenreich at craig.heidenreich@lca.org.au, or by phone on 08 8267 7379 or 0492 177 366. You can also make a tax-deductible donation to support Rockingham Mandurah’s CRISP involvement online at: https://shoutforgood.com/explore/ search?q=mandurah&selectedLocationLength=0

‘WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO HOW GOD WILL STRETCH US AND USE US TO BE HIS PEOPLE IN OUR LOCAL AREA.’

Left-hand page and above: Members of The Ark Lutheran Church Salisbury in SA have participated in several local events, including community fairs, to bless and get to know people in their neighbourhood.

Left: WA’s Rockingham-Mandurah Lutheran Church have formed a Refugee Welcome and Support Group. Taking part are, from left, Desma Kuchel, Anny Sefton, Monika Tropiano, Wendy Wittwer, Frank Wittwer and, inset, Bishop Emeritus Mike Fulwood.

In Going GREYT! we feature stories of some of our ‘more experienced’ people within the LCANZ, who have been called to make a positive contribution in their retirement. We pray their examples of service will be an inspiration and encouragement to us all as we look to be Christ’s hands and feet wherever we are.

A love of learning AND a life of serving

BY HELEN BRINKMAN

Retired Queensland educator Fred Stolz is penning his life story, which he’s called A Fortunate Life

‘I don’t know why God has blessed me as he has, but I am very thankful’, says 87-year-old Fred as he reflects on his 54 years of service to education in Australia and Papua New Guinea (PNG).

The farmer’s son from Henty in southwestern New South Wales was always going to be a teacher.

And he’s now been recognised in the 2023 Australia Day Honours List for his service to education. This includes serving as foundation headmaster of Grace Lutheran College, Rothwell, Queensland, and inaugural principal of Balob Teachers College in PNG.

Fred’s learning journey began in a one-teacher school in country NSW during World War II.

By age 11 he was a boarder at Albury High School hostel, riding the diesel-powered rail motor train home on weekends.

And as the youngest high school graduate at 16 years, the headmaster said Fred was too young for university. However, he won a teaching scholarship that couldn’t be deferred, so off he went to the University of Sydney.

After completing his degree and a stint of national service, 20-year-old Fred won his first teaching post, back at Albury High School.

This was followed by four more teaching posts in public high schools across NSW. At age 21, Fred met his future wife Lois at the Lutheran youth group in Gilgandra, where he was teaching science at the local high school. Marriage followed in 1961.

After nine years teaching In NSW schools, a seed sowed during a childhood of mission festivals at church bore fruit. He became the inaugural principal of the new Balob Teachers College in Lae, at the foot of the PNG Highlands.

The 1965 mission posting meant flying the family, which then included two-year-old daughter Theresa and 10-month-old son Michael, in a propellor-powered DC-6B plane to Port Moresby, then Lae. Fred was one of eight staff teaching 99 students at what has become one of the largest primary teacher training institutions in PNG.

By the time he left 15 years later, the teaching college had 300 students undertaking a two-year course. Now, more than 1,100 students are currently undertaking a three-year primary school teaching course at Balob. The college’s motto ‘to serve’, is very close to Fred’s heart.

Fred says the teaching roles graduating teachers often go into involve a strong sense of service to the community. ‘The primary schools are isolated, so if you are serving there, you are really serving’, he says. ‘And for New Guineans to move away from their language group is not easy, so you need to have a true sense of service.’

He was named an Officer of the Order of Logohu (Bird of Paradise) by the PNG Government in December 2018, for his work at Balob, and his continued service to the Lutheran church. His church service has included roles on the Queensland District’s Finance Council, Lutheran Education Queensland’s finance and development committee and committees of the Association of Independent Schools of Queensland.

Establishing Grace Lutheran College, Rothwell, on Brisbane’s north coast is what brought Fred and his family back to Australia in late 1979. From 1980, he oversaw its growth from 55 students on a new campus, to more than 1500 students over two campuses. The second campus at Caboolture opened in 2008.

That spirit of service has resonated with Fred throughout his life.

‘Talk is cheap, walking the talk is what you have to do’, he says.

1 PETER 4:10

‘I DON’T KNOW WHY GOD HAS BLESSED ME AS HE HAS, BUT I AM VERY THANKFUL.’

Right: Fred Stolz (third from left) received an Order of Logohu medal in 2020 for his service to education in Papua New Guinea between 1965 and 1979. He is pictured with (from left) his nephew Brenton Kanowski, PNG GovernorGeneral Sir Bob Dadae and Fred’s son Michael Stolz, who has since begun the role of Executive Director of Australian Lutheran World Service.

Below right: The founding principal of Grace Lutheran College, Rothwell, in Queensland, Fred is pictured with the inaugural staff of the college, where he served from 1980 to 2009.

Below middle: Fred in 2022 with his wife Lois, whom he married in 1961 after meeting her at the Lutheran youth group in Gilgandra in New South Wales.

Bottom right: Fred Stolz (front row, second from left), pictured with the staff of the new Balob Teachers College in Lae in 1965, where he served as inaugural principal.

Up until two years before he retired from Grace in 2009, Fred did just that, teaching a maths class each year. ‘I felt as principal I should set an example’, he recalls. When all the teachers were marking papers and writing reports, he was too.

After such a stimulating career, it required a concerted effort for Fred to adjust to retirement.

‘Teachers are a very intelligent group of people, so it’s always very interesting to be with them. After 54 years I knew it would be a jolt’, he says. ‘We bought a motorhome and spent 20 weeks travelling around Australia.’

Fred then started studying German at the University of the Third Age. Thirteen years into retirement, he is still an active member of Redcliffe Lutheran Church and his local Rotary club. He volunteers with the church’s Bayside Community Care, handing out food parcels. You’ll also find him selling raffle tickets or sizzling sausages at the local Bunnings for the Rotary club.

Fred paid tribute to the teachers he’s worked with in establishing both colleges. He also remains proud of the students and has never missed Grace Lutheran College’s annual end-of-year speech night. ‘They are all making good contributions to society and that’s a good result.’

Fred is a great advocate for Lutheran schools. ‘Australia is a very secular society, and we do need to show education has a spiritual side as well’, he says. ‘It’s one of the things that the Lutheran Church does very well.’

A passion for education continues in his family. Three of his 16 grandchildren are teachers, including one who has just become a high school teacher on Thursday Island in North Queensland.

Helen Brinkman is a Brisbane-based writer who is inspired by the many GREYT people who serve tirelessly and humbly in our community. By sharing stories of how God shines his light through his people, she hopes others are encouraged to explore how they can use their gifts to share his light in the world. Know of any other GREYT stories in your local community? Email the editor lisa.mcintosh@lca.org.au

PRAYER POINTS

2–8 APRIL

Pastor Peter Hage, who has been elected to serve as WA District Bishop, along with his predecessor, Bishop Emeritus Mike Fulwood

9–15 APRIL

Christians around the world who are celebrating the joy of the resurrection on Easter Sunday (9 April)

16–22 APRIL

Those who will attend the LCANZ’s Cross-Cultural Ministry Conference in Melbourne next month (5–6 May)

23–29 APRIL

Our nations’ servicemen and women and those who have lost loved ones in wars, on ANZAC Day (25 April)

30 APRIL– 6 MAY

Members and leaders of St Lukes Parkwood WA, which is holding its closing service on 30 April

7–13 MAY

All mothers, those who are missing their mums and those who have longed to be mothers, as we prepare to mark Mother’s Day (14 May)

14–20 MAY

Young people both within and outside of the LCANZ on the eve of New Zealand’s National Youth Week (15–21 May)

21–27 MAY

Delegates, volunteers and organisers of the SA-NT District Convention of Synod, being held at Victor Harbor SA (20–21 May), and retiring Bishop David Altus

28 MAY– 3 JUNE

Positive, respectful relationships between all Australians, as we mark National Reconciliation Week

Easter freedom

BY MATT BISHOP

I serve in a suburban parish that 50 years ago planted a Lutheran primary school to be a missional community. In my everyday calling, I have the joy of being invited into that school to proclaim God’s freedom.

In this issue of The Lutheran, we have been confronted with the awful issue of modernday slavery. In the Year 3 class I visit, we go through the Old Testament’s big freedom moment: the children of Israel’s release from slavery in Egypt. I connect Israel’s liberating Passover meal to the way it is fulfilled in the ultimate freedom account of Scripture: Jesus' death and resurrection. Accordingly, we start this Bible study at Maundy Thursday of the Easter weekend. A chief focus of this day is the institution of the Lord’s own supper. Jesus said, ‘Do this in remembrance of me’ (Luke 22:19b). He gave his supper to us in the context of ‘remembering’ that great walk out of slavery to freedom at least 1200 years earlier.

Read Exodus 12:1–42.

The Jewish sense of remembering is not just recalling something from the past. It’s far richer. Like directly living it all over again personally … really being there and experiencing the freedom all over again.

How do we use meals at key times in life to remember, celebrate and move to a new future?

Go back to Exodus 12:3–7. What is the purpose of the Passover lamb and in what condition is it to be? What do the Israelites do with its blood? Why? Check verses 12,13 and 23–30 after you have discussed these questions.

Read John 1:29–36. What are all the things Christ’s herald, John the Baptiser, wishes us to know about Jesus? On what will Jesus’ blood be marked? When (see John 19:14)? Whose freedom does it grant?

Review Exodus 12:24–27, Mark 14:12–17 and 14:22–25.

Picture the upper room the night before Jesus died. At least 1,200 years after the first Passover, Jesus is going on the same

freedom walk with his Israelite forebears as he sits with his disciples and celebrates the Passover. Jesus gives this ancient meal of remembrance a whole new significance.

In what ways is the Lord’s Supper our meal of freedom? Of forgiveness of sin?

And food for our journey to eternity?

After discussing this, you might check Exodus 12:11, 24, 50, 51; Matthew 26:26–29 and 1 Corinthians 11:23–26.

Jesus says in this new meal of remembrance, ‘This is my body … this is my blood … do this in remembrance of me’.

By using Jesus’ understanding of remembrance, what do his words tell us about his bodily presence every time we attend the Lord’s Supper and ‘remember’ and ‘proclaim his death until he comes’ (1 Corinthians 11:26)?

The account of the first Easter weekend is a freedom bonanza. Talk through the type of freedom gifted to each of the following:

• Barabbas – Matthew 27:15–26

• The repentant criminal – Luke 23:39–43

• The Centurion – Matthew 27:54

• Joseph of Arimathea and Nicodemus –John 19:38–42. Think in terms of their ties to the ruling elite and their generous gifts of burial spices and the unused tomb.

• The women – Luke 23:49; 55–24:8

• The disciples – John 20:19–23

What freedom has Christ given you in Easter? Who on the list is that the same or similar to? What difference can you make to those enslaved around you?

Prayer: Thank you, Lord Jesus, that in your life, death and resurrection you have brought us out of slavery to sin, death and the devil, and into the freedom of life eternal with you. Never let us grow tired of receiving you and your good news in your Supper. Use your nourishment of us that we may serve all who are enslaved. We pray through the Holy Spirit who forgives sin and gathers your church. Amen.

Pastor Matt Bishop serves the faith family of St Paul Lutheran Church Blair Athol and provides pastoral support to the co-located community of St Paul Lutheran School.

General Synod news & views

More than 340 delegates, along with approximately 120 visitors, officials, organisers and volunteers, met in Melbourne from 9 to 12 February for the in-person sessions of the 2021–2023 Convention of General Synod of the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand.

The meeting continued the 20th LCA convention, which opened with online sessions in October 2021 and was then adjourned until 2023. The in-person sessions consisted of two full days of business at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre, bookended by part-days with gathering and closing worship services.

In passing by a strong majority an amended proposal from the LCA’s Queensland District, General Synod delegates directed the General Church Board and College of Bishops to explore the theological, constitutional and governance issues involved in establishing ‘one church with two different practices of ordination’ – specifically, that work should be done to outline how one church with two ordination practices might function.

Delegates further requested that the fruit of this work be submitted as a proposal in time for discussion at the 2024

meeting of General Pastors Conference, for the Convention of General Synod that same year. This proposal required only a simple (50 per cent) majority in order to be passed.

Synod did not pass a proposal to change the teaching of the church which would have permitted the ordination of both men and women from 2024.

As it contained constitutional amendments and a change in the teaching of the church, the proposal brought before General Synod by the St Pauls Box Hill congregation, Victoria, required a two-thirds majority of registered delegates (230 votes) to be passed. While 203 delegates voted in favour of the proposal; 136 voted against it, and three delegates abstained.

After Convention, the bishops wrote to members of the LCANZ to share information and provide clarification regarding decisions made during the in-person sessions of General Synod (see pages 15,16)

You can also read more about these outcomes, including delegates’ reflections on the ‘one church, two practices’ resolution, on pages 14, 18 and 19.

All Convention of General Synod photography by Anthony Bothe and Andrea Winter.

FORWARD together

When our pastors met for their General Pastors Conference in October 2022, they agreed: ‘We acknowledge and lament that we are divided in what we believe is revealed in 1 Corinthians 14 and 1 Timothy 2 as identified in TA VI:11, but we have grown in our recognition of each other's exegetical and conscience concerns in this matter [of ordination].’

The Melbourne Convention of General Synod sought a way forward from this division among us. The delegates did their work with prayer and with the hearing of the word of the Lord. On the second business day of convention, we resolved a way forward from our ongoing disagreement on the question of ordination: ‘Can both women and men be ordained to the office of the public ministry?’

General Synod asked the General Church Board (GCB) and the College of Bishops (CoB) to work through the ‘theological, constitutional, and governance requirements to operate as one church with two different practices of ordination’. (You can read the full resolution on page 15.)

LCANZ Bishop Paul Smith said: ‘This resolution was passed with hopefulness by our delegates. Let us go forward together in the name of the Lord with that same hopefulness.

‘So, now there is work to be done, as we walk together towards the next convention to find how we might continue to serve together as a Lutheran church in New Zealand and Australia.’

Already, twice since the February convention, our General Church Board and College of Bishops has met together to get this work underway.

A Project Management Office (PMO) is to be established under the oversight of the GCB and CoB. The PMO will report directly to the joint group and will be responsible for plan development, oversight and monitoring of working groups, reporting and risk management. A reference group will be formed to support and advise the PMO. The Executive Officer of the Church will manage the appointment of administrative personnel in the PMO and oversee the day-to-day operation of the office.

Eight working groups will be formed, each with terms of reference outlining the matters to be addressed, timelines and selection criteria for appointment.

The working groups are:

1. Synod agenda and outcomes planning

2. Theological requirements

3. Constitutional requirements

4. Governance requirements

5. Pastoral care

6. Candidacy of both women and men for ordination

7. Communications

8. Finance and budgeting.

Not all working groups will run concurrently, and reporting timelines will differ. Some will be engaged as required, on the basis of work finalised by other working groups.

Further detail and the terms of reference for each working group will be made available to the church through expressions of interest for appointment to the working groups. The expressions of interest will clarify the expected workload and time commitment.

Materials must be ready in good time for General Pastors Conference and delegates prior to Convention of General Synod in 2024. The timeframe is very tight. Accordingly, the expressions of interest phase will be short to enable the working groups to convene promptly.

We ask the people of our Lutheran Church to place before our gracious Lord in prayer, the work of the Convention resolution on ordination. Please pray for our leaders in the General Church Board and the College of Bishops as they undertake what has been asked of them by the General Synod. Please pray for all involved in preparing for Synod 2024, so that with one voice we may glorify the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Dr Nigel Long, Secretary of the Church

General Synod chaplains David Wear and Sue Westhorp lead delegates in prayer during the business sessions of the February Convention.

A MESSAGE TO MEMBERS OF THE LCANZ

from the College of Bishops

To read the full message go to: www.yourlca.com/message-synod-resolution

COME, LISTEN, LIVE …

The 20th Convention of General Synod for the LCANZ, held in Melbourne, has come and gone.

Delegates came before God each day in worship with listening ears, and with the desire to live to God’s glory in the decisions we made.

We came together as God’s people, listening to each other, and sharing life together for the days of Synod as brothers and sisters in Christ.

For some, the outcomes will have landed much where they expected, and even hoped for. For others, there may be disappointment, frustration, disillusionment, and even anger. The College of Bishops are praying for all members of the church as you process the decisions that were made, and the meeting itself.

We thank all the delegates who took the time to prayerfully craft their thoughts but who did not have opportunity to speak on the floor of Convention. In reflecting on the meeting of Synod, the bishops observed that significant time was taken on points of order and clarification, which reduced the already limited time for discussion on the substantive issue itself each day. Hence the laity especially who came prepared to speak did not have the voice they could otherwise have had. This is something we suggest needs consideration for future conventions.

THE PROPOSALS

Some members of the church may have questions about the proposals, particularly those regarding the ordination of women and men in the LCANZ.

(1) On Friday, the Box Hill congregation brought before Synod a proposal to recognise the impasse faced by the church on this matter over many years. The proposal sought to provide a way to acknowledge the conscientious views of people on both sides of this debate. It called for the church to remain one, while providing for two practices of ordination. This involved a change to the teaching of the church in order to permit the ordination of both men and women, from February 2024. Because this proposal called for a change in the church’s teaching and an amendment to the LCA Constitution, a two-thirds majority (230 votes) was required for it to be passed. Fifty-nine per cent (203) of delegates voted in favour of the proposal; 136 voted against it; and 3 delegates abstained. Thus, this proposal was lost.

(2) On Saturday, delegates voted on a proposal by the Queensland District asking General Synod to direct the LCANZ General Church Board and the College of Bishops to work through the theological, constitutional, and governance requirements to operate as one church with two different practices of ordination and establish a detailed framework through which this could be accomplished, and to bring this work back in the form of a proposal to the 2024 General Pastors Conference and the General Synod. An amendment was added, stating that It is the expectation of this Convention of General Synod that both women and men will be ordained in a District of the LCANZ during the 2024–2027 synodical period. (You will find the full text of the resolution below.)

For the sake of clarity, the College of Bishops, after meeting with the General Church Board immediately after Convention, offers our understanding of this resolution and some comments on the pathway ahead.

THE RESOLUTION

That General Synod direct the LCANZ General Church Board and the College of Bishops to:

Work through the theological, constitutional, and governance requirements to operate as one church with two different practices of ordination and establish a detailed framework through which this could be accomplished, such as one or more existing LCANZ Districts becoming Districts that teach and practice the ordination of both women and men to the office of the public ministry or by establishing a non-geographical LCANZ ‘District’ that does so, and

Submit the fruit of this work in the form of a proposal that should be discussed by the LCANZ General Pastors Conference for Convention of General Synod 2024.

It is the expectation of this General Convention of Synod that both women and men will be ordained in a District of the LCANZ during the 2024–2027 synodical period.

CLARIFYING COMMENTS

In the lead-up to the in-person sessions of General Synod 2021–2023 the College of Bishops urged a way forward that did not leave the church in an ongoing adversarial state on this issue, which has become debilitating in so many ways for relationships, and in carrying out the mission of the church.

The intention of this adopted proposal is to find a practical way forward to allow communities with different convictions regarding the ordination of women and men to co-exist, and to practise differently within the wider context of the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand.

It needs to be made clear that this proposal is charging the leadership of the church to do the work needed to bring a proposal to that end to the 2024 Convention, with an expected outcome. The resolution does not allow for the ordination of women and men right now, but this is an expected outcome of the 2024 synodical convention, if the proposal/s to be worked on together are passed. We ask individuals and congregations to be respectful of our synodical processes and the people who will be charged with leading us through them.

The wording under point c) above endorses the word ‘anticipates’ in the advice to this General Synod by the General Pastors Conference (GPC). The GPC advice said: ‘General Pastors Conference acknowledges that the Queensland proposal anticipates the ordination of women to the office of the public ministry in communities of the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand. General Pastors Conference acknowledges that the Queensland proposal also anticipates the continuity of the ordination of men only in communities of the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand.’

At GPC, pastors were advised before voting on the advice that ‘anticipates’ means ‘expects’. It is expected that the work to be done will lead to change.

WHAT HAPPENS FROM HERE?

General Church Board will oversee the delivery of what is required for the church to deliver the resolution. Guiding principles for this work have been identified.

At the centre of this work is the establishment of a project management office. This office will oversee working groups established to address key elements of what is required to be delivered by the resolution. These working groups will include experienced and (or) expert people of the church, representing the diversity of stakeholders involved. While time is tight, the whole church will have opportunity to contribute your thinking in the lead-up to the next Convention of Synod. As the people of the church of Jesus Christ, we commend this work to our Lord. The College of Bishops are acutely aware of the range of emotions that have been impacting members on this issue over a long period of time. These or new emotions might have been brought to the surface with this latest decision, which is significantly different from those that have gone before it. We also know that some members have been hurt or wounded by other members in our conversations around this issue. We plead with all members of the church to speak carefully and sensitively with our brothers and sisters in Christ as we embark on enacting this resolution of Synod.

We want to listen to you and pastorally care for the church in ways that are most appropriate and helpful to each of you. The College of Bishops welcomes your suggestions regarding what is most helpful. We urge you as dearly loved brothers and sisters in Christ to stay with us, and to help us together with GCB to find the way forward, so that we can come to the Convention of Synod in 2024 with confidence and in peace.

It is our prayer that you will continue to come humbly before God to listen to him together, that you might find joy in the grace that we live in, and confident hope from the substance of the faith that we share. We also pray that together we might live and serve in peace and to the glory of God in this next significant period in the life of the LCANZ.

Bishop Paul Smith, LCANZ

Assistant Bishop Neville Otto, LCANZ

Bishop David Altus, SA–NT

Bishop Robert Bartholomaeus, NSW and ACT

Bishop Mike Fulwood, WA

Bishop Lester Priebbenow, Vic–Tas

Bishop Mark Vainikka, Qld

Bishop Mark Whitfield, LCNZ

‘COME TO ME, LISTEN, THAT YOU MAY LIVE …’ ISAIAH 55:3

SYNOD FINKE RIVER DELEGATES

BY HELEN BERINGEN

Melbourne’s city skyline was a stark contrast to the vast verdant landscape of Central Australia for four Aboriginal delegates attending the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand’s 20th Convention of General Synod from 9 to 12 February 2023.

It was the first time in the history of the General Synod that representatives of the four language areas from the Finke River Mission (FRM) in Central Australia joined as voting delegates at the church’s highest decision-making meeting.

The four delegates, Specific Ministry Pastors (SMP) Rodney Malbunka and Stanley Roberts, with Richard Morton and Seraphina Presley-Haines, were among 341 delegates from across Australia and New Zealand to gather for the in-person sessions. The group, who were supported by FRM fieldworkers Pastor Paul Traeger and Pastor Neville Doecke, thought that one of the most memorable parts of Synod was the community worship.

For retired teacher Seraphina PresleyHaines, celebrating in a community of more than 500 worshippers at the opening service of the Convention gave her goosebumps. Seraphina, from Ti Tree, north of Alice Springs, represented the Anmatyerr language area in the Northern Territory. As a first-time delegate, she said it was very important for the group to come to Synod, hear God’s word, and ‘go back to their communities and tell them that God loves us no matter who we are and where we live’.

Worshipping in community at Synod was also very special for Pastor Stanley Roberts from the Pintupi-Luritja language area, west of Alice Springs. ‘It spoke in my heart’, he said. ‘It’s really good to meet with others and get to know each other as Christians, being one in Christ. We miss our families back home but appreciate being able to worship together.’

Pastor Stanley was ordained as an SMP at Papunya, 240 kilometres west of Alice Springs, in November 2020. His father, the late Pastor Murphy Roberts, was one of the first PintupiLuritja pastors ordained almost 40 years ago.

And for Anmatyerr language area representative Richard Morton, the fellowship was inspiring, humbling and even overwhelming, after reuniting with his primary school principal at Synod. He said Synod reminded him of a parliament, ‘but it is good to see different views of certain things, if we base our thoughts on Scripture and dwell on Scripture’. ‘What is happening here affects everyone back at home, especially those people who rely on the faith and need spiritual guidance.’

It was the first time most of the Indigenous delegates had visited Melbourne, with fellow delegate Pastor Rodney Malbunka astounded at the size of the city compared with his home at Ntaria, also known as Hermannsburg, 125 kilometres west of Alice Springs.

Son of Pastor Colin Malbunka, Rodney was born in Neutral Junction near Barrel Creek on the Stuart Highway and moved to Hermannsburg in 1975. He was ordained in 2015 and serves the Arrarnta language area. He said he enjoyed the experience of Synod and meeting people from all over Australia. He was also struck by the size and green turf of the Melbourne Cricket Ground, after the baked red earth football oval of his hometown. He’s even got a photo of it to show his local Bulldogs AFL team back home.

Pastor Neville gave praise and thanks to God that these delegates could travel to meet with so many fellow Lutherans from across the LCANZ. ‘Many thanks to the delegates who spoke to them and made them feel very welcome’, he said.

‘IT’S REALLY GOOD TO MEET WITH OTHERS AND GET TO KNOW EACH OTHER AS CHRISTIANS, BEING ONE IN CHRIST.’

Representatives of four Finke River Mission (FRM) language areas made history by attending General Synod in Melbourne, along with two FRM fieldworkers. Pictured from left are Richard Morton, Pastor Paul Traeger, Pastor Stanley Roberts, Pastor Rodney Malbunka, Pastor Neville Doecke and Seraphina Presley-Haines.

‘WE NEED A WAY forward ’: DELEGATES REFLECT ON SYNOD DECISION

Delegates at General Synod voted by a strong majority to seek a way forward in the decades-long ordination debate. They asked the General Church Board and College of Bishops to explore how the LCANZ might operate as ‘one church with two ordination practices’. We asked eight Synod participants for their reflections on the resolution. Excerpts of their responses follow; read their full responses at www.lca.org.au/we-need-a-way-forward-delegates-reflect-on-synod-decision

ROB EDWARDS, PASTOR DELEGATE QLD

As I stood up at Synod to speak, I was acutely aware there was nothing I could say which would change the minds of anyone in the room about ordination. We had discussed this topic for 30 years. What we needed was a plan, a way to move forward, and move forward together. Our job as delegates was to come away from that meeting with a plan. Our congregations expected it and needed it. To do anything less would be to provide a leadership vacuum that could lead to chaos. We had to come up with a plan which would provide a way in which we could remain united as a church, respect one another’s stand and get on with the business of the church. The question was not whether or not we ordain women. We had already discussed that and it is pointless to continue. The question is, ‘how do we function as a church with these two ways of thinking?’ Is it possible to carry out the great commission together? Ordination is not the most important matter facing the church, but it is where we are spending all our time. Of far greater importance is the great commission. I encouraged the church to grab this plan and run with it. Not because it was the best plan ever, nor that it would solve all our problems, but because it gave us an opportunity to stay united as one church. We need a plan which recognises where we are and what we are called to do; which recognises our differences but also our calling. And we need to broaden our definition of ministry to include all believers.

DAVID WEAR, SYNOD CHAPLAIN VIC

We’ve now had five votes on allowing the ordination of women in the LCA and we’re on track to have a sixth vote next year. If we were to have ‘one church, with two practices’ – essentially two contradictory teachings – how could we come together, with true unity, for a General Pastor’s Conference or Convention of General Synod? There are going to be women and men who cannot commune, in good conscience, with a female pastor officiating. As sad as that might seem, it’s the reality we need to face. We need to be set free from this debate but also adequately deal with the reality of our disunity, and the nature of our disunity. Maybe a peaceful and orderly separation into two synods would glorify God, give a better witness of love to the world, and enable a more genuine unity as outlined in Scripture (e.g. 1 Cor 1:10; 2 Cor 13:11). I think we need to prayerfully consider that in the light of Scripture. I feel like we are the Israelites up against the Red Sea, with no viable way forward – but God can provide a way. Let’s keep loving one another, trusting God our Father and praising Jesus. I also hope we will draw upon the Holy Spirit who works through Scripture more than he works through pragmatic arrangements and convenient compromises. If God were to show us that two synods was the way forward, that wouldn’t mean an end to love (1 Cor 13:4–8a) and partnership in the gospel.

MANUELA SWIFT, LAY DELEGATE WA

Exploring what the church would look like as one church, two practices is a really healthy step forward. On a community or congregational level, it is important that we begin having conversations about this. We need people to be prepared and aware of the steps the LCANZ is taking and don't want people to feel hurt or left out of the loop, especially leading up to the Synod 2024. Thank you to our leaders for willingly following God's calling and serving our church in this way. I know it isn't easy, but trust that the Lord will give you strength in your task. I encourage our church leaders who are putting this proposal together to think outside of the box, think big, crazy and bold because God will make what seems impossible, possible and we can trust in that.

MARK TUNG, LAY DELEGATE NZ

The 2023 synod was the first one I attended but I was surprised that this one topic could take up so much time while other important topics – such as preaching to the immigrants, cross-cultural missions, and growing our youth – are all put on the back burner. These are critical things we need to do. I'm backing this one-church, two-practice model as it can finally put the debate aside and get the church moving again. Each of us individually needs to keep an open mind – knowing that a lot of our Lutheran brothers and sisters around the world are already having women ordained and even have had female bishops for a long time. As congregations and communities, we can keep an open mind and give it a try! Stop judging and restart the mission!

FRASER PEARCE, PASTOR DELEGATE SA

In principle, there is nothing wrong with having a variety of practices in the church. However, when different practices represent different, and even contrary teachings, then the unity and mission of the church are, at best, impaired. We have spent many years debating whether the prohibition of the ordination of women is the Lord’s command because we know that keeping his commands is central to carrying out our mission (Matthew 28:16–20). It is my conviction that our teaching does faithfully reflect Jesus’ will for the church. It is not clear how we would carry out our mission and be faithful to Jesus’ commands (with) different teachings on ordination, lived out in different practices. If the LCA were to allow all congregations to call and ordain women pastors, if they so desired, that is not something I could support. If the LCA were to break up into districts (with) different practices based on different teachings, it would seem the districts would hold different confessions and so be different synods/churches. This would be a lamentable outcome.

HELEN BRINKMAN, LAY DELEGATE QLD

The LCANZ is a church so loved by its members that not even 30 years of debate about ordination practice has broken it asunder. However, this Synod acknowledged the hurt created through this protracted, unresolved dialogue. So the Queensland District resolution to explore ‘one church, two practices of ordination’ is a vital step forward. During Synod, WA Bishop Michael Fulwood painted a beautiful picture of the Japanese art of Kintsugi, where broken pottery pieces are bound together with gold, building on the idea that in embracing our flaws and imperfections, we can create an even stronger, beautiful piece of art. I pray that God will bless our General Church Board as it works through the requirements to operate as one church with different practices. Despite our imperfections, I pray that God can use this process to create an even stronger church, in which our diversity is celebrated.

RICHARD SCHWEDES, PASTOR DELEGATE NSW

Focusing on Jesus is leading me to deeper prayer, listening to God and the different Christian perspectives around this and other issues as we go forward trusting God, even though we won’t have all the answers. I am looking forward to continuing to live and work with a diverse range of people in the Lutheran church and, most importantly, to keeping focused on being his missionary and disciple wherever God places me, so others can connect with him and gain life from him in our messy lives where people differ. Perhaps this is the message the world needs to hear at present … that God loves a diverse range of people, even people who see some aspects of life and the Bible differently. So, I pray that, as we move forwards into exploring being one church with two practices, Jesus and his gospel of forgiving and saving all remain our guiding and main focus.

HELEN MARTUL, LAY DELEGATE SA

This ongoing debate and division have crippled the church such that we have been unable to engage in meaningful dialogue about challenges in our ever-changing environment. It is time to confront reality in the context of our mission, focus on bringing Jesus' healing gospel to our broken and despairing world. The resolution provides a clear timeframe and expectation for the ordination of women whilst maintaining one church. I pray that all members, congregations and pastors accept the clear Synod support for the resolution. Let's embrace everyone, listening to each other rather than sabotaging. At the same time, leaders have a mandate to engage, consult, communicate and manage milestones that can be completed and celebrated. What an opportunity to walk with each other and God, trusting his love and grace.

‘LET’S build EACH OTHER UP’

Two young consultants who attended the LCANZ’s Convention of General Synod in Melbourne in February have reflected on their experience as first-time attendees and offered a fresh perspective.

The journey to Synod began at a young adult forum in Adelaide for Eloise Quinn-Valentine, 25, a member at St John’s Lutheran Church in Unley, South Australia, and Christian Hansen, 23, who attends Our Saviour Lutheran Church in Rochedale, Queensland. The invitation to participate was extended to the pair after they attended the forum facilitated by Grow Ministries last year.

For Christian, the forum was the catalyst to get more involved in the church. ‘It was really encouraging to see the passion young people still have for the church, when a lot of people think young people are moving away from it’, he says. ‘It sparked a bit of hope and passion in me, that made me want to get involved a bit more in young adult ministry.’

While Eloise and Christian say that getting their heads around some of the Convention procedures and formalities was ‘challenging’, they agree that they have gained a lot by attending.

‘It’s been good to sit and listen and take it all in, and speak to people and meet people, and to see how it all works and get involved’, says Eloise. ‘Seeing out the process and getting to the heart of matters has been an exercise in patience, but also in listening and trying to think about where people are coming from.’

With the subject of women’s ordination being a focus on the agenda, both Christian and Eloise say they respect and

BY JESS SMITH

appreciate the debate that has been ongoing since before they were born but look forward to the church moving forward.

‘What I long to see at Synod is the day when we can actually really share God’s word and discuss it as a group – to talk about new and renewing churches, education, uni groups, young people and aged care’, says Christian.

‘We’d love to see those sorts of discussions be what is at the heart of Synod’, agrees Eloise. ‘So that we’re coming together to be building each other up and going back to our congregations and out into the world to do this work and energised to do it.

‘A big thing for me that’s become clear is that whatever “going forward” looks like, it needs to involve all parts and aspects of the church. Particularly, I think we need to do research with people who have expertise, but we must also really invest in education and training in God’s word so that people can be scripturally informed and oriented towards service and building up the church at all levels.

‘Ministry is not just what pastors do; we’re all part of ministry in the world, and I think we can’t just address the office of the ordained ministry, we must also address the ministry of the saints – they’re absolutely connected.’

Both Christian and Eloise say they have been excited to see many other young people, both at Synod and within the broader church, who are committed to its future. ‘There is a lot of passion and drive and care there’, says Eloise. Christian echoes the sentiment. ‘It’s exciting to see that there are people like that who are not only the future but the present members of the church.’

‘WE’RE ALL PART OF MINISTRY IN THE WORLD.’

The Inside Story

New bishop for WA

Pastor Peter Hage has been elected as the next bishop of the LCANZ’s Western Australia District.

The pastor of St Johns Lutheran Church in Perth, he was elected unopposed last month for an initial four-year term during the District Convention of Synod at Concordia Lutheran Church Duncraig, in suburban Perth. Pastor Kim Kuchel, who has retired from Army chaplaincy and is serving part-time with the Katanning–Narrogin Parish southeast of Perth, was elected and installed as WA’s new assistant bishop during the convention, held from 3 to 5 March.

Bishop-elect Peter will succeed Bishop Mike Fulwood, who has retired from the part-time role he has served in since June 2017. The pair have been working together during a handover period since the election.

The assistant bishop of the district since 2018, Bishop-elect Peter will also continue to serve St Johns. A self-described ‘reluctant bishop’, he says he is excited to be able to continue in the parish role as well as supporting the WA District as bishop.

‘I say to people I was initially a reluctant pastor and I’m a reluctant bishop’, he said.

‘I just think of those words that Jesus said, “To him who is given much, much is required”. He says that in the context of the master giving servants various talents to serve with and in that context not everyone is given that same ability, but we just simply need to reflect on our gifts. While this has not been an aspiration of mine, I’ve had great

encouragement from others that I should take on this role. So, with the encouragement of pastors and congregations and the support of people, I’ve accepted that God has led me in this way.

‘I’m happy to serve and I’m happy to support but to take the lead is a responsibility that needs to be covered by much grace.’

Excited, too, by the prospects for church planting in WA, along with what is already happening in the Rockingham–Mandurah area, Bishop-elect Peter believes his district role is also to give hope to congregations through changing times.

‘It’s very clear that the LCA is on the verge of significant changes, and in that uncertainty, we need to keep trusting in God’s Spirit that

he will lead us and guide us’, he said. ‘It’s God’s church, it’s not our church. We need not fear the future but move into the future expecting something different.

‘I am happy to lead our District through a season of transition and change just trusting in the faithfulness of God and the promises that he gives to us that he is always with us.’ Ordained in 1990, Bishop-elect Peter began his ministry in Papua New Guinea and served there for 10 years, before accepting a call to Freeling parish in South Australia in 2001. He also served at Mount Barker in South Australia and Mount Gravatt in Queensland, before beginning his ministry at St Johns Perth in 2017.

He and his wife, Lois, have two adult children.

NZ treasures hide in plain wrapping

Three plastic-wrapped pallets sit in a Wellington loading dock. Not much to see here. But this 945-kilogram load holds taonga (treasure), both historical and spiritual – sacred even. This is the archive of the Lutheran Church of New Zealand

(LCNZ), ready to depart from Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa (the National Library of New Zealand) and bound for Lutheran Archives in Adelaide.

The Alexander Turnbull Library (which holds non-government archival material)

by Rosie Schefe

has been the custodian of this collection since 1976, but the LCNZ archive has always remained the property of the church. Almost four years ago, the LCNZ Synod voted to send this collection to Lutheran Archives so that the history of

WA District Bishop-elect Pastor Peter Hage (left) speaks during the rite of farewell for retiring Bishop Mike Fulwood (second from left), who is pictured with his wife Narelle and LCANZ Bishop Paul Smith (far right). Photo: Maya Kraj-Krajewski

Treasures hide in plain wrapping

Continued from page 21.

Lutherans in New Zealand and Australia would be able to be told side by side. Following early scoping work by Lutheran Archives Director Rachel Kuchel and Pastor Jim Pietsch, in December 2019, the LCNZ Council of Synod appointed Robert Nippert (a member of St Paul’s Lutheran Church, Wellington) to manage the project. The COVID-19 pandemic delayed its completion. As a part of New Zealand’s written history, the collection fell under the protection of Manatū Taonga, the Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Final permission to leave the Alexander Turnbull Library was only granted by Te Tari Taiwhenua, the Department of Internal Affairs, late in 2022. A little drily, perhaps, the collection is variously described as ‘19 linear metres of documents pertaining to the Lutheran Church of New Zealand’ or ‘a range of documentary material including meeting minutes, correspondence, Parish magazines, registers and photographs dating from 1874–2006’.

But, as library staff and LCNZ representatives gathered in the loading dock earlier this year to conduct a poroporoaki (farewell ceremony, pictured), the importance of this taonga and the memories it holds was on display.

The poroporoaki acknowledged the links

to the past held within these documents, links to the people who went before. Performed in te reo Māori, English and one hymn verse in German, the ceremony contained elements of both Māori culture and Christian ritual. Former LCNZ District Administrator Dr Tanja Schubert-McArthur – who now works as a learning facilitator at Alexander Turnbull Library – liaised with Bishop Mark Whitfield and cultural representatives to tailor the form of the rite. Bishop Mark Whitfield chose to begin his part of the poroporoaki with verses from Matthew 1:1–17, the whakapapa (genealogy)

of Jesus and outlining the journey of the gospel from Jerusalem (Acts 1:8) to New Zealand.

With waiata (songs and hymns), prayers, including the Lord’s Prayer (in te reo Māori), and mānawatanga (blessings), the rite ended with all participants laying hands on the pallets in farewell.

In Adelaide, the collection will remain accessible to New Zealanders and other international researchers through the Alexander Turnbull Library digital catalogue, referencing its new home at Lutheran Archives.

‘Keep our schools Lutheran’

Lutheran Education Australia (LEA) is calling for faith-based schools to retain the right to uphold their unique ethos, as part of the consultation process on proposed changes to federal anti-discrimination laws in Australia.

The Australian Law Reform Commission (ALRC) has sought submissions from stakeholders in response to its consultation paper Religious Educational Institutions and Anti-Discrimination Laws, which addresses the way that proposed reforms apply to religious schools and other educational institutions.

The consultation paper sets out four general propositions supported by 14 technical proposals for reform. LEA submits that, if adopted, some elements of the proposed changes ‘would severely restrict the ability of Lutheran schools to build a community of faith’.

LEA Executive Director, Assoc Prof Lisa Schmidt says: ‘We do not seek the right to discriminate on the basis of a protected attribute, but simply to be able to employ staff who share or are willing to uphold the ethos of the religious educational institution.’

In the submission, she points out that a critical mass of Christian staff is needed to uphold the ethos of a Christian school. ‘The likely outcome [if the proposals are adopted] is faith-based schools becoming indistinguishable from state schools, effectively removing the ability of parents to choose to educate their children in accordance with their beliefs and values’, she says. ‘The proposals do not fully consider the totality of the role of a teacher and student learning outcomes beyond content knowledge, the importance of holistic education of the individual child supported by all staff, and the role of the

entire school community in establishing and upholding an ethos.’

In the submission, Assoc Prof Schmidt points out the important leadership role all staff play in sharing and upholding the ethos of the school, noting the consultation paper’s ‘narrow view of leadership’ by restricting it to executive officers such as the principal. ‘Restricting the ability of faith-based schools to selectively preference people of that faith only for leadership roles with executive titles rather than all roles would severely impact on the ability of Lutheran schools to have the leadership in place to be Lutheran schools’, she says.

You can read the full LEA submission at www.yourlca.com/LEA-alrc

More information on the proposed reforms and consultation paper are available at www.alrc.gov.au/publication/adl-cp-2023

Photo: National Library of New Zealand, Mark Beatty photographer

Church to address deficit

Meeting in Melbourne for the in-person sessions of the 20th General Convention of Synod, delegates were informed in a presentation by GCB member Mel Zerner that the church’s headquarters in North Adelaide is operating with an annual shortfall of approximately $1.5m.

While the deficit can be addressed in the short term by drawing on reserves, ‘naturally, this position is not sustainable’, Mr Zerner said. He said that, while the financial situation for the Churchwide Office is concerning, it is not unique across the church.

‘We are seeing reduced income across the entire church. Congregations are facing a range of pressures from several directions. Many are battling to stay afloat, let alone contribute to the District and Churchwide office budgets’.

But reduced congregational giving, particularly post-COVID, is only one reason for the Churchwide Office’s bleak financial situation, Mr Zerner said. The LLL, a major contributor to LCANZ ministries, is facing its own challenges, with low-interest rates over a number of years, coupled with limited lending opportunities as churches stagnate rather than expand as they have in past

decades. The flow-on impact is that the LLL has needed to reduce its distribution to the LCANZ to support its work.

Brett Hausler, Executive Officer of the Church, thanked the GCB for the opportunity for the Churchwide Office to achieve a target of break-even for the 2025 budget.

‘This provides time to address the financial shortfall in a sustainable way, but also to consider how the structure and services can be designed to support the future needs of the LCANZ’, he told delegates.

‘Importantly, it gives us the opportunity to undertake broad engagement across the church, so that we understand what sorts of support our congregations want from us. We do not want to stop doing something you value and retain something you don’t value.’

Mr Hausler stressed that, while no-one can predict exactly how the changes will impact on our churchwide community, ‘we are in this together, and we will be seeking the views of the wider church as we plan the way forward’. ‘One thing we can be sure of, the status quo is simply not feasible’, he said. ‘We will be moving forwards through these challenges in an open and considered way, and regularly seeking your input.’

In the December 2022 edition of The Lutheran in the story ‘German Lutherans meet’ (p26), it is stated: ‘There is an agreement of altar and pulpit fellowship between the EKD and the LCA’. This is incorrect. The LCA has a covenant of relationship with German Lutheran congregations in Australia. We apologise for this error.

LUTHERAN HOLY LAND EASTER TOUR

March–April 2024

Portland Victoria

Celebrating the 50 Anniversary

of the opening and dedication of our church building

Sunday 7 May 2023

10am service followed by a community luncheon

All welcome

Contacts: merlyn@menzels.com.au

admin@stjohnsportland.com.au

SAVE THE DATE

St Martins Lutheran Kindergarten Mt Gambier SA

60 Anniversary

23-24 September 2023

All past teachers, students, parents and friends are invited to celebrate this joyous weekend with us. Reunite and share memories, including any historic photos you may have.Celebrations will include a thanksgiving service and dinner. Register your interest early to help with venue planning.

HERITAGE TOUR Sep–Oct 2023

Our most popular annual tour, featuring heritage areas of the Wends, Silesia, Saxony, Posen, Mecklenburg, Pomerania, Nekla Hauland, Brandenburg and the Spreewald. We visit WWI cemeteries and towns and cities including Ypres, Rüdesheim am Rhein, Oberammergau, Salzburg, Rothenburg, Bautzen, Eisenach, Berlin, Leipzig, Dresden, Grünberg, Klemzig, Züllichau, Wittenberg, Hamburg and Amsterdam. Worship in Luther’s churches and in Berlin. Other areas and towns available on request. Add-on Budapest to Amsterdam cruise is also available.

Be early, river cruise special flight deals book out well in advance.

Please register your interest now.

Bible stories come alive with a professional local Christian guide – especially at Easter. We stay in Bethlehem and Jerusalem for Easter and Tiberius on the Sea of Galilee. Highlights include the Palm Sunday walk to the Garden of Gethsemane and breakfast with fellow Christians after dawn worship on Easter Sunday. We visit Templer settlements, Jericho, Caesarea, the River Jordan, Masada, Mt Carmel, Golan Heights, the Dead Sea, Capernaum, Hebron, Beer Sheba, Nazareth, Samaria, Dead Sea Scrolls Museum, Mt Nebo, Amman and Petra (Jordan). This is the only tour where you can meet and worship with local Lutherans, their church leaders and other Christians, who need and appreciate our support.

As this is also a busy time for the Jewish Passover, early registration is essential to avoid disappointment.

All tours fully escorted. Take advantage of discounted group travel and wonderful fellowship.

56th ANNUAL CONVENTION

Saturday 29 April 2023

THEME: God, the Source of Hope

BASED ON: Romans 15:13

VENUE: Bethlehem Lutheran Church

100 Adams St, Jindera NSW

Registration and morning tea: 9am

Commencing at 9.45am with devotion

All welcome

ALC welcomes new teachers

Australian Lutheran College (ALC) has engaged three experienced practitioners to teach in its higher education program.

Dr Tania Nelson, the LCA’s executive officer for local mission, and Ms Sue Westhorp, a clinical pastoral educator, will be teaching units in ALC’s new practical-based Diploma in Ministry. Dr Tim Stringer, who is pastor of Victoria’s Greensborough Parish and holds a Doctor of Ministry degree in Biblical Preaching, will be teaching the unit Preaching the Word.

‘We are confident that students enrolling in ALC’s new Diploma in Ministry will be greatly blessed by the personal experiences these skilled practitioners in ministry bring to their teaching’, said ALC Principal James Winderlich.

‘While God’s word has not changed, the context in which our graduates are serving has changed and will continue to change. Our new ways of teaching at ALC demonstrate how we are responding to our church’s changing training needs.’

Tania agreed that understanding context is critical to effective mission and ministry. ‘With God’s mission as a foundational concept in their ministry journey, the students are wellplaced to contextualise their learning where God has placed them’, she said.

‘As St Paul said in his first letter to the Corinthian Christians, “I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some”. That’s contextualisation 101! My prayer is that the students bring Jesus into all they do. That’s how we all contribute to the wider church.’ James said the Diploma in Ministry offers the ideal foundational training for people exploring God’s call towards vocations in local mission, chaplaincy and those seeking to one day be ordained for the pastoral ministry. ‘And remember that you don’t need to relocate to Adelaide for this or any other ALC program. We are wherever you are.’ Read more about ALC changes, the Diploma in Ministry and the new casual academics at www.lca.org.au/alc-welcomes-new-teachers

Lutherans receive honours

LCA members Graham Lieschke (pictured far right) and Fred Stolz (pictured right) were recognised in the Australia Day 2023 Honours List.

Graham Lieschke, from Ascot Vale in Melbourne, is a research professor in medical research for Monash University’s Australian Regenerative Medicine Institute and a clinical and research haematologist for the Royal Melbourne Hospital/ Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre. He was awarded an AM as a Member in the General Division of the Order of Australia ‘for significant service to medicine as a haematologist, and to medical research’.

Fred Stolz, from Kippa-Ring in Queensland’s Moreton Bay area and the founding headmaster of Grace Lutheran College at Rothwell in the same region, received an Order of Australia medal in the general division for ‘service to secondary education’.

Professor Lieschke said the award was ‘a great honour’. ‘It feels very special, and it makes me very thankful not only for the people I’ve worked with but also to God for the opportunities and blessings he’s given me’, he said. Professor Lieschke, a member and musician at St Johns Lutheran Church Southgate in Melbourne, said his faith was also an important factor in the way he has approached his work. ‘My faith is really important in establishing values of integrity, honesty, care and compassion in the clinical and research work I do.’

Fred Stolz served as headmaster of Grace Lutheran College, Rothwell, from 1980 to

2009 and was a Mathematics teacher there until 2019. A member at Redcliffe Lutheran Church, he was also inaugural principal of Balob Teachers College at Lae in Papua New Guinea, from 1965 to 1979, and in 2018 became an Officer of the Order of Logohu, PNG, in recognition of his service.

He said while his OAM was a ‘very unexpected but very much appreciated’ honour, he views it as ‘an honour for our Lutheran education system’. ‘One of the reasons why I’m a great advocate of Lutheran schools is because it’s an opportunity to bring the gospel before so many young people’, he said.

The congratulations of the church are offered to these recipients and any other members honoured with awards.

Read the full story at www.lca.org.au/lutherans-honouredin-australia-day-list-2023

Read more of Fred’s story on pages 10-11.

LCANZ COMPLAINTS

Sunday

Service

RSVP

Many complaints can be resolved before lasting hurt is caused, by addressing them quickly in a non-threatening manner and by raising the issue directly with the relevant person or organisation in a thoughtful and courteous manner. If this is not applicable or possible in your situation, you may lodge a complaint with the Professional Standards Department in any of the following ways: Phone the free-call number (Aust 1800 644 628 NZ 0800 356 887), email complaints@lca.org.au or write to Confidential, PO Box 519, Marden SA 5070.

Tania Nelson Tim Stringer Sue Westhorp

RESOURCES FOR YOU TO ...

ARCHIVES TALKS NOW SHARED LIVE ONLINE

The stories of the LCA are now shared more widely than ever before, with monthly talks being streamed on the Friends of Lutheran Archives (FoLA) YouTube channel.

The mission of Lutheran Archives is to preserve the stories of the church and make them accessible for generations to come. FoLA supports this work by promoting research and enabling church members and the wider community to ‘enjoy the harvest’, curating a program of public talks presented by researchers on a diverse range of historical topics relevant to the Lutheran story in Australia. These monthly public meetings are held in person at Immanuel Lutheran Church, North Adelaide and livestreamed straight to YouTube.

You can tune into FoLA livestreams every month at the same place: https://www.youtube.com/@friendsoflutheranarchives9644/live

UPCOMING MEETINGS

Ein Buschmann kann alles: HA Heinrich at Hermannsburg after Horseshoe Bend. Live at 7.30pm, Thursday 13 April 2023

Dr David Moore, linguist and translator of Central Australian languages, tells the story of Hermannsburg Mission in the era of teacher Hermann Adolph Heinrich, who assumed responsibility for running the Mission after Missionary Carl Strehlow’s death at Horseshoe Bend in October 1922. As teacher Heinrich once told a German visitor, ‘a bushman can do anything’

In the Barossa and beyond: George French Angas, artist and naturalist. Live at 7.30pm, Thursday 25 May 2023

Dr Philip Jones, senior researcher at the SA Museum, presents an illustrated talk on the artist and naturalist George French Angas and his 1847 work South Australia Illustrated and explores how Angas’s legacy informs our understanding of colonial South Australia.

HOW TO FIND US

PREVIOUS MEETINGS

You can also catch up later! Previously streamed talks are available to watch on the FoLA YouTube channel.

Dear Sisters in the Faith: Letters of Thanks from Post-War Germany. Recorded 7.30pm Thursday 23 February 2023

Reference Archivist Bethany Pietsch shares the story of a Lutheran family and women’s guild in country Victoria who sent relief parcels to desperate households in postwar Germany told in the words of the thank-you letters sent back by recipients between 1947 and 1949.

Bethel SA – a settlement of Germans, Wends, Moravians, Lutherans and others. Recorded 7.30pm Thursday 23 March 2023

Lyall Kupke, former director of Lutheran Archives, presents a talk on the eclectic Barossa community of Bethel, where from 1855 German and Wendish settlers experienced a Moravian Brethren church and settlement, two Lutheran churches and a breakaway group.

Subscribe to the FoLA YouTube channel: https://www.youtube.com/@friendsoflutheranarchives9644

Join livestreamed meetings: https://www.youtube.com/@friendsoflutheranarchives9644/live

See all past & future streams: https://www.youtube.com/@friendsoflutheranarchives9644/streams Contact FoLA: Email fola@lca.org.au or become a member to receive regular news.

Bethel SA: A formal arrangement of a congregation, including a brass band, outside the church, possibly at a mission festival. P00106 00026, Photograph Collection, Lutheran Archives

FAMILY TRADITIONS BRING

A WELLBEING BOOST

Family rituals and traditions are important to the health and wellbeing of today’s busy families. They promote a sense of identity and a feeling of belonging. A ritual differs from ordinary routines by having emotional significance. Traditions are often cultural, ethnic, or faith-based and can be handed down from generation to generation, connecting us to the past.

Rituals are important because they allow us time to communicate, problem-solve, and balance our time together. They provide opportunities to affirm family values, faith and life experiences, and time to celebrate together.

Rituals and traditions can occur annually, monthly, weekly, daily, seasonally or randomly.

WHY ARE RITUALS IMPORTANT FOR HAPPY FAMILIES?

Traditions and rituals are the building blocks of strong, caring, happy families.

Traditions make us spend time together without the normal daily distractions because they are planned. Rituals and traditions make sure we do the things we really value, even when we are rushed and busy.

Traditions help us build a family identity by establishing how we communicate, how we make decisions and solve problems, as well as how we celebrate birthdays, Christmas, Easter, milestones and other family events.

Traditions make it possible to create a family history as they are passed on through the generations.

Traditions give us many reasons to celebrate life together. They make it easy because you know what to do and how to do it. Traditions bring together generations, which can add such richness to our family life.

Traditions help us organise our busy lives. Planning rituals and traditions on specific days of the week or year means those projects will be achieved, such as organising family photos on New Year’s Day or sending a card on someone’s birthday.

Jodi Brook is director of Grow Ministries. For more articles about growing faith in families and across generations, visit the Grow Ministries blog at www.growministries.org.au/online-journal

BY JODI BROOK

AND EASTER CAN BE GREAT TIMES TO START

We invite you to try these rituals and traditions during Lent and Easter

• Select a candle to serve as your ‘Christ Candle’, and gather an additional candle for each person in your household. Begin your home devotional times each week by saying ‘Jesus, you are the light of the world’. As you do, light the Christ Candle. Then have household members take turns lighting their candles from the Christ Candle. As each one does, say together: ‘You are a child of the light. Make your light shine before others.’

• Daily silence to reflect on God’s presence in your life.

• Times of fasting by eating simpler meals with water or skipping meals.

• Limit the use of television, computer games and social media to focus more attention on God’s grace in your life.

• End each day with a blessing: ‘May the Lord Jesus bring you peace when you are afraid; may the Lord your God protect you in time of trouble and give you a song of joy in your heart’ (Psalm 32:7).

• Have meals together with others and offer a mealtime prayer.

FINDING FREEDOM FROM BUSYNESS

BY ANNE HANSEN

I keep a calendar or diary for my work and one for my family and personal activities. These calendars seem to fill up so quickly. I still like to write commitments down, so that I can look ahead and behind at what has been done and what is still to come. I often feel that I am a slave to my calendar and all the things that fill it. I have so many church activities, youth, Mainly Music, my work with Lutheran Tract Mission and family events, so how do I find time for me and God?

TIME IS A GIFT FROM GOD

Time is a precious resource. God has given us just enough time in a day to do what we are able and the rest we leave for another day. It is easy to be a slave to our schedule but remember that even Jesus spent time by himself to recharge and rejuvenate. May God give you this gift to be able to sit and reflect and pray. Our bodies were made for work and rest – I pray that you find the time for rest and reflection on God’s word, for then work becomes easier.

Lutheran Tract Mission has resources for your reading and to give to anyone who is in need of seeing their routines in the way God has given them to us. As we read in Ecclesiastes 3:1, ‘There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven’ [NIV].

HOPE THROUGH CRISES

In the wake of multiple climate catastrophes affecting people in New Zealand’s North Island earlier this year, the No.1 radio station in Auckland reached out to the LCANZ’s Messages of Hope ministry.

SHARE INSPIRING STORIES

We want to provide for our church and people in different ways to reach others with God's love. Visit our Lutheran Tract Mission website at www.ltm.org.au to find what you need for your ministry. Please share stories with me of how tracts have spoken and reached you and others in your community! Give others new ideas as to how to use tracts in sharing God’s love!

CHANCE TO TAKE THE PICK OF THE PICS

Easter

– a time to celebrate God’s promise of eternal life through the resurrection of his Son, Jesus.

Steph, from NewstalkZB radio, contacted Messages of Hope with an update about the crises ‘so you can be on top with your audio to relate’. As a result of her request, more uplifting messages about where God is in times of crisis have been shared with people who lived through Cyclone Gabrielle and other recent disasters. Listen, watch and read the messages at www.messagesofhope.org.nz and under the www.messagesofhope.org.nz/grief-suicideand-suffering topic

Lutheran Media’s annual Calendar Photo Competition is on now. Enter your best original and inspiring landscape, architectural, animal or nature photo for the chance to have it included in the 2024 calendar and for the chance to win cash prizes.

Entries close on 26 May 2023. Find out more at www.lutheranmedia.org.au/image And 2023 calendars are still available. Order on 1800 353 350 or online at www.lutheranmedia.org.au

Ever thought about a visit to the Holy Land … to walk in the footsteps of Jesus?

Join tour leader Graeme Lienert on a tour of the Holy Land with Petra extension.

1–15 October 2023

Our experienced tour hosts are Immanuel Lutheran Tours of Tel Aviv. Graeme invites you to join him on this fully escorted tour.

For itinerary and registration contact:

Trish Cortizo p: 0421 638 453 e: trish@olivetreetravel.com.au

Graeme Lienert p: 0419 909 909 e: glien@iinet.net.au

EQUIP YOURSELF TO STEP OUT IN FAITH

Take a journey with Jesus out into the multicultural neighbourhood around you by taking part in next month’s LCANZ Cross-Cultural Ministry Conference in Melbourne.

Registrations are now open for the two-day conference, which is a call to leave your ‘home base’ and engage with those who need to hear about ‘the reason for the hope we have’.

Cross-Cultural Ministry Facilitator Craig Heidenreich says the conference will also address the practical challenge of how to walk in a way that blesses our unsaved neighbours. ‘How do we learn to listen, and talk to them in a new way?’, he asks. ‘Let’s be people who engage these neighbours (who have come from ‘the nations’) and welcome them into our fellowship so that our gatherings start to reflect the diversity around us.’

Go to www.lca.org.au/cross-cultural-conference for more details and to book your place. Registrations close on 26 April 2023.

REGISTER NOW TO HOST AN EXHIBITION

Register now for the 2023 LCANZ Simultaneous Art Exhibition and begin planning with your congregation, school or aged-care home to host an exhibition in your local community under the event theme ‘Come to the Banquet’. Registrations close on 30 May with events able to be staged in August this year.

Organiser Libby Krahling says this year’s theme offers ‘a rich opportunity to explore the many passages in the Bible connected to food and feasting and celebrate the great banquet of Holy Communion and the wedding feast awaiting us in eternity’. ‘Groups might also like to brainstorm ways of incorporating hospitality into their exhibitions’, she says.

CULTURE PUT INTO CONTEXT

Speakers at the conference will include multicultural consultant Dr Meewon Yang and multicultural second-generation coordinator Charlene Delos Santos, who will address the topic, ‘The impact of multicultural church models across generations’. LCA and Interserve missionary Nathan Bradtke will share about building rapport with people of Muslim background, while the conference dinner speaker will be Major Karen Elkington, manager of the Salvation Army’s asylum seeker support program.

ARTISTS OF ALL STYLES AND STAGES WELCOME

Artists using any media and with any level of experience are encouraged to explore the theme, using resources developed by LCA Visual Arts. These include a devotion, suggested Bible passages for study and a range of activity ideas suitable for workshops or individual use. Register today and access resource packs, poster templates and information on hosting an art exhibition on the Visual Arts website at http://visualarts.lca.org.au/ simultaneous-exhibition-2022/ or email libby.krahling@lca.org.au

What our clients have to say...

"After buying our next house in somewhat of a hurry we realised we had to sell our current home rather quickly. Kevin was able to give us great advice on what we needed to do to prepare our place for sale in a short time frame.

Kevin conducted buyer inspections, three offers were made and our house sold within 48 hours for $50,000 more than the asking price. The best thing about this process was the personal service! Kevin was always available to answer our questions and we felt reassured that everything was going to plan."

Robin & Dorothy Mann

Directory

CALLS

Extended

• Rev Greg J Fowler

Golden Grove SA to Horsham Vic

• Rev Richard W Fox

Lutheran Media to St Peters Blackwood SA

• Rev Michael J Grosas

Qld District to Murrumba Downs Qld

• Rev Edward J Szabo

Redlands Qld to Lutheran Services

Chaplain Qld

• Bishop Mark L Whitfield

NZ District to St Pauls Christchurch NZ

Accepted

• Rev Wayne B Boehm

Pastor Emeritus to North Adelaide SA (12-month interim locum ministry 0.6 FTE)

• Rev Geoffrey P Johnston

Alberton Qld to St Andrews Glynde SA

• Rev Ben C Pfeiffer Mount Barker SA to Alice Springs NT

• Rev David J Seligmann

Zion Gympie Qld to Eight Mile Plains/ Beaudesert Qld

• Rev Edward J Szabo

Redlands Qld to Lutheran Services

Chaplain Qld

Declined

• Rev Greg J Fowler

Golden Grove SA to Nunawading-Waverley

Vic

• Rev Steven L Hibbard

Maitland SA to Port Lincoln SA

• Rev Nich K Kitchen

Auckland NZ to Birdwood SA

• Rev Damien J A Martin

Truro SA to Cleve SA

INSTALLATIONS

• Rev Glenn J Crouch

Installed to Esperance WA on 22 January 2023 by Bishop Mike Fulwood

• Rev Joel D Grieger

Installed to Bordertown SA on 22 January 2023 by Bishop David Altus

• Rev Peter J Noble

Installed to Hobart Tas on 22 January 2023 by Bishop Lester Priebbenow

• Rev Luke A Spilsbury

Installed to Good Shepherd Lutheran College Noosa Qld on 22 January 2023 by First Assistant Bishop Ben Hentschke

• Rev Tim P Spilsbury

Installed as Associate Pastor to Ipswich Qld on 22 January 2023 by Bishop Mark Vainikka

• Rev Frank A Rasenberger

Installed to Ballarat Vic on 29 January 2023 by Bishop Lester Priebbenow

• Rev Jeremy D Smith

Installed to Kadina SA on 29 January 2023 by Bishop David Altus

• Rev Michael J Steicke

Installed to Balaklava SA on 29 January 2023 by Rev Stephen Schultz

• Rev Eugene G Minge

Installed to Greenock SA on 5 February 2023 by Bishop David Altus

• Rev Stephen J Pietsch

Installed at Bethlehem Adelaide on 5 February 2023 by Rev Dr Jeff Silcock

• Rev David L Spike

Installed to Lutheran Education Victoria, New South Wales and Tasmania (LEVNT) on 5 February 2023 by Bishop Lester Priebbenow

In Memoriam

Rev Milton Andrew Fritsch born 8 Aug 1961 (Temora NSW); married Gaylea Maria Fritsch nee Schirmer 19 Dec 1992 (Riverview Qld); ordained 8 Jan 1995 (Toowoomba Qld); served Emerald Qld (1995–1999), Kingaroy Qld (1999–2005), Auckland NZ (2005–2012), Ipswich Qld (2012–2017), Geelong Vic (2017–2023); died 8 Feb 2023 (Geelong Vic); funeral 20 Feb 2023 (St John’s Geelong Vic); mourned by wife Gaylea, children Maria, Harry and Abigail and families

Robert Fechner

Rev Robert Kenneth Fechner born 29 Sept 1947 (Glenelg SA); ordained 10 Dec 1972 (Waikerie SA); married Glenda Lorraine Fechner nee Weier 3 Feb 1973 (Dalby Qld); Served Epping NSW (1973), Canberra ACT (1973), Walla Walla NSW (1973–1980), Grovedale Vic (1980–1991), Orana Aged Care Kingaroy Qld (1993–2002), Kingaroy Qld (2003–2015); retired 31 Dec 2015; died 14 Jan 2023; funeral 27 Jan 2023 (Peace Lutheran Church Kumbia Qld); mourned by wife Glenda, children Cheryl, Paul and Ryan and families

• Rev Edwin D Shoesmith

Installed at Hervey Bay Qld on 19 February 2023 by Bishop Mark Vainikka

• Rev Colin G Simpkin

Installed at Bendigo Vic on 26 February 2023 by Bishop Lester Priebbenow

• Rev Darryl V Shoesmith

Installed at Henty NSW on 26 February 2023 by Bishop Robert Bartholomaeus

• Rev Wayne B Boehm

Installed at Immanuel North Adelaide SA on 5 March 2023 by Pastor Wayne Zweck

ROLL OF PASTORS

• Rev John Davison – Leave of Absence extension approved to 31 August 2026

• Rev Will Frost – Restored to the LCANZ Roll of Active Pastors, effective 23 February 2023, and assigned to NSW-ACT District as Interim Pastor

• Rev Ryan Norris – Leave of Absence extension approved to 28 February 2024

• Rev Matthew Schultz – Leave of Absence extension approved to 28 February 2025

• Rev Alfred Yau – Change in call eligibility status from Specific Ministry Pastor to Emeritus Specific Ministry Pastor from 23 February 2023

IN MEMORIAM

• Mrs Aaltje ‘Alice’ Hofman nee Commeraat, wife of Emeritus Pastor Marinus Hofman, died on 22 January 2023 at Cairns Hospital. Her funeral was held on 3 February 2023 at Trinity Lutheran Church Manunda Qld.

Rev Dr Michael John Hassold born 23 Sept 1942 (Adelaide SA); married Helen Ruth Hassold nee Keller 7 Feb 1970 (Bethany SA); ordained 13 Dec 1970 (Bethlehem Adelaide SA); served Sale Vic (1971–1976), Ringwood Vic (1976–1984), Para Vista SA (1984–1996), Lecturer, Australian Lutheran College (1996–2001), Principal, Australian Lutheran College (2001–2009); died 28 Jan 2023 (Campbelltown SA); funeral 7 Feb 2023 (Bethlehem Lutheran Church Adelaide SA); mourned by wife Helen, children Roger, Greg and Deborah Kate and families

Mike Hassold

LUTHERAN CHURCH OF AUSTRALIA

Milton Fritsch

Consider impact of ongoing division

There is a common metaphor that pictures the church as a marine rescue station on a stormy coastline. Its lifeboat routinely sails out of the harbour to save stricken souls in their hour of peril.

Trevor Keller

Rev Trevor Oscar Keller born 5 July 1945 (Booleroo Centre SA); married Cheryl Anne Keller nee Curyer 14 Sept 1968 (Melrose Methodist Church SA); ordained 14 July 1991 (Appila SA); served Mannum SA (1991–1996), Seaford SA (1996–2014); retired 12 Jan 2014; died 9 Feb 2023; funeral 21 Feb 2023 (Seaford Ecumenical Mission SA); mourned by wife Cheryl, children Angela and Nicole and families

Gordon Gerhardy

Rev Gordon John Gerhardy born 3 May 1933 (Nuriootpa SA); ordained 6 Jan 1963 (Light Pass Strait Gate SA); married Christa Hildegard Dorothea Gerhardy nee Lindner

27 Sept 1975 (Yagaum, Madang PNG) (She died 25 Oct 2016); served St Lukes Hamilton Vic (1963–1966), Balob Lutheran Teachers College PNG (1966–1977), Flierl Seminary Logaweng PNG (1978–1989), Wagga Wagga NSW (1989–1998); retired 20 May 1998; died 25 Jan 2023 (Modbury SA); funeral 3 Feb 2023 (Trinity Lutheran Church Hope Valley SA); mourned by daughter Elizabeth and family

Lloyd Boughen

Rev Lloyd Oscar Boughen born 19 June 1930 (Marburg Qld); married Alison May Boughen nee Heinrich 30 Dec 1966 (Freeling SA); ordained 1 Feb 1970 (Cleveland Qld); served St Mary’s Sydney (1970–1976), Middle Park Qld (1976–1984), Henty NSW (1984–1989), Director of Mission Vic/Tas District (1989–1993), Doncaster/Ivanhoe Vic (1993–1999), Ashburton Vic (1999–2002), Knox Vic (2002–2004); retired 1 Feb 2004; died 2 March 2023; funeral 14 March 2023 (Our Saviours Lutheran Church Knoxfield Vic); mourned by wife Alison, children Elena, Brendan and Krysta and families

I have been drawn to this metaphor again as I reflect on the outcome of the latest LCANZ Synod. Setting aside the respective merits of both sides of the ordination issue, our little LCANZ lifeboat has been grossly debilitated by the sum of this misdirected energy over the last few decades. Not only have we remained moored in the harbour, but our crew and stores have been gradually sapped by the endless tactical intrigue which has been the hallmark of our general and district synods.

To stave off further squabbling, we now propose to segregate the remaining crew to different parts of our little boat. Whether this crew now all rows in the same direction remains to be seen, although the arrangement does not seem conducive to that end.

The tragedy for the LCANZ is made manifold by acknowledging that the lifeboat was not ours in the first place but graciously bestowed to us by the One who first rescued us. Maybe the most relevant scripture in this whole episode has not yet been considered –John 11:35 [‘Jesus wept’].

David Spann – Scarborough Qld

Call for ‘fair representation’ of all members at Synod

My reflection on General Synod yields a sense of disappointment.

The total number of delegates registered was 344. This was made up of 206 lay people and 138 pastors. In the Saturday afternoon session, there were 327 recorded as present in the room. When the Box Hill proposal was put to the vote, it was announced that there were three abstentions, 203 for and 136 against, which means that those who were not present had their vote automatically recorded against the motion as per LCANZ rules.

There are 266 parishes in Australia – each being entitled to have at least one lay delegate at Synod. That means that a large portion of our church was not represented at parish level. The number of pastor delegates is calculated on the number of registered members in each district, as well as all bishops, past bishops, three emeritus pastors and all ordained members of various church boards.

My point:

• It is important that church statistics are recorded accurately every year to reflect the size of our shrinking church. Many churches do not maintain their records.

• The ratio of pastors to lay delegates at synod must be more fairly represented. The purpose of Synod is that decisions about our church are to be made by all members for all members – not just pastors. At the convention, it was obvious that the pastors held the floor, with less than 10 per cent (my estimate) of lay delegates getting a voice. Many discussions were wasted by points of order and challenges to Bishop Paul’s rulings. The interruptions were numerous and unnecessary. My heart is saddened by the brokenness of our church. I sincerely hope that all congregations will accept ownership of the LCANZ and make a genuine effort to be represented at Synod in 2024.

Shelley Koch – Naracoorte SA

Opinions expressed in letters are those of the writers and do not necessarily reflect those of the editor or the Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand. Shorter letters will be given preference over longer letters. Subscribers’ letters will be given preference over those from non-subscribers. Letters longer than 300 words and those containing personal attack will not be published. No more than two letters from the same author will be published in a calendar year. Some letters may be edited for clarity.

Servant of Christ Award

The Servant of Christ Award honours lay people of the Church by recognising those who give outstanding service. Districts, committees, agencies and congregations are invited to submit nominations for the award. Award guidelines and nomination forms are available from the LCA website at www.lca.org.au/soc or from the Office of the Bishop.

Please submit nominations to soc@lca.org.au or by post to ‘Servant of Christ Award’, Lutheran Church of Australia, 197 Archer Street, North Adelaide SA 5006, no later than Friday 28 April 2023

For inquiries, please contact Chelsea Bellamy at chelsea.bellamy@lca.org.au or phone 08 8267 7300.

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ALWayS for those forgotten

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