The Lutheran October 2022 Digital Edition

LUTHERAN CHURCH OF

Addressing the big issues

EDITORIAL

Editor Lisa McIntosh

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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.

Participants in the Grow Ministries 2022 Young Adult Forum enjoyed a session with LCANZ Assistant to the Bishop, Public Theology Nick Schwarz (third from right), during last month’s gathering in Adelaide – and took a look at the coverage of the big social issues in The Lutheran. Among 24 young people from around Australia who took part were, from left, Noah Hahn (SA), Eloise Quinn-Valentine (SA), Guinevere Sellner (WA), Ben Huckel (SA), Stefan Volejnik (Qld), and Georgia Maroske (Vic). Read more about the forum on page 25.

Send us a photograph featuring a recent copy of The Lutheran and it may appear on page 2 of a future issue and on our website at www.thelutheran.com.au

People like YOU bring love to life

Stephanie Swift

Rockingham Mandurah Lutheran Church WA

Law and society student at the University of Western Australia and works at Kmart

Most treasured Bible text: Romans 8:37–39

‘Neither death nor life … nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God.’

Christian Hansen

Our Saviour Lutheran Church Rochedale Qld

Civil engineering student at the University of Queensland

Most treasured Bible text: Philippians 3:20,21

‘Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Saviour … the Lord Jesus Christ, who … will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body.’

Hayley Simons

Trinity Warrayure Lutheran Church Vic Works in construction as a civil project administrator

Most treasured Bible text: Philippians 4:7

‘And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.’

Let the light of someone you know shine through their photo being featured in The Lutheran and LCA Facebook. With their permission, send us a good quality photo, their name and details (congregation, occupation and most treasured text in these difficult times) and your contact details.

letter

Growing up in a Christian family, with the influences of regular worship, Sunday school and Lutheran schooling, naturally I was familiar from a young age with the Ten Commandments.

The First Commandment sets the tone. ‘You shall have no other gods.’ It was spelt out even more clearly through Luther’s Small Catechism explanation: ‘What does this mean? We should fear, love, and trust in God above all things.’

All the other Commandments flowed from it. If we put God first, if he is the Lord of our lives, we shouldn’t have trouble keeping the other 9/10ths of God’s law.

It sounds simple enough. Don’t put your trust in other ‘gods’, or idols, like those recalcitrant Israelites did. The Golden Calf (Exodus 32, 1 Kings 12) and Baal (Numbers 25, Deuteronomy 4) are just two that spring to mind. Or like those first sinners, Adam and Eve, who were tempted by the prospect of being God.

Of course, in addition to not judging others, we need to be wary of putting our faith in things like money and possessions, success and power, and passions, including sport. And then there are music and movie celebrities and sporting ‘gods’ all vying for our adoration.

But, as Rev Dr Michael Lockwood and Pastor Mick Hauser point out in our theme features, the greatest danger we often face when it comes to breaking the First Commandment is even closer to home: the Idol of the Self.

In God’s eyes it’s not wrong to love ourselves – in fact, we should. But not more than God. And not at the expense of loving and serving our neighbours.

It’s worth remembering that examples of material plenty aren’t the only idolatry traps. Elements of our faith lives can be, too. We can make idols of the saints, the church as an institution, the ordained ministry and even Scripture. The list goes on.

Indeed, most of our idols are good gifts from God. They become a gateway to sin when we rank them above him, and they interfere with our relationship with him. Jesus offers the alternative in Luke 10:27, when he says: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind.’

As well as looking at idolatry in this edition, we begin the build-up to February’s in-person sessions of General Synod and, as always, are privileged to share encouraging stories, resources and devotional materials. I hope you’ll be blessed by what you read, as I have been as I’ve prepared these stories for you.

Special features

The Idol of the Self … in our church and our world

The idol factory Ordination on the agenda

The power of the humble lentil

Regulars

Because we bear your name: Bishop Paul’s letter

Dwelling in God’s word

Go and Grow Going GREYT! The inside story Your voice Sudoku Directory Prayer calendar

5 8 12 14 4 10 15 22 24 27 28 29 30

Our cover: iStock.com

3The Lutheran OCTOBER 2022 October 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

‘So, you’re a bishop? Good job! …’

In 2023, three of our LCANZ District Bishops will be handing on the work of bishop to another. In Western Australia, Bishop Mike Fulwood will be concluding his service as bishop. In the South Australia – Northern Territory District, Bishop David Altus will be concluding his service. Finally, in the Lutheran Church of New Zealand, Bishop Mark Whitfield will be concluding his service. In all three cases, these ‘Servants of the Word’ are asking the Lord to guide them as they consider what service they will next undertake in the Lutheran Church.

What does a bishop do? In our church’s constitution and by-laws, both for the LCANZ and its districts, there are extensive guidelines to answer this question.

The repeated words you find there, are that a bishop shall ‘exercise oversight’ with specific reference to doctrine and practice in the church. There are also descriptions of the various administrative responsibilities of a bishop, and this includes the expected list of meetings he must attend.

The opening duty listed for a bishop in our church is significant. It declares that the bishop shall, ‘preach, teach and administer the Sacraments in accord with the Confession of the Church, exercising this ministry in congregations in consultation with the congregation and pastor concerned’. As people of the Lutheran witness to Christ Jesus, we expect our bishops to be busied with our God’s means of grace. We expect our bishops to be preaching and teaching, and administering the sacraments, that they would be active in the mission of God to bring life, salvation and the forgiveness of sin.

In St Paul’s first letter to Timothy, chapter three, we are taught a simple expression about the work of a bishop. In the King James Bible of 1611, verse one of this text reads, ‘This is a true saying, “If a man desire the office of a bishop, he desireth a good work”’. More modern translations read, ‘desires a noble task’. There is a potential hidden danger with that translation ‘noble task’. A church leader ought not suppose that the service of

BISHOP PAUL’S LETTER

REV PAUL SMITH

bishop is somehow elevated above, or more ‘noble’ than the service of any other sisters and brothers in Christ. There is a profound key for us to properly understand the work of a bishop in this very scripture passage. This is something you discover in the two words in the Greek New Testament that are translated as ‘noble task’ or ‘good work’. Those two words appear together in another place in the New Testament.

Matthew 26:6–13 tells the story of the woman who pours expensive ointment on our Lord Jesus when he is in the house of Simon in Bethany. The disciples criticise her, calling her action a waste of money. But our Lord defends the woman and declares that ‘she has performed a “good work” for me’ (Matt 26:10). These are the same two Greek words we find in 1 Timothy 3.

A bishop serves his Lord. This is the good work. Like the woman at Bethany, the bishop is focused on the revelation that our Lord Jesus is the promised Messiah. The story of the woman in Bethany occurs just before the crucifixion of our Lord.

A bishop of the church is busied with preaching Christ and him crucified, for the salvation of the world.

So please pray for our three districts of Western Australia, South Australia – Northern Territory and the LCNZ, as they ask the Lord to provide them with a man to undertake the ‘good work’ of serving as District Bishop from 2023. Please also pray for the pastors who are nominated for this role, that they would know how to best offer their gifts in service to their Lord in the cause of the gospel, listening to the voice of the Good Shepherd. Finally, please ask for the Lord’s blessing on our bishops who are continuing in 2023: Bishop Robert Bartholomaeus, Bishop Lester Priebbenow, Bishop Mark Vainikka and Assistant Bishop Neville Otto.

Bishop? Good job!

In Christ, Paul

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

AS PEOPLE OF THE LUTHERAN WITNESS TO CHRIST JESUS, WE EXPECT OUR BISHOPS TO BE BUSIED WITH OUR GOD’S MEANS OF GRACE.

Bishop, Lutheran Church of Australia and New Zealand

THE IDOL OF THE SELF

… IN OUR CHURCH AND OUR WORLD

by MICHAEL LOCKWOOD

Years ago, when I first began reflecting seriously on the idolatry of contemporary society, my goal was to understand the beliefs of those outside the church so I could bring them the gospel.

Yet the more I reflected on the idolatry of the world, the more I realised that the same idolatry had infected the church and my own heart too. Just as the ancient Israelites were tempted to worship the Lord and Baal as well, so we easily slip into thinking we can serve Christ without relinquishing the idolatrous agendas of our society.

In past ages, people worshipped gods of wood and stone. In the West today, we mostly just worship ourselves. This problem is as old as Adam and Eve, who wanted to be like God. Nevertheless, our society has sunk to new lows with its dedication to the worship of human beings, and all too often we Christians fall into the same trap. I therefore will explore three ways in which this idol is evident in us and our world and how the true and living God can set us free.

THE PROBLEM

1

Who do we love? We love ourselves.

Our secular world can propose nothing greater to live for than individual happiness and equates happiness with the fulfilment of our desires. Thus, the goal of life is to get the world around us to give us what we want.

This idolatrous self-interest is not restricted to those outside the church. The reality is that we all love ourselves too much. We may not always like ourselves, but we are self-interested and want the world and even God to revolve around us and give us what we crave. Often, we put a religious spin on this. We slip into thinking that if we are sufficiently virtuous or pious, God and those around us should reward us by bending to our will. We are then inclined to get angry with God or lash out at others when this strategy fails.

Furthermore, the church often panders to this idolatry. Pastors become people-pleasers. Churches try to cater to people’s felt needs, hoping to be rewarded with

IN PAST AGES, PEOPLE WORSHIPPED GODS OF WOOD AND STONE. IN THE WEST TODAY, WE MOSTLY JUST WORSHIP OURSELVES.

Artwork

5The Lutheran OCTOBER 2022 supplied by Michael Lockwood

popularity. In the process they lose sight of giving people what they really need, the Bread of Life.

Paradoxically, this pursuit of our own happiness does not bring happiness. We were not created to be at the centre of the universe, and neither God nor the world around us will allow us to pull them into our orbit. Such efforts just lead to frustration. It is God’s will that will finally be done, not ours, whether we like it or not.

Who do we trust? We trust ourselves.

Our society repeatedly tells us to believe in ourselves and its fundamental assumption is that there must be a human answer to every problem. No matter what confronts us, we are told that human work and ingenuity can engineer a solution. This appeals to our sinful pride, which wants to be able to say, ‘We can do it’, rather than giving glory to God as the one who provides.

People in the church are not immune. All too often we say we trust in the Lord when our behaviour shows that we are really trusting in ourselves or other human beings. For example, what do we do in a crisis? Often, we call a meeting, in which we pray for two minutes and then plan and strategise for three hours. We never dream of calling on the church to pray all night as we see in Scripture, and as I have witnessed among Christians in Nepal. This pattern reveals the extent to which our faith is really in ourselves and not in the God who answers prayer.

This idolatrous self-reliance is expressed in how we relate to all three members of the Trinity. For example:

• Our Heavenly Father promises to care for our earthly needs. Yet often our prayerlessness, workaholism and desperate groping after earthly things reveal that we are really trusting in ourselves to provide.

• Our Lord Jesus Christ is the one who justifies us. He alone makes us acceptable in God’s sight and worthy to hold our heads up high. Yet too often we seek to justify ourselves instead and turn our own righteousness into an idol we put in his place. We make excuses, point the finger, pass the buck,

•

exaggerate our virtues, downplay our vices, go fishing for praise and try to claim that the wrong we have done is really right, instead of confessing our sins and glorifying Christ as the one who forgives and saves us.

The Holy Spirit is the one who enlightens us through his word, works faith and its fruits in our hearts, and so builds God’s church. Yet all too often we seek to enlighten ourselves and turn our own wisdom into an idol. We neglect God’s word as if we are too clever to need it or set it aside for the sake of human opinions. Then we try to build the church or reform our own lives through our own efforts.

These efforts inevitably fail. Like all idols, the idol of the self demands great sacrifices from us, but then it lets us down since we have neither the strength, virtue, nor wisdom to take God’s place. Whether we like it or not, we are totally dependent on him. When we act like we do not need him, we guarantee that we will end up sinking exhausted under the weight of our foolishness, failure and sin.

What do we fear? We fear everything.

Our humanistic society is an anxious place. This is the hallmark of idolatry. When we turn to idols, trusting them to provide for us and take our fears away, they inevitably fail us, so the fears remain. The same is true when we trust in ourselves or other people. The more we do so, the more anxious we will be about our performance and the things we cannot control.

The COVID crisis did not create this anxiety, but it has revealed it. In this crisis, our society has fractured into two camps, both of which are driven by fear. One side has been fearful of COVID and has trusted in human measures like masks, lockdowns, and vaccines to manage this fear. The other side is more fearful of things like censorship and creeping authoritarianism and has fought these fears with social and political activism. Whatever the merits of these respective actions, both sides would be less frantic if we spent more time looking to Jesus.

GOD HAS COME TO BREAK US OUT OF OUR NARCISSISTIC SELF-FOCUS. HE WANTS WHAT IS BEST FOR US AND IS ABLE TO DELIVER.

THE SOLUTION:

The God who gives us every good thing by grace.

The good news in this situation is that the true and living God wants to give us by grace all the things we have vainly tried to supply for ourselves.

This true God has come to break us out of our narcissistic self-focus. He wants what is best for us and is able to deliver. Yet he knows that this involves us dying to our destructive self-centred desires.

True joy is not found in getting whatever we want, but in learning to want what God wants. The blessed life is one that revolves around him and his will for us, which is always gracious and good. We are free to live this way, since he has promised to give us everything we need by grace, apart from our self-centred striving.

God has got our backs, so we can forget about ourselves, and instead focus on serving him and those around us as he calls us to do.

This same God now calls to us: ‘Trust in me. I will give you by grace what you have failed to provide for yourselves. I will feed you, clothe you, protect you, heal you, forgive you, honour you, empower you, delight you, instruct you with true heavenly wisdom, and welcome you into my kingdom.’

Furthermore, this God has come to calm our fears. The most frequently repeated command in the Bible is ‘fear not’.

Fear the Lord and him alone and then you will have nothing to fear, since he is gracious and he is mighty, and he has conquered everything that can bring you harm.

When Peter took his eyes off Jesus, he became afraid and started to sink.

How often have we not done the same? Yet while his eyes were on Jesus he could walk on the waves. The same is true with us.

By ourselves we can do nothing. We cannot provide for our earthly needs, save ourselves from death and hell, still our fears or fill the aching void in our souls.

Yet the true God is calling to us and saying: ‘Look to me, and me alone, in every dimension of your lives, so that your cup runs over with what my grace supplies.’

Rev Dr Michael Lockwood serves as a theological educator for LCA International Mission and has recently been called to teach in Taiwan. He is the author of The Unholy Trinity: Martin Luther Against the Idol of Me, Myself, and I.

WHEN WE TURN TO IDOLS, TRUSTING THEM TO PROVIDE FOR US AND TAKE OUR FEARS AWAY, THEY INEVITABLY FAIL US, SO THE FEARS REMAIN.

THE IDOL FACTORY

by MICK HAUSER

It is difficult to know where to start when writing about the subject of idolatry. I’d like to approach it with some humour, but it’s such a hard-hitting topic, how can you do that?

Australian Lutheran pastor Rev Dr Michael Lockwood, who has also written for this edition, has penned a book on Luther’s understanding of idolatry entitled The Unholy Trinity. Its central thesis is that the self and its desire to be covered in glory rather than with the blood of Christ lies behind all idolatry.

And we continue to make innumerable idols, chiefly with our imaginations.

‘Idolatry is an attempt of the imagination to take the divine and make it visible, to make it understandable, to make it manageable’, say the authors and Lutheran theologians Gene Veith Jr and Pastor Matthew P Ristuccia, in their book Imagination Redeemed

Martin Luther, his fellow Protestant reformer John Calvin and 20th-century Lutheran theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer all agreed somewhat that the imagination was an idol factory.

Our imaginations seem to be unrelenting in creating idols. Even within the church, faithful Christians have a habit of unwittingly chiselling out idols, abstract or otherwise.

We often take aspects of a divine promise or gift and idolise them. For instance, freedom, love and wisdom or reason.

These are aspects or qualities of divinity, but torn away from the person of Christ, created and carved into abstract notions or principles, they become idols.

The most common idol according to Luther is mammon – money, property, riches or any material wealth. They are created gifts that we mistake for God. In our materialistic world and culture, we don’t have to look far to find the influence of mammon on our lives.

Idols, too, especially most recently, often dress themselves with the garment and scales of ‘justice’. For instance, freedom for everyone is good, especially for me! Ethical philosophical systems easily become idols. ‘Virtue signalling’ is a product of idolatry.

A little more hidden is the idolatry we find surrounding the chief articles of the church, our confessions. I don’t mean that the Book of Concord itself is an idol – although this would be and is concerning – but I mean the idolatry that seeks to copy closely the articles of faith, but with distortions that can be manipulated.

We idolise the office of public ministry, the pulpit and the authority it holds and the voice that it gives.

We idolise the keys to the kingdom too, to bind and to loose sin as we become the judges of the world, offering up an opinion on everything and pasting them all over the cyberworld. We are very ready to declare someone as unspeakable and another to be worthy of mention.

OUR IMAGINATIONS

SEEM TO BE UNRELENTING IN CREATING IDOLS.

A little closer to our hearts though, the idol of self-love has always told us that we can be whatever we want to be. In our pandering to one another, we thought that loving our neighbour meant agreeing with them and reiterating the lie.

Now we reap what we sow. People modify their bodies, not only in their gender, but some go so far as to want to look like a different species altogether.

Science fiction often imagines cybernetics or beings that are part-human and part-machine, leaving humanity facing a struggle to maintain control. In many cases, the progress and ultimate survival of humanity are held up as the leading ethical principles of what is just and right.

Living for eternity seems to be the goal for many, as we idolise life itself. We have literally locked up those who threaten life with sickness.

We cast aspersions and mock those who stand against worldly tides. Idolatry has infiltrated all levels of society and it is a religion in itself.

Lord have mercy on us! We have plenty to turn away from. Help us, we pray!

Pastor Mick Hauser serves as a lecturer at Martin Luther Seminary at Lae in Papua New Guinea.

ALWS Walk My Way at Victor Harbor is just days away … but the good news is that you still have time to be part of the excitement!

Choose 13km or 20km. Gather a group to gallop Granite Island. Wander with a woofer. Have fun as a family! Whatever you do, don’t miss out:

If you can’t walk… cheer on walkers or sponsor a student walker or volunteer! Step out so refugee children can step in to school.

Remember, every $26 raised supports a refugee child in school for a year. So, bring your love to life for these children.

EVEN WITHIN THE CHURCH, FAITHFUL CHRISTIANS HAVE A HABIT OF UNWITTINGLY CHISELLING OUT IDOLS, ABSTRACT OR OTHERWISE.

Photo: ALWS/Amy Dahlenburg

DWELLING IN GOD'S WORD

A study on idolatry

by Michael Lockwood

Read Jeremiah 17:5–8.

When you are in need, is your first inclination to pray? Or is prayer a last resort when human sources of help have been exhausted?

So, allow me to take you on a journey of spiritual diagnosis. In particular, let me bring you God’s word to expose the idolatry that lies at the heart of our sin. That is, let God himself reveal the things we have enthroned in his place, by fearing, loving and trusting them more than him. This may be painful. The sinful nature that lurks within us all is proud. It does not want to admit that its desires are evil.

Yet, through Christ, we are free to face the truth about ourselves, since he has removed the guilt, shame and condemnation of our sin. Such spiritual honesty then gives us the opportunity to refocus on Christ, who alone brings lasting freedom, joy and life to the full.

Read Mark 12:30.

Reflect on how you use your time, energy and money.

How much do you dedicate to prayer, to worship, and to hearing God’s word? How much do you devote to the mission of the gospel or to serving those around you? And how much do you use to serve yourself and your desires? What does this reveal about what is uppermost in your heart?

Do you joyfully pray, ‘Thy will be done’? Or are you thinking deep down, ‘Let my will be done’, so that you then judge God based on how well he fulfills your desires? Who is it then that you truly love?

Read Matthew 10:24–33.

Are you prone to anxiety concerning earthly things?

Do you worry about what other people think about you?

Do you fret about success and failure, sickness and death?

What does this reveal about what is truly important to you? Who or what do you rely on to help you deal with these fears?

How much time do you spend reflecting on God’s word, in comparison with human sources of guidance? Which do you prioritise when the two conflict?

On the other hand, how much effort do you put into making excuses, pointing the finger, passing the buck and justifying yourself and your behaviour? When you do this, who are you treating as your Saviour?

How prepared are you to confess your hidden sins before others, and to give glory to Christ as the only one who makes you worthy to hold your head up high?

Read Psalm 146.

This psalm reminds us that when we place our confidence in human and earthly things, they always let us down in the end. How has this worked out in your experience?

The same is not true when we set our hearts on the Lord our God.

If God made the heavens and the earth, what is he able to do for you? If God created every good thing, who alone can furnish you with joy?

If the Lord knows all things, and opens the eyes of the blind, what is the result when you trust him to lead?

If the Lord Jesus Christ sets the prisoners free, who is the one who must deal with the power, guilt, shame and condemnation of your sin? What has he already done to give you victory?

To appreciate the medicine, we need to recognise the disease. To truly rejoice in our Saviour, we need to see the sin from which he sets us free.

Rev Dr Michael Lockwood serves as a theological educator for LCA International Mission and has recently been called to teach in Taiwan. He is the author of The Unholy Trinity: Martin Luther Against the Idol of Me, Myself, and I.

Is God calling you to the Centre?

Will you bring your family, faith, gifts, skills and talents to Central Australia?

Goodbye bleak rainy winters. Hello sunshine! Low humidity, great for health

Long-established (140 years) and respected Lutheran heritage

Schools, childcare, medical clinics and hospital, supermarkets, restaurants

Daily flights to most capital cities

Endless outdoor activities ... golf, hiking, 4WDing, camping

People who live amid the vast landscapes of the Red Centre often feel a deep connection with the wonder of creation. God can build on this spiritual openness to connect people with the message of Christ.

When Lutheran missionaries arrived at the Finke River in 1877, Aboriginal people gradually became ready to hear new stories about God the Creator and his son Jesus. Today there are around 6,000 Aboriginal Lutherans in the heart of Australia. The Lutheran Church in Central Australia employs more than 200 people through Alice Springs Lutheran Church, Finke River Mission (including the Historical Precinct and Hermannsburg Store), Lutheran Care, Yirara College and Living Waters Lutheran School.

There are ministry roles available with Alice Springs Lutheran Church and Finke River Mission, while Yirara College and Living Waters Lutheran School are looking for teachers and ancillary staff. Inquiries from volunteers are always welcome, too. What’s life like there? Read the testimonies of people who’ve served God in Central Australia at finkerivermission.lca.org.au

Interested? Contact Wayne Beven (Finke River Mission Operations Manager) for more information via email at lcica@lca.org.au

ON THE AGENDA Ordination

As the in-person sessions of the 20th Convention of General Synod approach, LCANZ members are asking whether the ordination question will be on the agenda once again. It will be. Six proposals on the topic have been presented for discussion by delegates. Three of them refer to the Theses of Agreement. The following document has been prepared for delegates and other church members interested in this conversation. Endorsed by the General Church Board, it provides a summary of the proposals about ordination to come before Synod, as well as the status of the Theses of Agreement.

Ordination of women and men

– the proposals before General Synod

Six proposals relating to the ordination question are before the 20th General Synod and will be considered at the in-person sessions in February 2023:

• three proposing to remove TA 6.11 from the Theses of Agreement

• one proposing that the LCANZ allow two practices of ordination

• one proposing that the General Church Board (GCB) work through the theological, constitutional and governance requirements in establishing one church with two different practices of ordination, and reporting back to General Synod in the form of a proposal for discussion and potential endorsement

• one proposing to give a peaceful dismissal to those congregations unable to live under the current teaching of a male-only pastorate and exercise their right to withdraw membership from the LCANZ.

Some proposals refer to the Theses of Agreement, particularly TA 1.4 and TA 6.11. The GCB is aware that, across the church, there are various levels of understanding of the Theses of Agreement and has approved the following summary.

Theses of Agreement What are the Theses of Agreement?

The Theses of Agreement are the common consent of the United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Australia (UELCA) and the Evangelical Lutheran Church of Australia (ELCA) on matters of doctrine which were in dispute between them. They were adopted by the respective churches in the mid- to late-1950s.

The journey to union of the two Lutheran churches had a number of false starts in the early part of the 20th century. The concerted effect to renew union discussions began in 1937–38, but it was not until 1941 that the official meetings of representatives of the two churches began. The various theses were adopted

by the joint committees between 1948 and 1956. Aspects of Theses 5 ‘The Church’ were adopted by the joint committees in 1965.

Although the clarification on matters of doctrine was predominantly settled with the adoption of the Theses of Agreement by both churches, the way forward on cooperation and fellowship was only resolved with the Document of Union, which was registered by the churches in 1965. The Theses of Agreement was recognised in the document as acceptance of the expression of the common consent of the two churches and was made part of the Document of Union.

At the constituting convention of the Lutheran Church of Australia (LCA) in 1966, the General Synod adopted the LCA Constitution and resolved other matters regarding the amalgamation of the new church. The Theses of Agreement is not part of the LCA Constitution; however, its status as a document of the church has been articulated since the constituting convention in 1966.

Theses of Agreement relevant to the office of the ministry

Theses of Agreement (TA) 6 defines the teaching of the LCA on the office of the ministry. TA 6.1 to 6.10 refer to God’s institution of the office and the responsibilities and authority of those called to the office as recorded in Scripture and in the Lutheran Symbols of the Book of Concord of 1580. TA 6.11 refers specifically to prohibiting women from being called into the office of the public ministry.

None of the five proposals before the General Synod seeking the ordination of women and men disputes TA 6.1 to 6.10. Three of the proposals seek the removal of TA 6.11. One calls for the LCANZ to allow two practices of ministry in the church. Another calls for the LCANZ to work through the theological, constitutional and governance requirements to operate as one church with two different practices of ordination.

Use of Theses of Agreement 1 as the basis of proposals to allow the ordination of both women and men

Three of the proposals refer to TA 1, ‘Principles governing Church Fellowship’, specifically paragraph 4 (TA 1.4).

TA 1.4 can be summarised as follows: that where differences in exegesis (interpretation of Scripture) exist that affect doctrine (the church’s teaching) and if agreement cannot be reached following ‘combined, prayerful examination of the passage or passages in question’, divergent views arising from such differences are not church-divisive, providing that:

1. There be the readiness in principle to submit to the authority of the Word of God;

2. Thereby no clear Word of Scripture is denied, contradicted or ignored;

3. Such divergent views in no wise impair, infringe upon, or violate the central doctrine of Holy Scripture, justification by grace through faith in Jesus Christ;

4. Nothing is taught contrary to the publica doctrina of the Lutheran Church as laid out in its Confessions;

5. Such divergent views are not propagated as the publica doctrina of the Church and in no wise impair the doctrine of Holy Writ.

The full text of TA 1.4 can be found on the Commission on Theology and Inter-Church Relations page on the LCA website at www.lca.org.au/cticr

Don’t miss important updates about General Synod, before, during and after Convention.

SIGN UP TO GENERAL SYNOD ENEWS. (General Synod delegates, pastors and parish/congregation chairs are automatically on this eNews list.)

https://lcaenews.online/general-synod

PARISH DELEGATES AND ALTERNATES SHOULD NOW BE RECORDED IN LAMP2.

In the event that a parish’s existing delegate for the 2021-2023 synodical term is unable or unwilling to attend the 2023 in-person sessions, the parish needs to appoint an alternate to attend. If the existing delegate has resigned from their elected position or is no longer a member of the parish, the parish needs to elect a new delegate. The closing date for registering details for new delegates or alternates was 15 July. Parish chairs, please check now that your parish delegate or alternate is recorded in LAMP2. If they are not, please attend to this urgently. If you are experiencing problems accessing LAMP2 or electing a delegate or appointing an alternate, please reach out to us for support at synod@lca.org.au

Go to www.generalsynod.lca.org.au/delegates/delegatesalternates/ for more information about electing delegates and appointing alternates.

THE POWER OF THE HUMBLE LENTIL

by MATTHIAS PRENZLER

Legumes such as lentils are an essential part of the East African diet. They’re nutritious, filling, long-lasting, and cheap. But would you ever see legumes as agents for mission? Never underestimate the mission potential of the humble lentil!

In October 2021, Shepparton in Victoria was hit hard by the Delta COVID outbreak. At one stage, a third of the city was in hard quarantine, and essential services like supermarkets were struggling to keep up.

The lockdowns were felt keenly by African members of St Paul’s Lutheran Church, who were cut off from their families, community and church. Our congregation did our best to attend to the physical and spiritual needs of members. One of the only ways we could do this within restrictions was by delivering care packages of culturally appropriate food items, including lentils. These fed the belly and the heart. It also gave us an opportunity to pray with people, satisfying the needs of the soul as well. But where do you get large quantities of lentils during a pandemic? I rang Gavin Schuster, a farmer from Freeling in South Australia and a member of the Light Lutheran Church. He asked members of his church, and although nobody had any lentils available, they sent money to enable us to purchase legumes locally. Soon after we invited Light Lutheran Church to consider a mission partnership with Goulburn Murray Lutheran Parish.

With the assistance of Craig Heidenreich, the LCA’s Cross-Cultural Ministry Facilitator, and Brett Kennett, LCA Victorian District Pastor for Congregational Support, we have been looking to establish mission partnerships. As well as financial support, these partnerships aim to provide opportunities for prayer, sharing of skills in cross-cultural ministry and mutual encouragement.

For the past six years, the Goulburn Murray Parish has been blessed by the ministry of Kathleen Mills, a deaconess from the USA who has been instrumental with

AS WELL AS FINANCIAL SUPPORT, THESE (MISSION) PARTNERSHIPS AIM TO PROVIDE OPPORTUNITIES FOR PRAYER, SHARING OF SKILLS IN CROSS-CULTURAL MINISTRY AND MUTUAL ENCOURAGEMENT.

ministry work among the Shepparton African community. Her position has previously been funded by a generous grant from the LCANZ’s Board for Local Mission, but this funding ended in May 2022.

On 31 July 2022, a delegation from St Paul’s Shepparton visited Freeling for a mission festival. Members of St Paul’s African choir sang, Kathleen shared a presentation on her work in the parish, and representatives of the two church bodies signed a Memorandum of Understanding. It was a very joyful and encouraging start to the partnership, and we look forward to seeing it grow and develop.

Light Lutheran Church is raising funds for mission through the work of some innovative farmers from the church. The farmers received permission to crop a plot of government land if they used the profits for charitable purposes. Last year, they got a bumper crop that earned four times what they expected. What did they grow? Lentils, of course!

Pastor Matthias Prenzler serves the Goulburn Murray Lutheran Parish in Victoria.

The full version of this story first appeared in the Victorian District including Tasmania’s District eVoices

Members of the St Paul’s African choir from Shepparton in Victoria sing during a recent mission festival at Freeling in South Australia, at which Goulburn Murray Lutheran Parish and Light Lutheran Church formalised a mission partnership.

RESOURCES FOR YOU TO ...

WORKING TO KEEP US CYBER-SAFE

The scale of cyber-security threats has increased exponentially over the past few years. This is not only in the volume of attacks but also the sophistication of hackers, who are constantly developing new ways to attack organisations and individuals. Churches are not immune.

Cyber attacks were ‘relatively rare’ when he started working for the church in 2010, says Daniel Wiltshire, who leads the LCANZ’s team of IT specialists. Today his small team defends the church against as many as 15,000 attacks a day. These attacks might be designed to infiltrate (or ‘hack’) a network or steal money or data. Extortion attempts can arrive as ‘phishing’ emails or fake websites.

Daniel and his team have been working with LCANZ members to introduce new security measures to better combat the hackers. These include passphrases (rather than passwords) and multi-factor authentication on LCANZ email accounts.

Brett Hausler, Executive Officer of the Church, adds that cyber security is not only the IT team’s responsibility. ‘This is our problem’, he says. ‘Every time we log in on our laptop or device, we’re a potential target for thieves. So, it’s important that every one of us takes these threats seriously and does everything we can to protect ourselves and every person we interact with.’

To learn more about measures you can take to protect yourself and others, go to www.lca.org.au/cybersecurity

MEET THE LCANZ IT TEAM

After Daniel Wiltshire, a 26-year veteran of the IT industry, the next longest-serving member of LCANZ IT Services is Nathan Vosgerau, who began a traineeship with the team in 2014. Keenan Manto, who also joined in 2014, left earlier this year to work in school-based IT support. New to the LCANZ team in 2022 are Ashley Rice, who previously worked for six years with internet service provider Internode in Adelaide, and Roya Amini, who most recently worked in IT support in construction in Sydney. Brisbanebased web developer David Mau is a part-time member of the IT team.

LCANZ IT is committed to developing systems and processes to support rapid, reliable and effective sharing of information across our church, including access to the wide range of LCANZ resources to support mission and ministry in local contexts across Australia and New Zealand. The team also provides advice to congregational leaders about their church cyber security needs.

Formerly based at Australian Lutheran College prior to a 2016 move into the church’s national office, the LCANZ IT team of that era looked after the needs of approximately 200 people. It now serves around 4000 people, including pastors and other church workers, volunteers, congregation office holders and Synod delegates.

HOW DOES THE IT SERVICES TEAM SERVE THE CHURCH?

Ashley Rice, Daniel Wiltshire and Roya Amini are among the LCANZ IT Services team members working with church leaders and members to introduce a range of security measures to combat cyber attacks. Absent: Nathan Vosgerau and David Mau.

HOW TO CREATE A BEAUTIFUL PICTURE

BY ANNE HANSEN

I really enjoy doing a jigsaw puzzle. All the pieces are emptied onto a folding table and then comes the sorting – putting colours together, finding the edge pieces and starting to put the outside border in place to then work towards the middle.

It takes effort, concentration, good lighting and a lot of time to finish a puzzle. Recently I did one with my mother. There were so many sky pieces that looked the same and that also seemed to match the water pieces. We had to look at them so carefully and make sure they were put in the right spot. I found a couple of pieces that were incorrect and that made finishing the puzzle impossible. Every piece had its own place from which to be a part of making up a beautiful picture.

SPIRITUAL LIFE CAN BE A PUZZLE TOO

With our spiritual life and that of our family, we tend to get the border happening – baptism, first communion and confirmation – but what about the middle? We may have trouble getting all the pieces in the right places, especially when other things distract us and take away our concentration.

I have even been tempted to give up on some puzzles, just like we may give up on feeding our spiritual life – reading the Bible daily, praying for others, worshipping with a fellowship of believers and serving others inside and outside of the church. Working as God wants them to, all these things together make a beautiful person complete and whole. It’s not easy. In fact, it is easier to give up, but God encourages us to put in one piece at a time and gently guides us when something doesn’t quite fit.

Our lives are created as a puzzle and it takes a lifetime to complete, but we have to start somewhere.

RESOURCES TO ENCOURAGE GROWTH

Lutheran Tract Mission has many resources to grow your life and the lives of your family members and friends. Have a look at our website at www.ltm.org.au and choose ‘ Find Resources’, then click on ‘Christian Growth’. You will find about 200 different tracts under this category to encourage you.

Grow your spiritual life one day at a time and encourage your friends to do the same. When you choose a tract to help you, grab another for a family member or friend. Time with God will grow your life into a beautiful picture – one piece at a time!

Tandara Lutheran Camp has highly satisfied guests and is growing as a result. We need a permanent, hands-on Assistant Manager to share the workload, as we continue to improve our guest experience. As a small Christian business, there is room to make a positive difference. There’s always something to do or improve, so you will grow your already broad work experience even further, while working in God’s service, in the most beautiful of settings with lots of wildlife. The role comes with a house at greatly reduced rent, and a Layworker Level 2 Paypoint 4 salary, plus superannuation.

Anne Hansen is Lutheran Tract Mission Development Officer.

PRACTICAL TIPS TO BECOME A ‘GREENER’ CONGREGATION

BY NEIL BERGMANN

Most governments committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions in the next decade and reaching net-zero by mid-century are also committed to protecting habitats for vulnerable species, and addressing pollution and waste management. Many individuals, families and companies are investigating how to reduce their environmental impact, too. Congregations also have a role to play in developing more sustainable communities. Here are some practical ideas for promoting creation care within your faith family. Each congregation will respond differently to its local needs.

FOOD AND GARDENS

• For morning teas and shared meals consider sustainable food choices using locally sourced ingredients.

• Share homegrown fruit and vegetables amongst congregation members.

• Set up a community garden that also collects community compostables.

• Plant a native garden and set up some picnic areas for use by the whole community if you have enough space.

ENERGY AND TRANSPORT

• Look to use energy-saving lights and appliances.

• Consider solar panels on the church roof, or choose a GreenPower plan from your electricity retailer.

• Consider ridesharing for trips to and from church.

• Consider installing bike racks and electric vehicle charging points and encourage walking to church for those who are able and live nearby.

• Replace some meetings with online ones, especially if people travel far to attend.

GETTING YOUR CHURCH ORGANISED

• Establish a creation care committee and develop a plan suiting your community’s interests and abilities.

• Involve young people in the congregation, in your wider family and the local community. They have passion, energy, and ideas.

• Do a sustainability audit.

• Host a community creation-based film night.

• Consider applying for a Five Leaf EcoAward – their Basic Certificate provides an easy framework for more sustainable congregations. (The awards are an Australian ecumenical environmental change program specifically designed for churches and religious organisations.)

• Contact Lutheran Earth Care (lecanz@lca.org.au) – we’d be happy to help.

• Have some sermons about creation, and about our stewardship of creation.

• Include specific petitions in the prayer of the church celebrating God’s providential care for all creation and our role as stewards.

• Decorate the church building with artworks that celebrate creation.

• Have a service outside, surrounded by nature.

• Plan to celebrate the Season of Creation in September 2023.

WASTE

• Choose a sustainable alternative to single-use plastic communion cups. As well as reusable glass individual cups, biodegradable sugar-canebased single-use cups can now be ordered from Australian Christian Resources (www.shopACR.com.au).

• For morning teas and shared meals, move from single-use disposable plates, cutlery and cups to reusable ones.

• Have the option of providing your weekly bulletin in email format as well as in paper form.

• Compost food waste and ensure recyclables go into the right bin.

Neil Bergmann is the Chair of Lutheran Earth Care Australia and New Zealand.

WORSHIP

The LCA Yearbook will no longer be published. The decision has been reached for a number of reasons, including:

• the potential for the personal information of pastors, other church workers and volunteers to be inappropriately used

• related to the above, the church’s inability to ensure compliance with statutory privacy legislation and policies

• its questionable usefulness, as the Yearbook data invariably becomes out of date even before it is published

• the high staff resource cost required to produce it.

While it is recognised that some people will miss having a physical LCA database, it should be noted that everyone with access to the LAMP2 online database will find essential information about congregations and church workers on that.

In addition, contact details for congregations and their worship service times and locations will be readily available via the LCA website from early 2023.

CHANCE TO LEARN MORE ABOUT DIGITAL MINISTRY

With the doors of the church being opened online and digital mission and ministry opportunities growing, LCANZ Local Mission is hosting an online Digital Mission and Ministry Forum next month.

Designed to help support, inspire and connect people serving in this area of mission and ministry, the forum on 5 November will include presentations and discussions on the opportunities, challenges and supports available to help you and the people in your church. Keynote session topics will include Digital Evangelism, Digital Discipleship and Opportunities in Digital Mission and Ministry, while there will be panel discussions on the topics: digital word and sacrament ministry, digital tech possibilities and what’s happening in digital mission and ministry in the LCANZ and what are we learning?

Speakers will include LCANZ pastor Rev Dr Tim Stringer, CV Global’s Director of Innovation Stuart Cranney, Greg Murray of Alpha Australia and Glenice Hartwich of St John’s Lutheran Church Unley in South Australia.

For more information, including registration details, go to www.lca.org.au/local-mission

ARISE is a program designed for young adults to experience practical ministry, and undertake ministry and theology studies as they learn to serve Jesus and each other while helping us host school, youth, church and community groups at our Lutheran Retreat and Conference Centre.

Arise focuses on building a faith foundation that is grown by living and serving in Christian Community. Whilst volunteering interns will build their character, further discover their identity in Christ, and explore questions of faith in a supportive Christian environment that will give them a solid foundation for whatever lies ahead.

SO, if you are (or know) someone who is interested and want to know more about this exciting opportunity please contact Warrambui for an information pack: phone 02 6220 1000 or email: ministry@warrambui.com.au

JOHN 16:22

CHURCH@home

www.lca.org.au/churchhome

Strengthening our relationship with God

We can all benefit from reading or hearing some encouraging words and experiencing a sense of God’s closeness during the week, as well as at Sunday worship. Therefore, we include these devotional pages for every reader – not just for those who are unable to attend church services regularly. Nurturing our faith at home through regular devotions strengthens our relationship with God. We pray that you will be blessed by these reflections. You will find further prayer, devotional and Bible study resources through the LCANZ’s Commission on Worship Worship Planning Page at www.lca.org.au/worship/wpp/prayers-devotions/ and online worship links at www.lca.org.au/worship/wpp/churchhome/

Lisa

DEVOTIONS FOR HOME WORSHIP

These reflections are from a collection of devotions written for our LCANZ family and friends to help us to keep our eyes fixed on Jesus no matter what we face. You can find these and many others on the LCA website at www.lca.org.au/daily-devotion and you can subscribe to receive them daily via email by clicking on the link on that same page.

When blessings become god

Go and cry out to the gods whom you have chosen; let them save you in the time of your distress (Judges 10:14).

Read Judges 10:6–16.

We rely on many things to provide us with ‘blessings’. These can include our own abilities, money, family and hobbies. Yet, these things are gifts from God, not things that provide us with blessings. And, if we aren’t careful, these things can start to take over all our spare time, and we can begin to give them credit for our happiness.

The Israelites worshipped other gods, falsely believing this would lead to more blessings than simply relying on the one true God. It had quite the opposite effect, bringing suffering and misery because it cut them off from God, the one true source of all blessings. This failure becomes quite apparent in their distress: the false gods cannot save them, and they must turn to God for deliverance.

In this text, we can hear God’s exasperation with his people, just like an exasperated parent. God was the one

BY EDEN BISHOP

who brought the Israelites out of Egypt and provided for them in the desert, yet the Israelites continuously turned to other gods for provision. God’s response highlights how false these other gods are – we trust them to bring us good things, so why don’t we trust them to provide deliverance? Why do we call on God only in times of distress? The false gods can’t actually save us, which reveals how they also fail to provide us with good things. It is God who blesses and delivers. This text also highlights God’s great love for us. Despite his exasperation, he still had mercy on them and delivered the Israelites when they turned back to him. God is forgiving and truly loves his people. God wants to provide for us.

Dear Heavenly Father, we are sorry for the times we have turned to false gods, such as our possessions and hobbies, to bring us happiness. Please forgive us for failing to trust in you to provide us with blessings. Thank you for your mercy. Amen.

SO ALSO YOU HAVE SORROW NOW, BUT I WILL SEE YOU AGAIN, AND YOUR HEARTS WILL REJOICE, AND NO ONE WILL TAKE YOUR JOY FROM YOU.

DEVOTIONS FOR HOME WORSHIP

Holy glasses

BY ANNIE DUARTE

Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell (Matthew 10:28).

Read Matthew 10:24–39.

Do you have the lens of eternity? A heavenly lens is just one of many gifts you receive as a Christ-follower. When you put these special glasses on, you can see things as they ought to be. As much as the Father reveals, you can see what is happening behind the scenes.

With the lens of eternity, you are given a filter for what is important. You can look at a desert and witness springs bursting forth. You can look at dry bones and see that flesh will return to them. You can carry an umbrella during a drought in faith. You can face the bitterness of death and loss with the hope of the resurrection.

This anointed lens of eternity also empowers you to sift through deception and discern what is true, what aligns with God’s word. You can see the brokenness of a heart though it is disguised in the defences of harsh language or violent behaviour. You can see the loneliness and longing buried beneath a mask of aloofness. You can see a rotten core inside of a shiny, attractive exterior.

This is the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

The same holy perspective is necessary when you face opposition and adversity especially because of your faith. I have heard it said that fear is having faith in the wrong kingdom. To fear humans – and those who kill the body but not the soul – is to have more confidence in their ability to destroy than in God’s ability to save and redeem.

You are running the marathon, bound for eternity! Place your faith in the one who can actually impact eternity, the one who has won it for you – Jesus. Slip on your lenses of eternity to see things as he sees them. Don’t waste your time and energy fearing people or fretting about earthly problems when the victory has already been won.

The Lord is my light and my salvation – whom shall I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life – of whom shall I be afraid? When the wicked advance against me to devour me, it is my enemies and my foes who will stumble and fall. Amen.

PRAYER

LORD JESUS THINK ON ME

Lord Jesus, think on me, and purge away my sin; from earthbound passions set me free, and make me pure within.

Lord Jesus, think on me by care and woe oppressed; let me your loving servant be, and taste your promised rest.

Lord Jesus, think on me, amid the bitter strife; through all my pain and misery become my health and life.

Lord Jesus, think on me, that, when the trial is past, I may your radiant glory see, and share your joy at last.

– Synesius of Cyrene, (373-414AD). Translated by Allen William Chatfield. Sourced from justprayer.org

Being prepared for an unknown deadline

It will be good for those servants whose master finds them watching when he comes. He will dress himself to serve, make them recline at the table and wait on them (Luke 12:37).

Read Luke 12:32–40.

Recently, my wife and I went away with friends for the weekend, sharing our return time with one of our children still at home. We had discussed coming home on Monday evening, but around 2.00pm on Sunday, we received a call ‘just checking’ to see if it was Sunday or Monday we were returning as a small number of tasks hadn’t yet been completed. For example, bringing in the washing and vacuuming the floors.

Mild panic can set in when we know we haven’t achieved all that must be done by a given deadline. Distractions abound these days – especially social media time lost, not to mention TV, friends and hobbies, along with the busyness of life. Sometimes the essentials of life can be left to the last minute, and for some, this can also include giving appropriate attention to spiritual and eternal needs.

BY PASTOR STEVE LIERSCH

When Jesus reminds his disciples and us that we must be ready for his return, being watchful, dressed and expectant, he is forewarning us (and the world for that matter) that he will return. He wants to find us ready and waiting for the blessings he has in store for us eternally. Only God knows when that ‘deadline’ will eventuate, and so these words help prepare us to be recipients of his grace.

There’s also something wonderful in the image of Jesus dressed to serve us in heaven, blessing us with his heavenly banquet at the table he has prepared for us. How well prepared are you to meet Jesus should this life’s deadline come tomorrow?

Heavenly Father, thank you for your willingness to give us a place in your kingdom. Help me treasure what this world can’t provide, namely your Son Jesus as our Lord, Saviour and Servant King. Prepare my life with your Spirit and word every day. Amen.

It is time that nations honour Jesus

BY CRAIG HEIDENREICH

And they shall declare my glory among the Gentiles (Isaiah 66:19b).

Read Isaiah 66:18–23.

I suspect that most of us reading this today are not Jews. That means you are numbered (with me) among the Gentiles referred to in this passage.

The Lord uses Isaiah to open up some new thinking for the Israelites and begin shifting their focus to his greater purpose – to ‘win the Gentiles’. God had spoken to Abraham many centuries before, saying, ‘all the nations will be blessed through you’, but the Israelites had become habitually focused on themselves.

Thank God for the prophetic insight given to Isaiah and for men like Paul who understood that the Jews were God’s chosen people – to be priests to the nations, not just to themselves.

Most of us are old enough to have seen a dramatic shift in the ethnic mix of Australia and New Zealand over the past few decades. Are we seeing an outworking of these verses in Isaiah? Are we in a time when God is choosing to declare his glory among the Gentiles? Last time I checked, God uses his people to declare his glory!

In Exodus 33, Moses asked the Lord, ‘show me your glory’, and he responded by saying, ‘I myself will make all my “goodness” pass before you’.

Perhaps we are to show the goodness of God to newcomers in our midst so that they get to see his glory. Surely the gospel is good news and unique among the messages of the world religions. People should have the opportunity to taste it.

Lord, help me lift my eyes above my own situation and show your goodness to others who have come from afar. May we come to your holy mountain together. Amen.

1 Peter 4:10

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, with whatever gifts and opportunities we’ve been given.

God’s own adventure

BY HELEN BRINKMAN

When John Belani arrived as a young single man in an Austrian refugee camp in 1957, he was seeking a life of adventure in the Congo.

At 23, the cabinet maker had left his homeland of Slovakia and knew no-one in the camp of 2000 people. He was set on migrating to the central African nation in search of rainforest hunter-gatherer people (pygmies) and wild animals.

However, the sound of hymns coming from a nearby hall led him not only to his future wife, but an unexpected change in plans.

‘I was walking through the camp and heard singing at a church service, led by a pastor from Slovakia who was preaching in Hungarian’, recalls the Victorian octogenarian.

‘After the service, there was a young girl and we met. She wanted to go to Australia, but I wanted to go to Congo. I was a silly young man looking for adventure.

‘No-one could convince me otherwise, and I didn’t know whether I should follow my brain or my heart.’

That lovely ‘young girl’ was Anna, who was from a town 25km from John’s hometown, who would become his wife and life-long companion – in Australia.

‘I thank God every day that he brought me to this lucky country through my wife’, says John, who’s now 87.

The Lutheran World Federation sponsored the pair to travel from Austria to Australia by ship in January 1959.

Their first stop was the Bonegilla Migrant Centre near Wodonga in Victoria, where they stayed for several weeks, awaiting the start of the Mildura grape harvest.

On their third day there, the camp chaplain organised for John and Anna to be married at the Lutheran church in nearby Albury, New South Wales, lending them a small van. The entire wedding party squeezed in for the trip.

After the grape picking season, they settled in Melbourne, welcomed by the local Slovakian community, and John went back to his trade as a cabinet maker.

Instead of pygmies and wild animals, they found peace and freedom.

But they certainly haven’t missed out on adventure!

They have made mission trips to Papua New Guinea and South Sudan.

‘My wife and I love to travel and have been truly blessed to be able to see many places where we have had the opportunity to serve our Lord by sharing our time, talents, and resources’, John says.

Their year in PNG in 1962–1963 was a personal favourite. Sparked by an article in their church paper calling for builders to volunteer their time to teach the locals the trade, John and Anna journeyed to the island of Siassi, also known as Umboi, off the coast from Papua New Guinea’s second biggest city of Lae. There, they built a classroom, house and dormitory for the local high school.

Two trips to South Sudan in 2007 and 2010 also remain close to their hearts, where they were moved by faith to plant a Lutheran church, school and orphanage, which they still support.

John still recalls his most dangerous activity during his African travels – taking a dip in the crocodile-infested River Nile. He couldn’t resist the lure of the mighty river he’d heard of all his life! He emerged unscathed.

‘NOTHING AND NOBODY CAN UPSET ME BECAUSE GOD IS WITH ME, HE IS GUIDING ME, AND HE WILL PROVIDE FOR ME AND EVERYBODY DESPITE OUR SINS.’

Top right: Children in South Sudan attend classes at a Lutheran school established by John and Anna Belani. Still supported by the couple, the school was planted by the Belanis along with a church and orphanage.

Second from top: Married for more than 60 years, John and Anna pray together at home. ‘We thank God every day we have been blessed with good health’, John says.

Second from bottom: John, pictured second from left, helped locals build a school, dormitory and a house for teachers on the PNG island of Siassi in the 1960s.

Bottom right: Anna and John have been members at Christ the Lord Slovak Lutheran Church in Laverton in suburban Melbourne since it was built in 1974 on land donated by the Belanis. They are pictured here celebrating their 40th wedding anniversary in 1999.

‘We thank God every day we have been blessed with good health’, John says.

‘God blesses us with more than we need, many times more, and we’re just giving it back to those who need it.’

Just after his 80th Birthday, John was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for his services to his local Laverton community. This includes co-founding the Good News Lutheran College in Tarneit, Melbourne’s west, and the Slovak Social Club in Laverton.

John also donated land to build the Christ the Lord Slovak Lutheran Church in Laverton in 1974, where the pair still worships. They’ve been active members since, coordinating a monthly lunch and fellowship group for pensioners for almost 40 years.

John still works four days a week in his Laverton construction company with son Joe. He spends Thursdays with Anna and works in his garden, tending his vegetables.

‘Family is my single-greatest passion, and I am humbled to share my table at our weekly family dinner with my children, grandchildren and now also my grandchildren’s partners’, he says. ‘Together we pray and give thanks for our time. Lively conversations covering many and varied topics are keeping my mind active and connected across the generations.’

Reflecting on his life, he adds: ‘I strongly believed God had a plan for us. Philippians 4:19 tells me that God knows me, he knows me as a sinner and he tells me that I am his and he is mine, there can be no closer relationship.

‘And whatever I need he will provide. Nothing and nobody can upset me because God is with me, he is guiding me, and he will provide for me and everybody despite our sins.’

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

Super merger to deliver

‘best retirement outcomes’

Lutheran Super members can look forward to some exciting retirement benefits as a result of the superannuation fund’s decision to merge into the Mercer Super Trust via a successor fund transfer later this year.

That’s the view of Lutheran Super Chair John Grocke, who said the move would broaden services, options and support for members of the $700m-plus notfor-profit fund, which was established by the Lutheran Church of Australia in 1987 to enable church employees to plan for their retirement. Any LCANZ member was able to choose Lutheran Super as their superannuation fund from July 2019, when it became a public-offer fund.

Mr Grocke said the merger, which was announced in August by Mercer Super and Lutheran Super, was in the best financial interests of Lutheran Super’s 5,600 members, including more than 340 pensioners.

‘From the outset, we have sought a merger partner that could deliver the best retirement outcome possible for our members’, Mr Grocke said.

‘Following a rigorous process, we’re pleased to have chosen the Mercer Super Trust, where our members will access a wider range of services, options and personalised support to get the most out of their super or pension. Importantly, the merger will ensure that members continue to benefit from our tailored balanced investment option as well as other characteristics of the existing plan.’

Lutheran Super’s Balanced Growth (MySuper) option has performed strongly against its peers over the past five years. It continues to exceed the MySuper median as of June 2022 reporting.

In October 2021, it was named as one of the Top 10 growth funds by Australian online investment advisor Stockspot. It will continue as the MySuper option for Lutheran Super members in the Mercer Super Trust.

‘From strong investment performance to competitive fees, we’re proud of what we have achieved on behalf of our members over the years’, Mr Grocke said. ‘We know that our members’ best interests will continue to be protected as they join Mercer Super.’

Mercer Super Chief Executive Officer Tim Barber said the firm, which has provided administration, investment management and consulting services for Lutheran

Super over many years, looked forward to continuing its service to members.

‘Mercer is proud of its long-term partnership with Lutheran Super’, he said. ‘We know well the deep commitment they have to helping their members enjoy a healthy retirement, and we look forward to welcoming them to Mercer Super.

The successor fund transfer is expected to take place in the final quarter of 2022.

The Mercer Super Trust currently manages more than $30 billion in funds and leverages the scale of Mercer globally, which has US$346 billion in assets under management. Upon completion of the Lutheran Super successor fund transfer and the recently announced successor fund transfer of BT Super, the Mercer Super Trust will have more than $65 billion in funds under management.

Lutheran Super Chief Executive Officer Stella Thredgold, Lutheran Super Trustee Chair John Grocke and Mercer Super CEO Tim Barber meet in the lead-up to Lutheran Super’s merger into the Mercer Super Trust via a successor fund transfer.

Young adults hopeful for LCANZ

Above: Young Lutherans representing rural and city congregations from across Australia met with LCANZ leaders in Adelaide last month for Grow Ministries’ Young Adult Forum.

Right and far right: The two-and-a-half day forum included presentations on the work of churchwide departments and the way the church functions and small group discussions about key issues facing the LCANZ.

When 24 young Lutherans gathered in Adelaide for the LCANZ’s Young Adult Forum last month, their sense of hope for their church’s future inspired presenters and participants alike.

Aged between 18 and 26 and representing rural and city congregations from across Australia, forum participants heard about and discussed key issues facing the church and gained a deeper insight into how the church functions.

The event was also an opportunity for LCANZ leaders to hear the needs and thoughts of our young people, Facilitated by Grow Ministries, the forum also included sessions about worship, the work of the LCANZ in local and international mission, ministry support and public theology, issues to be discussed at next year’s Convention of General Synod and conversation time with Bishop Paul Smith.

Grow Ministries Director Jodi Brook said being among the young adult participants was ‘a blessing’. ‘To listen to the passion that they have for their church, to see their understanding of how the church functions grow and to be inspired by the hope, generosity and positivity which they spoke about the church was such a blessing’, she said.

Bishop Paul said while discussion tables during the forum each included a church leader to guide conversation among the young adults, ‘they really didn’t need the guide’. ‘Each time the groups were assigned a task, they launched into discussion and collaboration with passion and pastoral support for one another’, he said.

‘It was a joy to serve with them. They will certainly be praying for their church.’

Participant John Hillier from South Australia said he ‘gained a sense of

hope about a wide range of things’ at the forum. ‘It was good to hear the wisdom and experiences of others’, he said. ‘It took a lot of the sourness I had when I think about the future of the church. It was great to see that our church has many people who are aware of the challenges we face. To me, it was a good reminder that no matter what happens, the church can and will prevail.’

Other participants also said they were encouraged to do more in their home congregations and communities, thanks to their experiences at the forum.

Stephanie Swift, from Western Australia, said, ‘I am feeling encouraged to find ways to serve my congregation, such as joining a committee or starting a small group’, while Queensland participant Christian Hansen said: ‘I think being enthusiastically involved in the body of the church is something I’m looking forward to doing more of.’

LUTHERAN ARTISTS FREELY SHARE THEIR TALENTS

More than 100 artists from three Australian states have shared their creativity and talent through this year’s second annual LCANZ Churchwide Simultaneous Art Exhibition under the theme ‘Free Indeed’.

People who took part in the 2022 exhibition ranged from small children at Lutheran playgroups, school students and youth groups, to congregation members, school staff and parents and people in aged-care communities, with the eldest artist involved being 98, organiser Libby Krahling said.

Coordinated and facilitated by LCA Visual Arts, which is part of the Commission on Worship, the event this year featured seven exhibitions and workshops held across August. These were based in Rochedale in Queensland, Port Macquarie and Sydney in New South Wales, and Nuriootpa, Mount Torrens, North Adelaide and Aberfoyle Park in South Australia. The exhibition theme was based on John 8:36: ‘So if the Son sets you free, you will be free indeed!’

While there were fewer exhibitions staged than for last year’s inaugural event, Libby

said that ‘some participating schools and congregations used the event resources to run workshops and to minister to groups within their communities’.

‘Across all the exhibitions we saw a huge variety of media, including paintings, drawings, cartooning, lino-cuts and other print-making, photography, textile art, crochet and knitting, 3D installations and sculptures, woodwork, metal work and floral art’, she said. ‘LCA Visual Arts are planning to reveal the 2023 theme soon, so keep your eyes peeled for announcements.’

Yirara College is looking for a couple (one of whom is a teacher) to serve the community of Kintore. As a satellite campus of Yirara College, the students range from Years 7–12, with generally low-curriculum levels. Combine your professional skills and enthusiasm for culture, to educate young indigenous people.

• Transport to and from Kintore

• Salary packaging

• On-site and secure accommodation + utilities

REMOTE TEACHING OPPORTUNITY (for a couple or two people)

Serve an Indigenous community and get paid!

Clockwise from left: Members of St Peter’s Port Macquarie in New South Wales embraced the Simultaneous Art Exhibition, with local artists (including from left, Alan Bruhn, Aileen Huf, Joan Rayward, Orion Thompson, Tony Koch, Pastor Mark Worthing, Bob Rayward, Tate Schultz and Juta Cooley) displaying their work at the church; St Paul’s Sydney members held creative workshops in the lead up to their exhibition, with this stencilled artwork one of their creations; the exhibition at St Petri Nuriootpa in South Australia featured a wide variety of media in colourful artwork from people of all ages; Our Saviour Lutheran School Aberfoyle Park in SA held a large exhibition of artworks from students, staff, parents and friends

YOUR VOICE

Investing ethically is not a simple process

Thanks to Russell Schultz for his letter on ethical investment (September 2022).

The letter highlighted important points: 1) that there are competing conceptions of ‘the good’, eg, social, environmental and governance-related goods; and 2) that it is extraordinarily difficult to do only good and be perfectly responsible.

In striving to achieve one type of good, that good may be accompanied by undesirable effects. For example,

• Growing more food to feed more people (a social good) cannot currently be done without producing greenhouse gas emissions and may involve synthetic fertilisers, herbicides and pesticides (often perceived as environmental bads).

• Moving towards net-zero emissions (perceived by many to be good) will require a massive increase in mining (currently perceived by many as an environmental bad) to build the necessary infrastructure for renewable energy generation, transmission and storage.

• Governments that force their successors to continue a move towards net-zero emissions by embedding emissions reductions into law (perceived by some as an ethical, environmentally enlightened policy) might well make our society poorer, more politically unstable (requiring oppressive measures on the part of the state), and less able to defend itself (which many, once they experience these things, will regard as social bads).

The upshot is that investing money to bring about good is not simple. Our well-intended actions can produce unintended and unforeseen negative consequences.

We live in a world broken by sin, and this brokenness is apparent in the area of ethical investment. Yet does this mean we should just throw our hands up in the air and say it’s all too hard or pay no attention at all to how we use our money? I don’t think so.

I think God calls us to wrestle with these things, but also to be slow to pass judgement on others for the decisions they make.

Nick Schwarz – LCANZ Assistant to the Bishop, Public Theology

Call for church to challenge social injustice

Thank you, Peter Schulz (The Lutheran, June 2022, p 29) and Geoff Burger (July, p 27).

I have struggled with our tagline, ‘Where love comes to life’, for some time. Your letters encouraged me. We are good at giving money and or goods, but we are not good at advocating for the vulnerable and giving of our time for them. Our political system does not serve the most vulnerable in our communities well – the rich get richer and the poor get poorer. This is socially unjust.

If we allow God’s love to flow from us to our neighbour, our voice, as individuals and as church, needs to be heard. We need to challenge social injustice.

We also need to personally love our neighbour. When Jesus was asked, ‘Who is my neighbour’ he chose an extremely vulnerable person. There are many references about caring for the poor, prisoners, strangers, the fatherless, widows in the Bible. ‘Defend the weak and the fatherless; uphold the cause of the poor and the oppressed. Rescue the weak and the needy; deliver them from the hand of the wicked (Psalm 82:3,4).

These are the people who most need our love. This love requires more than money or goods. It requires a relationship with them.

Robyn Kuchel – Lovely Banks Vic

Disunity in the body of Christ must be one of the devil’s greatest delights. It hinders both the carrying out of the Great Commission and the nurturing of those in the church.

Being a Synod is meant to help us in living out the unity the Spirit has created so when we act outside what Scripture says and the church confesses, we are on a very slippery slope! With this in mind, how about we all finally accept that the LCA ordains males only and it does not affirm the LGBTIQ community as Pastor G Burger urges us to (The Lutheran, July 2022, p27). How can we adopt or affirm anything the Lord prohibits or condemns? In connection with Pastor Burger’s letter, where he talks about Jesus’ radical affirmation for outcasts, and urges us to show a kind face and give affirmation to LGBTIQ individuals, let’s remember that the sinners Jesus ‘accepted’ were all changed. They were not affirmed in their sinful lifestyle!

As the LCA, let us hold fast to what we have. As sad as it would be, might it not be best for all concerned that those who cannot or will not hold to what the LCA teaches and practises graciously leave the LCA and join a church they are ‘happy with’, and those congregations which act contrary to the LCA’S teaching and practice sever themselves from the LCA, so that as the LCA we will no longer be held back by the disunity these issues are causing?

To change our church’s teaching and practice in order to cater for alternate teachings and practices is not only wrong but opens a Pandora’s Box. It will destroy the LCA.

Rev John Heidenreich – Natone Tas

If

1800

GET HELP

Peace of Mind

‘Hold fast’ to what Scripture says and church confesses

Let our worship songs reflect why we sing

Do you ever ask questions about the songs we sing in church? Over quite a few years of involvement in church music I have asked the following questions when recommending song choices to my pastor.

Does this song or hymn have lyrics which tell the story of Jesus and the good news of the gospel? Does it praise the God revealed in Jesus, or someone else? Does it parallel, enhance and reinforce the words of this Sunday’s readings? Does it reflect on the text of the address? Is this a song in which our whole community can participate? Is the melody predictable, sensible but interesting? How about the rhythm or range of pitch? Is this song more about me than about God? Does this song express my feelings (unreliable and inconsistent) rather than God’s unchanging love? Will this song stand the test of time in terms of all of the above?

When attending Lutheran worship services in some congregations, I am often saddened by the song choices. I look around and see an almost mute congregation despite enthusiastic song leading, and I worry about the future of ‘my’ church, which used to be a singing church. Let’s not allow fashion to dictate our worship song choices. Rather let’s remind ourselves of the reasons we sing and choose our worship songs to meet the criteria listed above.

Monica Christian – Novar Gardens SA

Opinions

Every number from one to nine must appear in each of the nine vertical columns, each of the nine horizontal columns and each of the nine 3 x 3 boxes. No number can occur more than once in any row, column or box. The solution will be printed in the next edition.

August's solution

Eunice Aileen Fuhlbohm (nee Dahlitz)

Eunice was born on 19/10/1934 at Gawler District Hospital, the youngest and last of Franziska Stella & Johannes Theodor Dahlitz’s four daughters. After attending Peake Primary School in the 1940s she moved with her family to Murray Bridge where she reached her Intermediate Certificate, before preparing to enter the Adelaide Children’s Hospital as a trainee nurse.

She met and married the young missionary, Oscar Fuhlbohm, on Saturday 15 September 1956, which led her to 19 years of missionary work in Papua New Guinea. Three of their five children were born at the then main Lutheran Yagaum Mission Hospital near Madang.

Returning permanently to Australia in December 1975, Eunice and her family resided in her husband’s Jeparit parish in Victoria for two years. Because Oscar was suffering cultural-change shock, her husband took leave-of-absence, bringing Eunice to become the family’s breadwinner for three years as the mother of the Church’s Shimron Emergency Children’s Home at 1 Edmund Ave, Unley SA.

Eunice died suddenly at Flinders Medical Centre on Thursday 5 May 2022, at the age of 87 years and six months. She leaves her husband, and their four children Peter, Michael, Paul and Anna, as well as her six grandchildren, Benjamin, Naomi, Damian, Natalia, Matthew and Luke to grieve her passing on, but rejoicing in her reaching our home with her Lord and Saviour. Their son Timothy predeceased her three years earlier.

Eunice’s funeral was held at Seaford Lutheran Church on Saturday 28 May 2022, and she was buried in Seaford Rd cemetery. Her family thanks all folk who have helped in the family’s grieving.

A chapter completed

A page is turned

A life well lived

A rest well earned.

LCANZ COMPLAINTS

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.

DIRECTORY

CALLS

Extended

• Rev Paul T Kerber

LCANZ Reconciliation Ministry to Grace Tanunda (St Johns and St Pauls)/Langmeil/ Bethany Tabor SA

• Rev Ben C Pfeiffer

Mount Barker SA to Port Lincoln SA

• Rev Anthony R Price

Gawler SA (Associate Pastor) to Gawler SA (Lead Pastor)

• Rev Matthew J Wilksch

St Peters Lutheran College Springfield Qld to Bethlehem Adelaide SA

Accepted

• Rev Darryl V Shoesmith

Christchurch NZ to Henty NSW

• Rev Colin G Simpkin

Grovedale Vic to Bendigo Vic

• Rev Tim P Spilsbury

Hervey Bay Qld to Ipswich Qld

• Rev Michael J Steicke

Hobart Tas to Balaklava/Carlsruhe/ Saddleworth SA

Declined

• Rev Joel S Cramer

Salisbury SA to Para Vista SA

• Rev Joel S Cramer

Salisbury SA to Aberfoyle Park SA

Memoriam

• Rev Nich K Kitchen Mountainside Auckland NZ to Maitland SA

• Rev Michael J Rudolph Duncraig WA to Albury NSW INSTALLATIONS

• Rev Mark W Worthing Installed at Port Macquarie NSW on 17 July 2022 by Bishop Robert Bartholomaeus

• Rev Joshua F Muller Installed at St Johns Wodonga Vic on 7 August 2022 by Bishop Lester Priebbenow

ROLL OF PASTORS

• Rev Tom C Hoffmann – Resigned from the LCA Roll of Pastors, effective 5 July 2022

• Rev Jason O Pokela – Granted leave of absence, effective 8 August 2022 to 8 August 2023

• Rev Dean J Mills – Granted leave of absence, effective 17 August 2022 to 17 August 2023

• Rev Keith E McNicol – Change in call eligibility status from General Ministry Pastor to Pastor Emeritus from 11 September 2022

• Rev Greg P Pietsch – Change in call eligibility status from General Ministry Pastor to Pastor Emeritus from 12 September 2022

In Memoriam

Alan Robinson

Rev Alan Geoffrey Robinson born 27 Apr 1937 (Brisbane Qld); married Glenda Marion Robinson nee Joyce 24 Nov 1962 (Nazareth South Brisbane Qld); ordained 21 Dec 1975 (Cleveland Qld); served Bundaberg Qld (1976–1979), Mount Isa Qld (1979–1987), Loxton SA (1987–1993), Trinder Park Qld (1993–1997); retired 27 Apr 1997; died 27 Aug 2022 (Loganlea Qld); funeral 6 Sept 2022 (Woodridge Qld); mourned by wife Glenda, their children Russell, Cheryl, Michelle and David, and their families

150 Anniversary 1872-2022

The 150th anniversary of Palmer Lutheran Church will be celebrated on Sunday 6 November 2022 at 11am, followed by a pooled lunch. All past members welcome.

RSVP Cathy Lindner 0488 107 636 by 24 October 2022

GOOD SHEPHERD RINGWOOD VIC 60 Anniversary celebrations

Sunday 23 October 2022

10am service, followed by lunch.

All welcome. RSVP Jenny 0409 506 547 or vlange@bigpond.net.au by 13 October.

Donations to ALWS Longest Lutheran Lunch can be made at this event.

Rev Peter Walter Boesch born 18 Oct 1930 (Regina Canada); ordained 23 Nov 1958 (Moorooka Qld); married Coral Joan Boesch nee Zweck 3 Jan 1968 (Bethlehem Adelaide SA); served Moorooka Qld (ELCA 1958–1962), Concordia Memorial College Toowoomba Qld (1962–1973), Kenmore Qld/Tertiary Chaplaincy Brisbane Qld (1973–1979), Indooroopilly Qld (1979–1981), Dernancourt SA (1981–1985), Director of Board for Congregational Life (1985–1994), Mannum SA (1994–2000); retired 30 Sept 2000; died 17 August 2022 (Adelaide SA); funeral 29 August 2022 (Unley SA); mourned by wife Coral, their children Andrew, Mark, Lorinda and Rick, and their families

Paul Renner

Rev Herbert Paul Vincent Renner born 19 Jan 1927 (Eudunda SA); ordained 11 Apr 1948 (St Paul’s Eudunda SA); married Margaret Renner nee Hynd 18 May 1955 (St Pauls Nundah Qld –she died 20 Apr 2012); served Whyalla SA (1948–1952), Canberra-Snowy Mountains ACT (1952–1955), Greater Brisbane Mission Qld (1955–1956), Nambour Qld (1956–1960), Walla Walla NSW (1960–1964), Murgon Qld (1964–1967), Nundah Qld (1967–1981), St Andrews Brisbane Qld (1981–1986), Qld District President (1986–1992); retired 31 May 1992; died 3 Sept 2022 (St Paul’s Aged Care, Caboolture Qld); funeral 12 Sept 2022 (St Peters College Chapel Indooroopilly Qld); mourned by children Stephanie, Paul Jr. and Tim, and their families

LUTHERAN CHURCH SA

Peter Boesch

This prayer calendar for next month can serve as an encouragement to each of us to lift up our fellow LCANZ members and faith communities to God every day. Feel free to cut it out and keep it handy.

November 2022 PLEASE PRAY FOR …

1All who mourn the loss of loved ones and those who support them on All Saints Day

6

Parishes from the NSW-ACT District, which at the time of printing were in the call process, including Albury, Gilgandra–Dubbo and Walla Walla

13

The opportunity and commitment to follow Jesus’ example of showing love to our neighbours on World Kindness Day

20

Those who have lost loved ones in road accidents on the World Day of Remembrance for Road Traffic Victims

27

Those parishes from the LCANZ’s Queensland District which are going through the pastoral call process

7

LCANZ District bishops David Altus, Mike Fulwood and Mark Whitfield, who will all step down from their roles in 2023

14

Members of St Johns Coolana, Trinity Lowood and Brisbane Valley Qld, including Pastor Benjamin Graham

21

Members of congregations which are struggling to survive and considering whether to close

28

All NZ Lutherans as Chatham Islands Anniversary Day is observed. The islands hosted the first Lutheran mission in Aotearoa-New Zealand

2

Students from around Australia and NZ who are doing end-of-year exams this month

Pastor Nigel Rosenzweig and the leaders and members of Victor Harbor Lutheran Church SA

8

Leaders and members of Trinity congregation Mount Torrens Spring Head and St Johns Woodside SA and Pastor Tim Castle-Schmidt

15

Leaders and members of the Esperance and Perth parishes in WA, which at the time of printing were in the pastoral call process

22

Pastor Jason Sander and the members and leaders of St Peters Loxton SA

Members and leaders of the LCNZ’s Hamilton Parish, seeking God’s will during their extended pastoral vacancy

16

Those who advocate for respect, dialogue, cooperation and tolerance of all cultures, on United Nations’ International Day of Tolerance

23

Leaders and members of LCANZ’s VictoriaTasmania District parishes which are going through the pastoral call process

29

Pastor William Heidrich and the leaders and members of Trinity Southport Qld

30

Members and leaders of parishes within the SA-NT District which are going through the pastoral call process

10

Scientists everywhere on World Science Day for Peace and Development

11

The families and loved ones of those who have died in all wars and conflicts on Armistice Day (New Zealand)/ Remembrance Day (Australia)

Pastor Joe Kummerow and leaders and members of Lobethal Lutheran Church SA

17

Pastor Robert D’Antoni and the members and leaders of St Pauls Mount Cotton and Good Shepherd Tingalpa Qld

24

Members and leaders who are part of the faith community of Roxby Downs Lutheran Church SA

18

Farmers everywhere, who work hard to supply fresh food for our nations, on Australia’s National Agriculture Day

25

Those who support victims of violence on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women

All who serve alongside and work to support refugees, including those raising funds through ALWS Walk My Way

26

Members and the leadership team of Bethany Lutheran Church Rosebud Vic

SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY

3

4

New lay leaders elected or appointed during or after the Victoria-Tasmania District Convention of Synod

5

Pastor Charlie Mach and members and leaders of Antioch Lutheran Church Mount Gravatt Qld

These are some of the questions discussed on your Messages of Hope in October. Discover the hope Jesus Christ offers at www.messagesofhope.org.au (&.nz).

Worship online or by DVD at www.lutheranmedia.org.au/worship

Enjoy www.happyland.com.au activities, videos and resources.

Cards, booklets and guides available at www.lutheranmedia.org.au

Reach millions of people with the hope of Jesus Christ by giving a donation at www.lutheranmedia.org.au

Phone FREECALL 1800 353 350 luthmedia@lca.org.au

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‘In 2018 I joined the Agriculture and Savings and Loans Group run by CDRM&CDS*.

This gave me access to a loan to help my family. The best support was learning about chicken-raising. Now I earn money by selling the eggs. The eggs are also good for our health. In July, we sold some baby chickens to pay school fees.

We were also taught about more productive rice farming. Now I have three times of planting and get more harvests! This gives me extra money, and I didn’t need to buy the rice seeds for planting as I had my own. I didn’t have to buy rice for my own food either!

We also learn about growing vegetables. Now we have more food and earn more money by selling extra vegetables.

I am so happy for all this help because it improves my life.’

Adieli, Indonesia

* CDRM/CDS is your Lutheran ALWS partner in Indonesia

You can bless others like Adieli by dedicating a gift in your Will to keep on helping people through ALWS. As you do, those you love will see the values precious to you live on. See full story on back cover. alws.org.au

* 1300 763 407

ALWayS for those forgotten

Caring for someone you love? Struggling with anxiety and stress?

Photo: ALWS

Thank you!

‘My son Fadhlan was born with a disability. The upper part of his tongue is missing. This was only discovered when he was four years old. He can speak, but not very clearly.

We took Fadhlan to the hospital. The doctor said he should have surgery, but I felt worried. I didn’t want my only son to have surgery, and maybe die.

I accepted that my son’s disability is God’s gift to me. I said, “This is what God has given to my family and we accept it”. I tried speaking to Fadhlan every day to encourage him to speak. It was difficult. He was not like other children. The children in the village teased him. I also suffered a lot of hard words from the community because of Fadhlan and his disability.

This is when I joined the Agriculture and Savings and Loans Group run by CDRM&CDS (This is your Lutheran

Through

ALWS partner in Indonesia – Ed.). The best support was learning about chicken-raising.

Now I can earn some money and Fadhlan can sell the eggs. I am happy for this because it helps improve our life. I am proud that my son can go to school and learn so well.

Fadhlan was keen to go to school. He really wanted to learn. He loves reading and writing.

At first the teachers had complained and said “How can I teach this boy? I cannot understand him”.

Now, the teachers love Fadhlan and say he is one of the treasures in the school. He is the No.1 student in his class, and second in the whole year level! Fadhlan’s dream is to be a “Youtuber” and the best soccer player in Indonesia.’

407

ALWayS for those forgotten

When a child lives with a disability, too often they face rejection and hurt. In Indonesia, Fadhlan’s dad Adieli shares the impact of your ALWS help …

‘Now, the teachers love Fadhlan and say he is one of the treasures in the school.’ Fadhlan’s dad, Adieli

‘It was hard as a father to see Fadhlan coming home looking broken-hearted.’

Adieli

Photo: ALWS

can support more families in Indonesia, like

that they can build a better future!