TGA July/August 2013

Volume 110, Number 6 July/August 2013 Published in Gippsland Diocese since 1904

The Gippsland Anglican is your award winning newspaper: Best Regional Publication Bronze Award (ARPA) 2012; Best Regional

Publication Silver Award (ARPA) 2011; Item or Feature that shows the most originality Highly Commended (ARPA) 2011; Best Social

Justice Story Highly Commended (ARPA) 2004; Best Regional Publication (ARPA) 2003; Most Improved Newspaper (ARPA) 2001.

Village marks the

diamond jubilee

Page 13

Children, family and

youth ministries

Pages 4 to 7

Gippsland diocese

1954 to 1973

Pages 18 to 21

Surprised

by awardsMEMBERS of Wonthaggi-Inverloch parish

were delighted when parishioner, Alan Price,was presented with a National Medal at thePound Creek CFA’s annual dinner, much to histotal surprise. The Medal, presented by ChiefOfficer for the CFA, Ewan Ferguson, recognis-es Alan’s 32 years of service to the CFA locallyand throughout Gippsland and hundreds ofhours of study and training that has made himone of the most qualified fire fighters inGippsland. Alan’s wife, Jill, was not left out of the pres-

entation as she received a 25 years’ servicemedallion for her work as a member of theLadies Auxiliary. Alan Price’s service records show he has held

many positions since joining the brigade in1981. These include Pound Creek captain from1988 to 1996, fourth Deputy Group Officerfrom 1996 to 1998, third DGO from 1998 to2004, group officer from 2004 to 2008 andsecond DGO from 2008 to 2010.The nomination stated that, despite his vol-

unteer status, Alan is recognised throughoutthe district and the Gippsland region as anoted CFA leader within the ranks of both vol-unteers and paid professionals.“Alan is a very community spirited person. He

is always helping other people and not justwithin the CFA. Alan attends Fullham prison onFridays in a counselling capacity, he is a churchelder and co-ordinates the Anglican opportuni-ty shop in Inverloch. It is staggering how Alanhas the time to do what he does,” said PeterVanzuyden, Pound Creek CFA captain.Alan and Jill are active members of the

Wonthaggi Inverloch parish, involving them-selves in multiple aspects of church life andministry. Jill was also, for some years, theparish correspondent to The GippslandAnglican, providing excellent articles and pho-tographs of parish happenings. She was sup-ported in this ministry by Alan.In the Queen’s Birthday Honours, Bruce

Armstrong, of Warragul parish, received aMedal of the Order of Australia (OAM), forservice to music, particularly brass bands andto the community of Warragul. Bruce has beena member and musical contributor to WarragulAnglican Church for more than 40 years andwas a music teacher at St Paul’s AnglicanGrammar School during the 1980s and 1990s.On occasion, Bruce has also contributed pho-

tographs to The Gippsland Anglican. Continued on page 2

ABOVE: Katie Peken kneels before Bishop JohnMcIntyre during her ordination as priest, heldat St Paul’s Cathedral in Sale on May 25. Morephotographs on inside pages.

Photo: Christine Morris

IN other news, Bishop in Council announces:“This edition of The Gippsland Anglican will bethe last in the current format. The newspaperwill return shortly in an exciting new format.”

Contributor: Philip Muston

2 Our Diocese - Features July/August 2013

The Gippsland Anglican

The GippslandAnglican

Member of Australasian Religious

Press Association

Member of Community Newspapers

Association of Victoria

Registered by Australia Post.

Print Post Number 34351/00018

The Gippsland Anglican is the official

newspaper of and is published by

The Anglican Diocese of Gippsland,

453 Raymond St,

Sale, Victoria, 3853,

www.gippsanglican.org.au

Editor: Mrs Jeanette Severs

Tel: 03 5144 2044

Fax: 03 5144 7183

Email: [email protected]

Printed by Latrobe Valley Express P/L

21 George Street, Morwell, 3840

NB: Please note publication has been

ceased until further notice.

The Editor reserves the right of final

choice and format of material included

in each issue. The Gippsland Anglicanand the Editor cannot necessarily ver-

ify any material used in this publication.

Views contained in submitted material

are those of contributors.

Advertising Rates:

Contact the Editor in the first instance

for all advertising submissions, cost-

ings and enquiries, including about in-

serts in the newspaper.

NB: This newspaper is in recess after

publication of this issue.

Index

Awards and Honors 1-2

Bishop’s article 3

Fun for boys 4

GFS report 4-5

Color-in picture 5

Mentoring youth 6

Orbost on bikes 7

CWCI safari 8

Kairos and MU 9

Abbey workshops 10

High tea and hats 11

Diocesan calendar 12

Village diamonds 13

Clergy news 14

Big bangs and film 15

Perspectives 16

In tribute 17

Diocesan history 18-21

MU in 1973 21

Fay is a master 22

Literary reviews 22-23

Diocesan pictorial 24

By Emma Ballingal

CONSUMMATE musician,Bruce Armstrong (right), ofWarragul, is among 582Australians to receive Orderof Australia awards in therecent Queen’s BirthdayHonours.A music hobby developed

into a lifelong love for War-ragul parishioner, BruceArmstrong, who wasawarded a Medal of theOrder of Australia (OAM).Having led the Warragul

Municipal Band for almost45 years, Bruce was listedin the Queen’s birthday ho-nours for “service to music,particularly brass bandsand to the community ofWarragul”.Bruce has 60 years of

brass band experience andhas vowed to continueplaying music “for as longas I can hold an instrumentup”.Shocked to receive the let-

ter advising of his OAM,Bruce said it was difficultsitting on such a secret.“I read the letter three

times in an hour to makesure I had the right indica-tion of what it was,” hesaid. “I couldn’t believe it. For

doing something that youlove and you end up gettingthe gong.”Born in Hay, Mr Armstrong

was bought up in a musicalfamily in Bendigo andjoined the Bendigo Boys

and Citizens Band at nine-years old.“Music is a great hobby,”

said Mr Armstrong.“To this day I thank them

(his parents) because bothmade me come off thecricket pitch and in fromswimming to do my prac-tice. If I could have seenwhat music was going togive me, I’d just say thanksfor doing that.”Appointed to Warragul

Technical School out ofteachers’ college, Mr Arm-strong and his wife, Ethel,planned to live in the dis-trict for only five years.However, the pair foundthey could not leave.Fondly known as ‘Mr A’,

Bruce was a trades instruc-tor who acted upon hismusic hobby by takingband practice atlunchtimes. Joining theWarragul Municipal Band,Bruce was appointed musi-cal director and conductorin 1967 and bandmaster in1968. He held these posi-tions until ‘retiring’ in 2003.After a three year break,

Bruce was appointed ‘act-ing’ bandmaster and hascontinued in the role since2005.Bruce now spends most of

his time at practice, teach-ing or rearranging music.Able to play all the brass in-struments and teach per-cussion, Bruce’s favoriteinstrument is cornet.Highlights of his almost 45

years with the WarragulMunicipal Band include therise from a lowly D grade toA grade competition level inthe 1980s, the junior bandwinning the national cham-pionships in 1978 and 1983and junior band tours.“These trips climaxed in

1979 when we took themon a 14-day, 12 concerttour of New Zealand, as theAustralian champions,”Bruce said.He also described his “ab-

solute joy” at seeing hisyoung charges rise throughthe ranks to success inmusic or career.Other music highlights in-

clude conducting the Traral-gon band in a performancealongside James Morrison

and Julie Anthony and hisWarragul Combined SchoolBrass Band becoming thefirst school band to playwith the Melbourne Sym-phony Orchestra.

Upon retirement, hetaught music at St Paul’sAnglican Grammar andBeaconhills College forabout eight years.He joined the Warragul

Rotary Club in 1975 andhas been a Warragul Angli-can Church member andmusical contributor formore than 40 years. He re-ceived a Centenary Medalin 2001.Bruce and Ethel have

three children, Tim, Jeffand Wendy, five grandchil-dren and one great-grand-child. He takes great pridein seeing his family follow inhis musical footprint.

Originally printed in theWarragul Gazette;reprinted with permission.Other sources, page oneand two: Jane Peters; TheGreat Southern Star news-paper, Leongatha; WarragulCitizen.

Bruce + music = OAM

ABOVE: Chief Officer of the CFA, Ewan Ferguson, withAlan and Jill Price, both recipients of awards recently. Fullstory on page one.

Photo: Great Southern Star newspaper, Leongatha

Photo: Delwyn Hewitt

July/August 2013 Our Diocese - Features 3


I KNOW I am not alone inlamenting the current stateof Australian politics andthe depths to which it hassunk, to the point there islittle confidence in any sideof politics. Rather than lay-ing the blame for this at thefeet of our politicians, thevast majority of whom arepeople committed to serv-ing their electorates, Iwould suggest we are notbeing well served by themedia. I will further suggest, we

need to be honest, our-selves, about what we wantfrom the media, becausewhile the media certainlyshapes popular perception,it also feeds off it.The Australian public

seems drawn to intrigue,cynicism, drama, conflictand disaster. Not all jour-nalists, but certainly a sig-nificant number of them,are happy to oblige by of-fering scenarios that feedthis appetite. This is true in almost

every area of reporting,from sport to the arts. Welook for the intrigue, thedrama and the disaster andshake our heads at the con-flict and the cynicism. Insome cases, journalists cre-ate scenarios before any-thing actually happens. From the sacking of foot-

ball coaches to the depos-ing of prime ministers,media speculation can evenprecede reality and createcrisis. A prime example of this

was when Senator Bob Carrrecently refused to takequestions on the leadershipof the Labor Party. His com-ment was, that no matterwhat he said, it would beassumed there was a lead-ership challenge takingplace, when in fact it wasnot even being contem-plated. His very refusal tospeak on the matter wastaken by some in the mediato be evidence there was aleadership challenge in theLabor Party. Since then, talk about the

ramifications of leadershipchange in the Labor Partymade the headlines. By thetime you read this you willknow this has led to an-other actual political leader-ship challenge. This is the pattern. The

media speculates, the pub-lic is titillated and the real-ity emerges, whether or notin the first place it was inthe minds of those in-volved. Much political reporting

also makes the fundamen-tal mistake of implying thepolicies of a party are thepolicies of the leader of theparty. We constantly heardabout Julia Gillard’s policiesas though they were herpersonal preferences, orabout Tony Abbott’s lack ofpolicies because that is hispreferred method of attack. This unhelpfully person-

alises the debate and de-tracts from political debate,both publicly and in every-day conversation.

Opinion polls contribute tothe mix. I struggle to re-member a poll on policy.Recently they have mostlybeen on which leader youwould vote for, whethercurrently the leader of aparty or not. I naively thought we vote

for our local members onthe basis of the policiestheir party espouses and onhow well they respond toand represent the people oftheir electorate. Only those in the elec-

torates from which theycome actually vote for theleaders of the parties.Opinion polls are a trav-

esty of modern politics andanother device for manipu-lating the electorate. Welament what we see to bethe lack of leadership inpolitics at the same time aswe co-operate in inaneopinion polls asking ques-tions invariably with noth-ing to do with anything thatshould matter in politics. Polls shape the political

agenda on the basis of whatis often popular ignorance.‘Leadership’ becomes a re-sponse to public opinion. Tragically, the victims of

this kind of politics are usu-ally the most vulnerableand disenfranchised in thecommunity, stereotyped forpopular consumption; be-ginning with our indigenouspeople and culminating inasylum seekers.It is difficult to know how

to cut through the misinfor-mation, the hype and the

distractions laid out beforeus in the news media on adaily basis. If truth is ourclaim, perhaps we needfirst to be honest with our-selves. In our conversations and

in what we watch and read,are we being seduced byagendas that detract fromthe real substance of politi-cal debate? Or are we gen-uinely working for a politicshaped by a godly concernfor justice, compassion andinclusion? Have we become cynical

about politics, or do weseek to participate produc-tively in the shaping of po-litical life, beginning withour own local communities?Dare to hope that, as we

seek truth from the newsmedia, rather than distrac-tion or entertainment, wecan begin to shape what is

offered by the news media. This begins when we are

more selective in what wewatch, read and listen to,for there are still reputableand responsible journalists,editors, politicians andsources of information towhich we can go if we gen-uinely seek the truth. Thatis surely our call as Chris-tians.

Right Reverend John McIntyre

Bishop of Gippsland

Blindly lament or

be more selective

Be a part of supporting the Aboriginal Ministry Fund

The AMF exists to resource employment of Aboriginal people in ministry; training of Aboriginal people for ministry; development of Aboriginal ministry in the community; the planting of Aboriginal churches; education of the Diocese about Aboriginal issues. Be a part of achieving these aims. Contact the Diocese of Gippsland 453 Raymond Street, Sale, Victoria PO Box 928, Sale, 3853 Telephone 03 5144 2044 Fax 03 5144 7183 Email [email protected]

4 Our Diocese - Family, Children and Youth Ministries July/August 2013


FOURTEEN Moe boys’group leaders, membersand some parents en-joyeded the Luna Parkfund day sponsored byMelbourne Cebs, the An-glican Boys Society, onthe Monday holiday ofthe Queen’s Birthdayweekend in June. The fine weather en-

abled full participation inall rides and activitiesand an opportunity to bepart of the networking ofAnglican ministrygroups. It was estimatedmore than 120 boys andfamilies participated inthis activity. They repre-sented boys’ ministrygroups from across Mel-bourne and the Moegroup.The Melbourne Cebs ex-

ecutive works to providesuch experiences and re-sources for parish basedministries; it also maintainsa campsite, ‘Bindaree’ atWoori Yallock, and is re-sponsible for allocating asmall grants program forministry initiatives to youngpeople. Gippsland has beenfortunate in being recipi-ents of these small grantsfor many years, subsidisingspecialist activities andtransport for the diocesancamping program.This year, Cebs Melbourne

will be celebrating 100years of ministry to youngpeople. People interested injoining the centenary cele-bration service at Holy Trin-

ity Kew, on Saturday, De-cember 7, (with dinner tofollow) should contact Mel-bourne Cebs. Contact Doug Calvert,

telephone 03 9544 0904. Doug can also forward in-

formation of other Mel-bourne functions as theycome to hand. All inter-ested past and presentmembers are welcome.Contributor: Mary Nicholls

ABOVE: Moe BAMM ( BoysAnglican Ministry ) leadersand boys enjoying scenicRailway Luna Park QueensBirthday weekend. PicturedCameron Nicholls, withCohen, Matt Prosser, GaryProsser and Jake.

Photo: Mel Nicholls

NINE representatives, sixadults and three secondary-aged GFS members fromMoe, attended the recentNational GFS MidTerm con-ference, in Melbourne. Itwas held on the Queen’sBirthday weekend in June.More than 60 people from

Western Australia, Sydney,Tasmania, Brisbane, NorthQueensland and NewZealand represented thevarying GFS Kidsplus+ min-istries across the nationand beyond.Val Gribble, of Rockhamp-

ton, provided a comprehen-sive report on the GFSproject we commenced inPopondetta (Popondotadiocese), in New Guinea.The GFS House, built in2004, continues to play acentral role in housing lead-ership training and main-taining a focus for thecommunity. Val reported the children’s

lectionary based programguides (for three years) arecomplete and have at-tracted great interest fromother dioceses. Each timeone or two Australian vol-unteer trainers visit, morethan 100 locals arrive en-thusiastically for the sup-port. GFS’s aim of training some

locals to train their ownpeople has now been re-alised and this year shouldsee new leaders assisting,by taking resources tosome more remote NewGuinea dioceses. The bishops have commu-

nicated well with GFS andare requesting our supportin the much troubled andunder-resourced country.Australian GFS has over-seen this project for at least13 years, aided for sixyears by funding from theWorld GFS project. ValGribble and Cheryl Selvage

have co-ordinated this ac-tivity since it’s inceptionaround 2001. MU Australia plays a major

role in supporting the adultwomen in this region and innorthern Australia and GFSAustralia aims to providethe training to resourcechildren and youth ministry. GFS in New Zealand re-

ported their mentoringwork among students, in-cluding refugees who seekto complete TAFE and uni-versity qualifications. Hous-ing, local mentoring, studyassistance and assistancewith integration skills are allroles the GFS team under-take, along with the muchappreciated friendshipbase. This is the essence of the

vision of ministry from theGFS founder, Mary Eliza-beth Townsend, in Englandin 1875. In Australia, we learned in

the past year seven GFSbranches have re-estab-lished themselves, after thecollapse of Sydney’s Kid-slinx network (in whichthey were co-operating).An enthusiastic and effec-tive voluntary team is inplace. We commissioned 18 year

old trainee radiographer,Tegan Hads, into the role ofJunior Australian Delegateto the Wales World Councilin 2014. Tegan takes overfrom Gippsland’s LaurenKitwood (Moe parish) whohas held the position, withdistinction, for the pastthree years. Each diocese shared news

and explanations of theirindividual ministries, withplaygroups, children’s,youth, adult and family andschools programs. TheTownsend Fellowshipgroups reported on theirastounding ministry

Locals at GFS conference

��

� �� !�� "#"��$��$�� $�� !��%

��&��'(��$��&�)*�+,*,�+)-).��&�)*�+,/*�+)))0�� &�+,+)�123+(��!��&�)*�-1/3�++*4

��&5��6��.�� &�� #��5��&�)/)3+2**,*��"��#��,7!�� %��"

Fun for boys

and friends

continued next page

July/August 2013 Our Diocese - Family, Children and Youth Ministries 5


from previous page

through craft and garmentmaking, providing for RedCross, fire and flood victimsand Traveller’s Aid; to namea few. We were reminded ofthe army of prayers behindour ministry, who, throughour regular prayer diariesand newsletters, can be in-formed for the prayerneeds. Finances held in some dio-ceses have been distributedgenerously, supporting so-cial justice causes andtraining and sponsoring ed-ucation, programs andoverseas aid. The GFS ministry is only

limited by the visions tosupport one another. Themidterm conference was awonderful forum to cele-brate the strength of thenetwork and to revitalisethe sense of urgency forministry. Individual stories in

parishes and beyond, re-minded attendees of the‘Power of One’ in commenc-ing worthwhile projects. Keynote speaker, Anne

Kennedy, from Mothers’Union Australia, focused onthe importance of reflectingon ‘Journey’ and growingthrough the ups and downsof life. A later workshop en-abled us to be informed of

the opportunities of ourdiocesan and national net-works as we mutually sup-port one another.Practical, yet necessary,

areas of Insurance, Duty ofCare, leadership responsi-bilities, archiving and refer-ence to varying diocesanrequirements were ad-dressed; all issues that pro-vide security and safety forour volunteers.The younger representa-

tives, among other ses-sions, participated in craft,puppetry and music work-shops and reported back ona youth forum of ideas forattendees’ consideration. Their puppetry skills were

incorporated into the Gipp-sland-led Sunday eveningworship. The girls are keento implement their ideasinto branch programs,fundraising and potentiallyinto preparations for the2015 January AustralianGFS conference, to be heldin Hobart, Tasmania. Three Gippsland youth are

already looking towards at-tending this conference,such was the impact of thisrecent weekend and forthem in meeting the widerGFS family. Who knows,they may consider theWorld Conference to beheld in Perth 2017.Contributor: Mary Nicholls

GFS conferenceColor the picture

6 Our Diocese - Family, Children and Youth Ministries July/August 2013


SIXTEEN universitiesacross Australia are helpingto drive the educationachievement of Indigenousstudents to new heights, areport by not-for-profitmentoring organisation,AIME, has found. The annual report released

by AIME shows Aboriginaland Torres Strait Islanderhigh school students whoparticipated in AIME’s in-tensive coaching, leader-ship and mentoringprogram progressed fromyear 10 to year 11 at ahigher rate than their non-Indigenous peers. Historically a ‘drop-out’

stage for high school stu-dents, year 10 AIME stu-dents achieved 93.6 percent transition to year 11,marginally above the na-tional average for non-In-digenous students of 93 percent.The report shows the

transformative impact ofthe AIME program extendsto tertiary level. The yearnine to university progres-sion rate for AIME studentswas 22.1 percent, nearlysix times the national In-digenous average of 3.8 percent and approaching thenational non-Indigenousaverage of 36.8 per cent. Nine universities and 121

schools participated in theAIME program in 2012. Afurther seven universitieshave signed up to partici-pate in the AIME program in2013. They include Central

Queensland University,Curtin University, EdithCowan University, MurdochUniversity, the University ofBallarat, the University ofQueensland and the Univer-sity of South Australia.AIME founder and CEO,

Jack Manning Bancroft, saideach university and schoolhad played a significantpart in supporting theirlocal Indigenous studentsto excel.

“These universities andschools have shown theircommitment to our Indige-nous young people by back-ing AIME at all levels,” hesaid. “The results we see today

are testament to the powerof mentoring and humanrelationships to overcomethe challenges of our time.”The report also cites an in-

dependent evaluation byacademics at the Universityof Wollongong and the Uni-versity of Western Sydneythat found “AIME positivelyimpacted the strength andresilience of mentees,mentee pride in being In-digenous, mentees makingstrong connections with In-digenous peers, role mod-els and culture, aspirationsand engagement for finish-ing school, aspirations forcontinuing to further studyand school retention rates.”The AIME annual report is

available atwww.reports.aimementor-ing.comJack Manning Bancroft, an

Aboriginal young man,founded AIME to provide anavenue between universityand secondary students toconnect and contract men-toring relationships. Itsoverall aim is to encourageand support more Aborigi-nal and Indigenous stu-dents into secondary andtertiary education.When young people begin

university they have al-ready connected with amentor during their finalsecondary school years andthat mentor assists them tosettle into tertiary educa-tion, residencies and theuniversity lifestyle.

ABOVE right: Mentors andmentorees of AIME at atraining session. AIME isspecifically aimed at im-proving the education op-portunities for Aboriginaland Indigenous students inAustralia.

A NUMBER of disillusionedteenagers in the Zambiandiocese of Lusaka have de-cided to run their ownchurch services after feelingdisconnected from adult-ledones. According to FatherRobert Sihubwa, who over-sees the National Church’syouth ministry, the teenssaid neither the sermons,hymns, nor the leadershipwere connecting with them.“One girl said the sermons

preached in church focuslargely on old people. Shesaid: ‘You always talk aboutfamily, money, problems inthe world, changing theworld, etc. Our concern isabout dressing, music,fashion, girl and boyfriends,whether it is right to kiss ornot, and school.’“According to the youths,

such concerns never getaddressed in regular serv-ices, apart from condemna-tion for fashions andmusic,” Fr Sihubwa said.Fr Sihubwa said church

leaders also came underfire, with one teen saying:‘The Bishop’s visitation toparishes only connects withthe teenagers during theconfirmation service. It israre bishops make a spe-cific visit to teenagers in aparish; as if we don’t exist’.”The comments were made

at the diocese’s first evercamp for teenagers, whichwas an initiative that camefrom the young people.“Their energy was amaz-

ing as they woke up early inthe morning at 0600 hrs fordevotions and to learn howto have morning prayer.”

The program was largelydirected by teenagers, inthe roles of worship lead-ers, ushers, intercessors,sports co-ordinators, cater-ing helpers and even ascounsellors to their friends.The call for greater recog-

nition for teenagers inchurch life came out ofgroup discussions whereyoungsters were invited tosay how they believedchurch could be improved.“After the discussion, a

consensus was reachedthat we start Teen Fellow-ships that would meet onSaturdays or during theweek to address the issuesraised,” said Fr Sihubwa. “When we returned home,

the teenagers in my parishasked to start a monthlyTeen Church.”Lusaka diocese is one of

those in the AnglicanProvince of Central Africathat does have youthstrategies as part of its fu-ture plans. One example ofhow that strategy is havingan impact is the establish-ment of the first Youth andChildren’s Council, set upby Provincial youth follow-ing their Youth and Chil-dren’s Council meeting.More: http://aco.org/min-

istry/mission/ecgi/newslet-ters/index.cfm

Mentoring program helps

students stay in education

Teenagers begin their

own church services

July/August 2013 Our Diocese - Family, Children and Youth Ministries 7


By Russell Powell

AUSTRALIA’s first Sundayschool has just celebratedits 200th anniversary. Mr(later Reverend) ThomasHassall started the ministryin the house of his father,Rowland Hassall, on thecorner of George andCharles Streets, Parramattain 1813. It is said he was prompted

to start the Sunday schoolafter telling bible stories toa group of children oneSunday afternoon; the fol-lowing weekend, the chil-dren returned to hear morestories.Two years later, on De-

cember 1, 1815, the NewSouth Wales Sunday SchoolInstitution was officially es-tablished. Mr Rowland Has-sall was one of the firstcommittee members andGovernor Macquariepledged his support. Rev. Samuel Marsden was

also approached and gavehis permission for the useof St John’s Church for the

Sunday school, which at-tracted 130 children to itsfirst meeting.There is a commemoration

plaque in St John’s Cathe-dral and in the foyer of theoffice building that nowstands on the site of Row-land Hassall’s house.There was a special serv-

ice in the Cathedral onSunday, June 2, 2013, fol-lowed by some communityactivities on the lawn. His-toric photos were on displayand a time capsule wassealed, to be opened in 100years’ time.Rev. Canon Bruce Morrison

said, at the event: “There isnothing more important toany church, or any societyfor that matter, than thenext generation; the chil-dren who will one day bethe mothers and fathers,the workers and the lead-ers, the teachers and thecarers. This 200th anniver-sary marks St John’s Sun-day school as the oldestcontinuously running Sun-day school in Australia.”

RIGHT: The Orbost parishyouth group have beenrestoring old bikes boughtby the congregation; one ofthe new leaders is helpingthe children to make newbikes for themselves.Leader Robert Morgan helpsLiam Matthews and CobySteadman.BELOW: Reegan Matthewslooking very proud of him-self and his new skills.

BELOW: In another activitywith the Orbost parishyouth group, two of thegirls made pizzas for dinnerunder the watchful eye ofBevil and Vicki. Pictured isSkylah Cole with the pizzashe made.

Photos: Barbara Lunson

ABOVE: Reverend BarbLogan, of St Nicholas’church in Lakes Entranceand NicholasJohn Op Shop,presented a $500 cheque toCasey Hooper, the managerof fundraising at the Lakes

Entrance preschool. Themoney will go toward pur-chase of a ‘listening centre’to be used by the four tofive year old pre-schoolers.

Contributor/Photo: Sandra McMaster

Valley

Funeral

Latrobe

Services

❏ Qualified, experienced and caring staff

❏ Modern chapels

❏ Refreshments and catering facilities available

❏ Secure, guaranteed, pre-paid and pre-arranged funeral plans

❏ Over 70 years of service to the Latrobe Valley

MORWELL 5134 4937

MOE 5126 1111

TRARALGON 5174 2258

Owned and operated byPaul and Katrina McInnes

Proud member of theAustralian Funeral Directors

Association and the Australian andBritish Institutes of Embalming

MARKRIDDLEConsultant

JOHNGALBRAITHConsultant

PAULMcINNESDirector

2002900

First Sunday school

celebrates 200 years

TRAVELLERS throughTrafalgar may have noticedthis bright mural outside StMary’s Anglican church dur-ing the Easter season. The children at JAFFAS

after school program, whichmeets on Wednesday eachweek, had lots of fun paint-ing it. They were delightedto to ‘read’ the symbols andrelate the Easter story totheir own lives. They all understood the

feelings of being let downby friends and some hadexamples of their authorityfigures not really being in-terested and ‘washing theirhands’ of their problems. The mural is a great ex-

ample of street art; peoplemay stop and look, form anopinion or simply enjoy thework. Street art can be a very

important cultural focalpoint. It is possibly evenmore powerful when it isseasonal or temporary. Street art with a Christian

theme allows churches toparticipate in a ‘conversa-tion’ about who we are andwhat we think is important.Because it is colorful andengaging, street art at-tracts the attention ofpassersby without being‘preachy’.

Contributor: Sue JackaPhoto: Ross Jacka

Trafalgar street art

to engage dialogue

ABOVE: Youth participated in a variety ofoutdoor activities at the recent Kidsplus+annual diocesan camp.

8 Our Diocese - Missions and Ministries July/August 2013


WITH the theme, ‘Whatwill I wear today?’, Chris-tian Women Communicat-ing Internationally (CWCI)hosted another safari inEast Gippsland in late May.Kay Brown was the speakerand spoke about forgive-ness, freedom and love. According to Kay, no mat-

ter what your shape, onesize fits all from thewardrobe of Colossians.Kay has worked full time inmissions for more than 30years in Australia and NewZealand.The safari began at Strat-

ford on Monday with amorning session then con-tinued to Dargo for an af-ternoon session, attendedby nine women. Tuesdaywas at Cann River then Or-bost. Wednesday wasNowa Nowa and Lakes En-trance; Bruthen was thefinal stop on Thursday.The talks by Kay were en-

joyed by many women,

which gave them some-thing to think about in theirlives.CWCI safaris offer an op-

portunity for Christianwomen to come together inecumenical worship and fel-lowship, while hearing froma guest speaker.I would like to thank you,

Jeanette, for your localcoverage of events andfunctions in The GippslandAnglican. It is lovely to seethe photographs coveringall Gippsland, when we cansee people we know atfunctions being held in theirareas. Thank you, Jeanette,for your editorial skills andaccepting articles and pho-tographs submitted by meon behalf of CWCI.

Contributor: Shirley Crutchfield

ABOVE: Shirley Crutchfield,Kay Brown, Tania Killing-beck, Marion Dusting andNorma Brown at Bruthen.

By Graham Knott

BUILDIING a strongerchurch for the future tookthe attention of Maffraparish council for much oflast year. After a lot ofprayer and discussion, wedecided our main purposewas to share together andto involve others in LeadingPeople to Christ. Then webegan to imagine whatwould be needed for us tofulfill our purpose.That led us to the

Equipped to Care coursebecause we recognised thecalling on all of us to be-come a caregiver likeChrist. The course is pre-pared by the Adult ChristianEducation Foundation andconsists of nine differentsessions with home prepa-ration to be done in be-tween. We hope to learn how to

bring effective love andsupport to friends, neigh-bors, people at work, familymembers and other Chris-tians. Many people are sim-ply looking for friendshipand care that makes a dif-ference. We have identifiedisolation and loneliness aschallenges affecting manypeople of different genera-tions.The material aims to help

us to understand ourselvesand others a little more, tocare as Jesus cared and tobe equipped to ‘love ourneighbor as we love our-selves’. We hope to be better lis-

teners and to understandmore about what it is like toface grief, loneliness, de-pression, relational difficul-ties and making importantdecisions. Above all, theaim is to help us to encour-age others and to be an ef-fective friend. The course issuitable for all people.Sixteen people in two

groups are enjoying theweekly meetings. There isso much to discuss andwork through that we arechallenged to keep up with

material. At the halfway point it is

encouraging to see howopen we are with eachother and the way our carefor each other is increasing.Here are some comments

from group members:“I am finding the course

challenging, enjoyable andit extends me; it gives memore time with God andJesus, showing me I needto spend more time withthem, if I can ever hope tobe there for anyone else.”“I am really glad I’m doing

the course. It reinforces mybelief God put us here tolove and care for one an-other. I hope I can learnhow to do it better.”“The Equipped to be a

Caregiver course is no ‘easyride’. It is both thought-pro-voking and challenging, aseach week I am encour-aged to learn how to moveout of my comfort zone inorder to provide loving andappropriate pastoral care.”

ABOVE: (back) ChristineMacIntosh, Graham Knott,Gloria Baker and DagnjaSkulte; (front) Joan Lees, PatCameron and Jean Heasley.

CWCI on safari

and wondering

what to wear

Norma Brown, Kay Brown, VivieneYoung, Shirley Crutchfield, RosemaryTrevaskis and Fiona around the fire atNowa Nowa during the CWCI safari.

Build a stronger church

by caring for others

July/August 2013 Our Diocese - Missions and Ministries 9


By Bev Foster

MOTHERS’ Union Gipps-land members heard aboutKairos prison ministry atthe June Join In last month.Three members of the teamthat visits Fulham prison,near Sale, spoke abouttheir faith and ministry.Kairos Prison Ministry Aus-

tralia is an interdenomina-tional Christian ministryreaching out to incarcer-ated individuals, their fam-ilies and those who workwith them; to bring sustain-able meaning and hope inthe place of loneliness, iso-lation and despair.Kairos is a world-wide or-

ganisation; it originated inFlorida in 1976.Alan Price, who is chair-

man of Kairos Gippsland,spoke first. He circulatedsome of the remarkable artwork of the prisoners. Onework stated ‘Only God canjudge me’. He told attendees the pro-

gram is supported by Cur-sillo and that 25,000 peopleare introduced to the pro-gram annually. He de-scribed the program followsa series of ‘encounters’:first with the team; secondwith themselves; third withChrist; and fourth, withothers.The program has been in

action at Fulham for 14years. It takes courage tobe a Christian in prison. AtFulham, an average lengthof stay is 80 days and themajority of inmates areaged under 25 years.Luke McCord spoke after

Alan. Luke was wearing ablack t-shirt with the slo-gan, ‘I am a criminal’.Everyone was too polite to

comment, but we canimagine the opening thisprovides. Yes, we are allsinners, but Jesus saves. Luke has been in a chap-

lain’s role at the prison andsince he was talking to anaudience of mostly moth-ers, he remarked howoften, when talking to aprisoner, a spark of faithhad been lit by a grand-mother, mother or sister. Luke said the Kairos team

endeavors to “keep thesense of a mother’s heartfor these men”. They do notaim to bring or push some-one to Christ but strive tomodel Christ’s uncondi-tional love.He gave an example of a

“hard case” prisoner whoexperienced a completeturn-around. In Luke’swords, “he had two daysmarinated in the HolySpirit”. Luke works in partnership

with Reverend Arthur

McPherson.Tim Rock spoke last, say-

ing: “We are all broken peo-ple in some way” and welive in a fallen world. Uponentering prison there aremany deprivations; themost prominent of thesebeing the ability to makedecisions. It is estimatedthat, on average, we make220 decisions per day. Inprison the inmate has onlythe opportunity to make20.Follow up by Kairos is re-

stricted to telling offenders,on release, to find a church.The way they do this islikening it to going tochoose some ‘take-awayfood’. We all have our dif-ferent preferences, so if youdo not like one thing, goand try another.God’s Squad does do some

follow up work with findingaccommodation and work.We were asked to pray for

wisdom, grace and mercyfor the Kairos ministryteam.

In Alan’s wordsTHE following is a tran-

script of Alan Price’s pres-entation on Kairos prisonministry, to Mothers’ UnionGippsland, at St Aidan’sNewborough on June 12.Kairos is an international

prison ministry and thename kairos means ‘God’sspecial time’. The mission ofKairos is to share the trans-forming love and forgive-ness of Jesus Christ and toimpact the hearts and livesof incarcerated people. We hope to encourage

those we encounter to be-come loving, productivecommunity members.Kairos started in a Floridaprison in 1976 and was in-spired by the Cursillo move-ment and supported byCursillo volunteers in its es-tablishment. Since 1976,

Kairos International hasgrown to be active in theUnited States, Australia,United Kingdom, CostaRica, Honduras, Peru,Canada, Nicaragua andSouth Africa. Currently more than

25,000 men and womenare introduced to the pro-gram each year worldwide.Teams are in 15 correc-tional centres and two juve-nile facilities, in five statesin Australia. The kairosteams are non-profit, ecu-menical in outlook and laylead with spiritual advisers.Each team delivers an in-

ternationally accepted shortcourse, once or twice ayear, which has been care-fully planned to haveevents and talks that flowone to another as on a jour-ney. This spiritual journeyhas four parts over fourdays and takes place inprison. First encounter is with

Kairos; second encounter iswith themselves; third en-counter is with Christ; andfourth encounter is withothers. For the resident,this experience may createthe desire to strengthentheir Christian faith, be-come a Christian or it maycreate an interest in furtherspiritual growth. Some just have a nice

time in a non judgementalenvironment and enjoy thebiscuits. After the coursewe encourage the partici-pants to meet together reg-ularly in prayer and sharefellowship and to attendchapel services in prison. Fulham team members

visit on the first and thirdFriday of each month tokeep faith with the guys wehave developed relation-ships with. These visits arereally appreciated by theguys in green, becauseoften they are a long wayfrom families and friendsand we may be their only

visitors. We feel very fortunate and

privileged, as we are theonly Kairos team in Victoriaand we have been minister-ing at Fulham for 14 years.We are fortunate that Ful-ham management allows usaccess to the facility andprivileged to be able to en-courage and support Chris-tian men in a prisonenvironment. We may think being Chris-

tian is difficult on the out-side, but l can assure youbeing Christian in prisontakes real courage. Thechapel and chaplains’ officeare in the central assemblyarea and anybody attend-ing chapel service does soin full view of the otherprisoners, which results incriticism for being a ‘God-botherer’ or worse.Elvis, one inmate, said to

me ages ago: “Alan, this isthe devil’s playground andhe does not want Christiansin here”. Matthew 25 verse 36

states: “You visited mewhen l was in prison” andwe kairos guys take that asour scripture and try to seeChrist in all the men we en-counter and give encour-agement to. As we go on behalf of all

Christians, l encourage allof you to pray for us; prayfor us to have wisdom andto speak with grace andmercy. We may be the only bible

and the only face of Jesussome of these guys willever see and we need hisstrength from on highthrough your prayers to getthat right in these situa-tions. Thanks and GodBless.

ABOVE: Jeanette Ringin and Barbara Harvey are mem-bers of the Newborough parish which was on cateringduty at the Mothers’ Union Gippsland June Join In. Morephotographs on last page.

Photo: Karin McKenzie

The Oratory Floor Mosaic Design Competition

of designs

which have potential to be translated into a mosaic for installation in the floor of The Oratory of St

A prize of $10,000 will be awarded to the winning entry, selected by the expert Assessment Panel.

Selected entries will be displayed in St in October, 2013.

Entries close: Friday, 20 September, 2013

Entry Forms are available from:

The Oratory Floor Mosaic Design Competition, GPO Box 421, Brisbane, Qld, 4001

or electronically from the Competition Coordinator

Enquiries: Dr Helen Lancaster, Competition Coordinator

Email: [email protected]

Website: www.stjohnscathedral.com.au

Kairos ministry

seeks healing



ST Barnabas Abbey, atA’Beckett Park on RaymondIsland, was the weekendsetting for a course titledRescuing the Dark Ages,with June Treadwell giving10 participants the insidestory on ‘the rescue’. Withthe fall of the Roman Em-pire and invasion of thebarbarians, the importanceof the monasteries withtheir emphasis on educa-tion and writing, ensuredprevious learning was re-tained. We pondered the ancient

manuscripts and how theywere written in scriptori-ums. We were shown ex-amples of the Book of Kellsand the LindisfarneGospels. Our eyes wereopened to the wonderfulsaints of the time; men likeBede, Columba, Aiden andCuthbert, their lives ofprayer, study and teaching,which still resonate today. We were instructed by

Peter White, a calligraphyexpert, on how to write inthe style of the monks,Compressed Gothic style;but without the goosequills.Rosemary Douglas, a local

librarian, explained howmonks assembled andbound books. Our headswere crammed with somuch knowledge but we allhad a wonderful time. The whole course was

themed, even down to thefood, which was outstand-ing. We ate venison with allthe trimmings, plus mulledwine, which was appreci-ated by us all. Thanks tothe Abbey for offering thisamazing and interestingcourse. Who rescued theDark Ages? The monaster-ies did. Thanks be to God.

Contributor: Jan Harris

Permit aheadSYNOD this year heard a

planning permit has beenissued by East GippslandShire Council, for furtherdevelopment of the Abbeyof St Barnabas at A’BeckettPark as a Centre for Spiritu-ality and the Environment,in line with the visionadopted by Synod in 2007.“After years of work we

give thanks to God that thissignificant milestone hasbeen achieved and recog-nise the contribution madeby Crowther and Sadler andothers towards achievingthis outcome,” said abbeypriest, Edie Ashley.“It’s now time to celebrate

and look towards the nextstages in development ofthe vision.”According to Robert Ford-

ham, convenor of Friends ofthe Abbey: “Now we knowthe development can pro-ceed , Chapter is also tak-ing the opportunity tore-launch the Friends of theAbbey, a group of peoplesimply committed to prayfor the work of the abbeyand promote its activities”.Food, music and reflec-

tions on water and fire arethe focus of workshops andretreats being held at theabbey in coming months. July begins with a focus on

celtic music. EarthBeat:Our Celtic Heart, led byCath Connelly with herceltic harp, is on July 5 to 7.Cath Connelly is a profes-

sional celtic harpist whoperforms, records, teachesand facilitates harp andspirituality workshopsacross the globe. Her focus will be story-

telling and the lyricalsounds of the celtic harp,

including a selection oftunes from Ireland, Scot-land and Wales as well assome original compositions.Take time out at The Re-

treat. The abbey is bookedas a place of retreat July 10to 18. Marilyn Obersby hasagreed to move in for theweek as Spiritual Director-in Residence. People are invited to come

to the abbey for one day ormany days, to this fullycatered time of renewal andindividual retreat.Marilyn has also offered a

directed retreat for thosewho choose this option. Shewill also be happy for thecasual or one off conversa-tion, with anyone whowould like a sounding boardalong the way. She will say morning and

evening prayer each day,welcoming any who wouldlike to join her. Book in for one night or a

number of nights. Meals areprovided and the rooms arecosy. Experience the abbeyin winter, staying at one ofthe eight comfortable,modern, self-containedunits.The retreat will be fully

catered. There is a smallheated dining room forshared meal times. Linenand towels are provided inthe units.On Saturday, July 20,

warm up at the abbey witha lunchtime Winter Feast.Canon Jeff Richardson willcreate a five course menu,costing $40 per person.Bookings are essential;telephone 5156 6580. August begins with a new

retreat, Waves of Renewal,August 2 to 4. Led byHeather Cahill, with supportfrom Heather Toms, theywill lead participants on a

reflection of experiences ofwater and explore opportu-nities for renewal ; recy-cling and upcycling.From August 30 to Sep-

tember 1, experience Musicin the Wind. Fay Magee and

Digby Hannah, two greatmusicians, are well intoplanning for this retreat.For musicians and those in-terested in making music,listening to music and ex-periencing the deep placesof the spirit.Susanna Pain returns, by

popular request, with a re-treat for those who want toexplore prayer and lifethrough movement, dance,reflection and time to relax.Praying with Fire is on Oc-tober 18 to20.All are welcome; tele-

phone 03 5156 6580 ore m a i [email protected]

TOP: June Treadwell, ofPaynesville parish, tries herhand at calligraphy at therecent workshop at theAbbey of St Barnabas atA’Beckett Park.ABOVE: Calligraphy instruc-tor, Peter White, instructsVal Jones, of Lakes En-trance parish, in the fine artof calligraphy at the work-shop, held on Raymond Is-land.

Photos: Edie Ashley

Owned and operated by Ray & Maree Anderson

With care & dignity, we serve South Gippsland and Phillip Island

Main Office: WONTHAGGI/INVERLOCH (03) 5672 1074 176-178 Graham Street, Wonthaggi, 3995 Fax: (03) 5672 1747

PHILLIP ISLAND (03) 5952 5171 15 Warley Avenue, Cowes, 3922 (by appointment only) Email: [email protected]

Pre-paid & pre-arranged funeral plans available.

CARING & PERSONAL 24 HOUR SERVICE

Manuscripts and winter

feasts at the abbey



By Lloyd George

ON Saturday, May 4, Rev-erend David and Mrs TrudySharman were inducted asthe new hosts of ‘Allans-field, at Rhyll on Phillip Is-land. They succeed JulieWaters, who served ably ashost for several years until2012.Allansfield is a retreat

house administered by theOrder of St Luke the Physi-cian in Australia (which nowoperates as OSL Healing Ministries). It has been es-tablished and designed as aplace of rest, refuge andhealing. The induction was led by

the Victorian state chaplainof OSL, Rev. Keith Southand national chaplain, DrAnnette Rice.Allansfield was established

in Reid Street, Rhyll in1990, through the generos-ity of the Topliff and Cokerfamilies. Beryl Topliff andBetty Coker had both felt astrong call to establish ahouse of healing. The namewas chosen as a memorialto the late Allan Coker.In 1996, the ‘Avalon’ Cot-

tage was added to the sitefollowing a donation fromCanon Vernon Cohen, whohad led the Avalon commu-

nity, near Geelong, untilthat date. In 1999, theproperty was passed as asacred trust to the OSL andhas since been adminis-tered by a managementcommittee and residenthosts.Trudy and David Sharman

have come to Allansfieldfrom Wynyard, Tasmania.David had some years inparish ministry in Tasmania

before his recent re-tirement. Trudy has a back-ground in music, dramaand journalism. Coming toAllansfield is, for her, thefulfilment of a vision she re-ceived 15 years ago. She is looking forward,

with David and Bonnie,their cat, to ministry at Al-lansfield. The house andcottage have beautiful sur-roundings in a seasidevenue and she is hoping todevelop a garden environ-ment.Individuals and small

groups may book accom-modation for a few days orfor short periods. For Gipp-slanders, the venue is verywell placed. For enquiriesand booking please contactTrudy and David, telephone03 5956 9333 or email [email protected]

AN Interfaith dialogue evening, withconversation and exploration about dif-ference and similarities, is on July 26 inTrafalgar. Do you know there is a largearea of shared belief and some similarpractices between Muslims and Chris-tians? Obviously there are significant differ-

ences too, but if we are to live as an har-monious community, we need to have areasonable knowledge of other faithsand a healthy respect for others’ faithpractices. The media often only portraysthe differences and, even then, makesthe story more dramatic by presentingextreme views. Unfortunately this leads to suspicion

and works against an harmonious soci-ety, where we can respect people ofother faiths and get along well together.There will be an opportunity to learn

more about what the majority of Mus-lims believe in a dialogue session to behosted at St Mary’s Anglican church inContingent Street, Trafalgar, on Friday,July 26 at 7.30pm. Speakers includeArfa and Asad Khan, Trafalgar residents. Asad works as a GP in the Latrobe

Community Health group, while Arfa is amainly music mother, who has also lec-

tured in journalism at a university inPakistan. There will be opportunity forattendees to ask questions.Please indicate your attendance, to en-

able catering for accurate figures forsupper. For more information, pleasecontact Reverend Sue Jacka, telephone03 5633 1021 or Arfa Khan 0468311374.

Contributor/Photo: Sue Jacka

ABOVE: Eli and Arleena enjoy time to-gether at mainly music.

Talking about my

faith and your faith

New hosts

at Allansfield

THE Summer under the Son conferencefor 2014 will be held at Crossways BaptistChurch, in East Burwood, from January 13to 16 next year. For many years SUTS hasbeen held in Gippsland diocese, at PhillipIsland.However, CMS has been pursuing an al-

ternate venue and recently made the an-nouncement of next year’s facility.The Crossways facility has an auditorium

for 1000 people, including lighting, sound,media projection, hearing loops and wheel-chair and disabled access. According toWei-Han Kuan, CEO of CMS, the newvenue will enable SUTS to continue toservice a growing attendance.Crossways also has purpose-built chil-

dren’s ministry facilities for a few hundredchildren, across a wide range of ages, anda number of other smaller rooms andspaces for conversation. There is alsoample car parking and access to publictransport. However, there is no on-site ac-comodation so SUTS will no longer be aresidential conference.The SUTS 2014 conference is currently

being developed, to cater for the needs ofyoung families with children and for youngadults. CMS is also seeking a new SUTSchildren’s ministry coordinator, for theSummer Salt program.Confirmed speakers and facilitators for

SUTS 2014 include David Williams, Bruce

Dipple, Dr Kang San Tan and missionariesKen and Ally Thompson and Tavis and KateBeer.Without accomodation or site costs, CMS

has announced SUTS 2014 will be free forleaders; if you think you would like to be avolunteer leader at the conference, you areencouraged to contact CMS.The Youth Camp will go ahead, under the

direction of Stuart Asquith, from January10 to 15. The camp will begin at Glen Wa-verley Anglican church, with camperscatching a bus to CYC Cowes; returning toCrossway on the Wednesday afternoon.Registrations to SUTS 2014 open on Sep-

tember 1 and there will be a cap on thenumbers for youth and children.In other news from CMS, former SUTS

bible study leader, Reverend Dr Jo BaileyWells, was recently appointed as chaplainto the Archbishop of Canterbury, JustinWelby and will be based at LambethPalace.The CMS Young Adult Winter Dinner will

be on Saturday, July 20, at St Hilary’s inJohn Street, Kew. Beginning at 7.30pm,the guest speaker is Charlie Fletcher, Deanof World Mission at Ridley Melbourne, onthe topic, Preparing for a lifetime of mis-sion.Tickets are $20 and can be purchased on-

line at cms.org.au/vic/wd13 or contact IanPayne, email [email protected]

New venue for SUTS 2014

Conference moves to city venue

ST James’ church in Trar-algon hosted a High Teaand Hat Parade on Thurs-day, May 9. Women andmen descended on thesmall church, wearing ele-gant and elaborate headpieces, dressed in their fin-ery, to socialise, drink teaand raise money for a wor-thy cause.The money raised from

this event, a grand total of$965, was sent to the BorOrphanage in South Sudan. This event will hopefully

be an annual event on theSt James’ calendar, withregular donations to sendto those in need. We needto acknowledge the hardwork of the women in theguild and, in particular,Denise Rich (above right),who was the main organ-iser of the event.

Contributor: Tara Blomquist

BELOW: Claudette Mo-gensen and Hilda Crawfordenjoyed the high tea andhats parade in Traralgonparish recently.

Photo: Tara Blomquist

High tea and hats



IN St John’s Bairnsdaleparish, 19 women attendedthe monthly dinner, which isbecoming a popular socialactivity (above).St John’s monthly men’s

fellowship lunch invitedwomen partners to attendand hear the speaker, anemployee of a local funeraldirector. He spoke well andamusingly and then an-swered many questionsabout funeral plans. The price for an ordinary

funeral could be $3500; itdepends on requirements.However, gold plated acces-sories or a coffin would cost$6000 and upwards.Tickets for Johnno’s an-

nual fashion parade weresold well in advance of theevent. Twelve modelsshowed very good andwearable clothes and thefood was as good as ever. Agreat deal of hard work sawmore than $4000 raised.The shop’s ‘Biggest Morn-

ing Tea’ raised $226 forcancer research. Bairnsdale Secondary Col-

lege chaplain, Louisa VanNugteren, paid her annualvisit to St John’s and spokeat both services about herwork at the school and thebreakfast program. This isfunded by St John’s and hasbeen run entirely by ourvolunteers since 2006. This is an important out-

reach for our church andsupported by the congrega-tion with donations of Milo,juices, milk, cereals andmore. A cheque for $400was presented to Louisa bytwo of Johnno’s OutreachCentre office bearers, Peg-gie Arthur and Marg Tatnell.

This is in addition to$1200 allocated to thechaplaincy committee thisyear.The Alpha course, recently

completed, was supportedby the rector, Tony Wickingand his wife Marilyn, CanonGordon Cooper, one of ourretired clergy, and mem-bers of the church, who allworked hard at the manytasks they had to fulfill. The course attracted two

people who saw the adver-tisement in the local news-paper and another two fromother churches. Given the size of the group

and the changed structureof Alpha the usual residen-tial weekend was shortenedto one day. A concentratedteaching session on theHoly Spirit was held. Another Alpha course is

planned for early next yearand we pray many morewill take part, hopefullyhelped by the present fourparticipants spreading theword.Dear Jeanette, so this is

my last offering to you; Ifeel sad. You have done sovery well at producing theThe Gippsland Anglican andI shall miss you. I knowthat you are a very busyperson and this is a big andtime consuming job. Withmy very best wishes to youfor the future and whateverour Lord’s plans are for you.God bless.

Contributor/Photo: Ursula Plunkett

BELOW: Johnno’s fashionparade models.

Photo: Judi Hogan

2013 110th year of The Gippsland Anglican diocesan newspaper

July 5-7 EarthBeat: Our Celtic Heart, led by Cath Connelly with her celtic harp;

Abbey of St Barnabas, A’Beckett Park; 03 5156 6580 or email [email protected]

6 Anam Cara Community Day; 9.30am to 4pm; 0411 316346 or [email protected]

7 Celtic Harp, with Cath Connelly; St Peter’s by the Lake, Paynesville; 2pm; $15 entry or $10 concession, includes afternoon tea; 03 5156 7824

10-18 Retreat at Abbey of St Barnabas, A’Beckett Park; led by Marilyn Obersby; stay one day or more, fully catered accomodation; 03 5156 6580 or [email protected]

16 Ridley Melbourne, ‘Jesus, Paul and the Mission of God’s People’, with NT Wright, Michael Bird and Brian Rosner; 9am to 3pm; www.ridley.edu.au/events

17 Ridley Melbourne, ‘Paul and the faithfulness of God’, with NT Wright, Sean Winter, Michael Bird and David Starling; 9am to 4pm; www.ridley.edu.au/events

19 Clifton Waters Village annual concert, celebrating the diamond jubilee of the village community

20 Clifton Waters Village annual concert, celebrating the diamond jubilee of the village community

20 Warm up at the abbey with a lunchtime Winter Feast; five course menu, costing $40 per person. Bookings are essential; 5156 6580

26 Interfaith dialogue, between Christians and Muslims; St Mary’s Trafalgar; RSVP, 5633 1021

27 Diamond jubilee celebrations of Clifton Waters Retirement Village; 2pm; lunch and thanksgiving service led by Bishop John McIntyre; RSVP Registry office, 03 5144 2044

August2-4 Waves of Renewal; led by Heather Cahill and Heather Toms on a reflection

of experiences of water; Abbey of St Barnabas, A’Beckett Park, 03 5156 6580 or [email protected]

3 Anam Cara Community School for Prayer Day; St James’ Traralgon; 9.30am to 4pm; 0411 316346 or [email protected]

8 Mary Sumner Day, Mothers’ Union 16 Clergy Wellbeing Day; Latrobe Convention Centre, Traralgon17 Basic Training Program for Volunteer Pastoral Care Visitors; St Paul’s

Cathedral parish; RSVP, 03 5144 2020; workshop 3, 10am to 12noon.20 Mothers’ Union executive meeting, Morwell, 9.30am22 Celebrating 50 years of Mothers’ Union at Leongatha; guest speaker Libby

Cross, MU Australia president27-29 Annual Preachers’ Conference, Ridley Melbourne; www.ridley.edu.au/events30 to Sept. 1 Experience Music in the Wind, led by Fay Magee and Digby Hannah;

Abbey of St Barnabas, A’Beckett Park, 03 5156 6580 or [email protected]

SeptemberAug. 30 to Sept. 1 Experience Music in the Wind, led by Fay Magee and Digby

Hannah; Abbey of St Barnabas, A’Beckett Park, 03 5156 6580 or [email protected]

7 Anam Cara Community Day; 9.30am to 4pm; 0411 316346 or [email protected]

8 Back to church Sunday13-15 Anam Cara Community School for Prayer retreat, Abbey of St Barnabas,

A’Beckett Park; ‘After the ecstasy, the laundry’; 0411 316346 or [email protected]

17 Mothers’ Union Gippsland AGM, Warragul21 Basic Training Program for Volunteer Pastoral Care Visitors; St Paul’s

Cathedral parish; RSVP 03 5144 2020; workshop 4, 10am to 12noon.30-Oct. 3 Clergy retreat; Pallotti College, Millgrove. TBC.

(Alternate dates, October 14 to 17.)

OctoberSept. 30-Oct. 3 Clergy retreat; Pallotti College, Millgrove5 Anam Cara Community School for Prayer Day; Bishopscourt, Sale; 9.30am

to 4pm; 0411 316346 or [email protected] Praying with Fire retreat led by Susanna Pain; Abbey of St Barnabas,

A’Beckett Park, 03 5156 6580 or [email protected] Basic Training Program for Volunteer Pastoral Care Visitors; St Paul’s

Cathedral parish; RSVP 03 5144 2020; workshop 5, 10am to 12noon.

November2 Anam Cara Community Day; 9.30am to 4pm; 0411 316346 or

[email protected] Mothers’ Union Gippsland Quiet Day, St John’s Bairnsdale; led by Reverend

Tony Wicking10 Defence Sunday11 Remembrance Day26 Mothers’ Union executive meeting, Morwell, 9.30am

December7 Anam Cara Community School for Prayer Day; St Mary’s Mirboo North;

9.30am to 4pm; 0411 316346 or [email protected] Christmas Eve25 Christmas Day26 Boxing Day28-Jan.1 Sale parish family outreach: Summer in Seaspray

Diocesan calendarFood and fashion

at Bairnsdale



By John Matthews

THE Clifton Waters Retire-ment Village at Bairnsdalewill celebrate the 60th an-niversary of its foundingthis year, with a celebratorylunch and service ofthanksgiving at 2pm onSaturday, July 27. Gipps-land’s bishop, Right Rev-erend John McIntyre, willlead the celebrations. Founded in 1953 on the

initiative of rector of Bairns-dale, the late Canon GFDSmith and St John’s parish,the village was built onfarmland, once named ‘Miz-pah’ and owned by the Rev.Robert Martin, an earlypriest in the area at WyYung. It was purchased for the

purpose of a retirement vil-lage from his daughter, MissAA Martin.Canon Smith was a vision-

ary, who saw the need forsuch a village to meet theneeds of aged renterswhose savings were insuffi-cient to purchase their ownhome but in excess of theirqualifying for the pension. By contributing their sav-

ings toward the cost of acottage, residents werethen eligible to receive thepension and guaranteed ac-commodation for life. Modelled on the village

founded by Father KennedyTucker of the Brotherhoodof St Laurence at CarrumDowns, Clifton Waters Vil-lage is thought to be one ofthe earliest retirement vil-lages in Victoria. The village was largely

funded by the residents, to-gether with substantial giftsfrom community organisa-tions in East Gippsland,many of whom purchased acottage in the name of theorganisation.The first cottage was com-

pleted in June 1954 and oc-cupied by Mr and Mrs JRichards; by November1955, six cottages werecompleted and four morewere under construction. Today, there are almost 90

cottages on the 10 hectaresite, together with the vil-lage hall (incorporating anextensive library), a com-

munity lounge and threesplendid fully furnishedself-contained units for hirefor the benefit of residents’guests. Most of the original cot-

tages have been renovated,extended or demolished tomeet modern require-ments. Social life in the village is

extensive and varied. Thevillage social club meetsmonthly and is open to allresidents; it plans social ac-tivities for the year, includ-ing an annual fair, anannual Christmas dinner atone of the local clubs, aChristmas in July gatheringat a local restaurant andtravel to places of interestduring the year. All these activities are

subsidised by the socialclub from its fundraising ac-tivities, the chief of which isthe annual fair. The socialclub also makes generousdonations to charitable ap-peals. The chief and most regular

activity is Happy Hour inthe village lounge on Fridayevening; an opportunity forfellowship and where newresidents are welcomed andintroduced. One of the very active so-

cial groups is the varietygroup, which meets forpractice each week inpreparation for its annualconcert. This year, a concert will be

held to mark the DiamondJubilee and the program isdevoted to the popularsongs of 1953, the year ofthe village’s foundation.The concert will be held onFriday evening, July 19,and on Saturday afternoon,July 20.A craft group meets one

day each week and, in re-cent years, has donatedknee rugs, made by themembers, to various nurs-ing homes in the district. Acommunity vegetable gar-den, in raised beds, pro-vides fresh vegetables forsale to the residents andthere is a men’s shed withequipment for use by menin the village to engage inpractical activities. Clifton Waters Village is a

wonderful testament to thevision of the earlier parish-ioners and members of thediocesan family are encour-aged to visit Bairnsdale andcall in and say hello to theresidents and administra-tor; you will be made wel-come.

TOP: Feeding the hungry ata village fair; the village fairis an annual event.ABOVE right: 1 Martin’s Pa-rade, the first cottage in thevillage, 1954; occupied byMr and Mrs J Richards.RIGHT: Village VarietyGroup, 2008.BELOW left: Canon GFDSmith (right) at the unveil-ing of the entrance atClifton Waters Village, a giftfrom the Ladies Auxillary,on May 6, 1961. CanonSmith, founder of the vil-lage, is blessing the memo-rial stone at the villageentrance.BELOW right: Opening ofthe village hall, December28, 1959.

Photos: Village archives.

Vision for aged a diamond result

14 Our Diocese - Clergy news July/August 2013


ON the evening of June13, Joanne White was in-ducted as priest-in-chargeof Yarram parish. Jo’s jour-ney to her appointment hasbeen one of service in Mel-bourne and Gippsland. Likewise, the Yarram

parish has also been on ajourney in recent years andlooks forward with muchpleasure to having Jo andKen White (above) as partof their community.The church was full with

well-wishers from theparish congregation, clergyfrom a number of otherparishes, representatives ofall other churches inYarram, of St James’church, Traralgon and thecommunity of Yarram.Bishop John McIntyre and

Archdeacon Heather Martenconducted the service of in-duction. Members ofJoanne’s past parish ofTraralgon, where she wasassociate priest and chap-lain at St Paul’s AnglicanGrammar School, pre-sented her to Bishop McIn-tyre. Members of the Yarram

parish presented Jo withthe symbols of ministry. Bishop John spoke of the

‘Wisdom’ in the first readingfrom the book of Sirach,chapter 4, read by Jo’s hus-band, Ken: “What words tofollow as you begin a newcalling.” The second reading from 2

Corinthians, chapter 9, readby Linda Bowden, spoke ofGod’s blessing on everyone

who gives generouslythrough service.Words of welcome were

extended to Jo and Kenfrom Rev. Wayne Brown ofthe Uniting church, on be-half of all the churches inYarram; and from Cr BobWenger, on behalf of theWellington Shire.As the service concluded

and Jo left the church withKen and fellow clergy, therewas spontaneous singing of“To God be the Glory”, ledby guest organist, AngelaGaulke, from the Lutherancongregation.Supper and fellowship fol-

lowed in the hall, amongthe diocesan family.Contributor: Glenda Amos

ABOVE: Katie Peken with her supporters at the ordina-tion service where she was made a priest, in late May.BELOW: Archdeacon Heather Marten presents deacons DrPene Brook and Katie Peken to Bishop John McIntyre,during the ordination service before they were priested.

Photos: Christine Morris

ABOVE: On May 2 this year,Reverend Heather Cahillgraduated from the UFTUniversity of Theology inMelbourne with a GraduateDiploma in Theology. Shealso holds a Diploma inMinistry and a Diploma inAnglican Orders. Heather isin Heyfield parish.

Photo: Jeanette Severs

Jo takes charge

in Yarram parish

RIGHT: Dr Don Saines andDr Pene Brook were re-cently farewelled fromGippsland diocese. Donwas, until the end of June,Dean of St Paul’s Cathedralin Sale. Pene, priested inMay, was chaplain atMonash University Churchillcampus. Photo: C. Morris

Fare well

THE retired clergy andtheir wives gathered to-gether on April 30 for fel-lowship. The day beganwith a service celebrated byReverend Graham Knott atSt John’s Maffra, withBishop John McIntyrepreaching.Then attendees gathered

at the home of Heather andLaurie Baker for lunch, withLaurie cooking the barbe-cue and St John’s ladiesproviding the salads anddesserts. The before, dur-ing and after meal musicwas supplied by Rev. GregJones on his guitar, withBishop John joining in. The day was enjoyed by

everyone and it was partic-ularly special to haveCanon Ray and Joyce Elliotattend.

Contributor: Laurie Baker

Lunch a

fine affairABOVE: June Knott,Gordon and RosemaryCooper and Bishop JohnMcIntyre.RIGHT: Heather Bakerand Jim Connelly.BELOW right: GregJones and Allan Huggins.BELOW: Bishop JohnMcIntyre and ReverendGreg Jones.

Photos: Laurie Baker

July/August 2013 Our Diocese - Parish news 15


LAWRIE Grady and Bar-bara Grant were married atChrist Church, Foster, onSunday, April 28. Parishrector, Reverend TimFletcher was the marriagecelebrant, with the addressgiven by Rev. Neil Thomp-son. There are very few wed-

dings held in churches inthis district nowadays. TheGrady-Grant wedding is thefirst at Christ Church forseveral years. Both Barband Lawrie are members ofthe congregation and hadtheir wedding on a Sundayduring the service of holycommunion to include the

congregation.Barbara wore a midnight

blue ensemble with satintrim and beige accessories.Music for the nuptials wasprovided by church organ-ist, David Allsop, assistedby musicians, Iain Duffus,Emily Duffus, Tom Fletcherand Emma Fletcher.Following the wedding, the

congregation and guestsenjoyed a celebratory lunchin the church hall.

ABOVE: Lawrie and BarbaraGrady, with Reverend TimFletcher, after the service.

Contributor/Photo: Carole Williams

REVEREND Lyn Williamswas rector at St Mary’sMorwell while ArchdeaconHeather Marten was on hol-iday. Rev. Lyn was verybusy as she was still fillingher other role as chaplain atLatrobe Regional Hospital;and meeting the needs ofpatients and their familiesat LRH does not fit into reg-ular hours. The lay readers at St

Mary’s have stepped up totake more aspects of theservices. The congregationheard sermons from eachlay reader through themonth. One Sunday there was a

series of loud bangs fromthe hall. Everyone in thecongregation jumped. Jenny Fox, who was with

the children during Sundayschool, had brought severalinflated balloons. Therewere messages for each ofthe children in the balloons. The children had to burst

the balloon to find the mes-sages, hence the loudbangs. Rev Lyn herself isnow having a well-deservedholiday.Archdeacon Heather re-

turned from her study tripto Israel and Jordan and onher first Sunday after re-turning, we saw on theoverhead a photograph ofher and Canon Amy Turneron camels, at Petra in Jor-dan. Both riders and camelsseemed very comfortablewith the situation.St Mary’s congregation is

supporting a project organ-ised by Anglican OverseasAid; we are hoping to raiseenough money to equip aschool in Tanzania withsolar lighting. We organised

a meal and film night toraise money. Attendees shared a meal

together, then moved to thechurch and watched thefilm, Quartet. The musicand the scenery in the filmare stunning and the dia-logue is funny andpoignant. The evening wastopped off by Joan Peacheygiving out popcorn and lol-lies.

Contributor: C. Raymond

ABOVE: Lesley Schultz, JanDalgiesh, Faye Evans, San-dra Wagner and JoanPeachey.RIGHT: Joan Peachey withpopcorn and lollies for thefilm’s audience in Morwellparish.Photos: Carolyn Raymond

Married at the

Sunday service

Big bangs and film

ABOVE: Rector Tony Wicking, Peggie Arthur, Louisa VanNugteren and Marg Tatnell at St John’s Bairnsdale. Bairns-dale Secondary College chaplain, Louisa Van Nugteren,paid her annual visit to St John’s and spoke at both serv-ices about her work at the school and the breakfast pro-gram. This is funded by St John’s and has been runentirely by our volunteers since 2006. This is an importantoutreach for our church and supported by the congrega-tion with donations of Milo, juices, milk, cereals and more.A cheque for $400 was presented to Louisa by two ofJohnno’s outreach centre office bearers, Peggie Arthur andMarg Tatnell. This is in addition to $1200 allocated to thechaplaincy committee this year.

Photo: Dorothy Scott

RIGHT: Reverend BarbLogan, from the parish ofLakes Entrance andMetung, with Anne andStan Barker from the LakesEntrance Garden Club.Anne and Stan kindly de-signed the garden in frontof St Nicholas church andguided the purchase of theplants and then the plant-ing. Following a recent Sun-day service, there was adedication and blessing ofthe garden on Sunday, May26, followed by a specialmorning tea. Many mem-bers of the Garden Club at-tended both services.

Photo: Sandra McMaster

Thanks for the garden

Money for food

16 Our Diocese - Perspectives July/August 2013


By Gordon Dowthwaite Leongatha parish

SO, that was my firstSynod.I was warned I would find

it formal and procedurebound and it certainly was;particularly at times when itseemed to take forever todo something that Ithought would be simple;and those moments when itwas hard to rememberwhich motion, or amend-ment to motion, we wereup to. Yet, I confess that, while I

prefer simplicity, I also likeorder and fairness; and allthose tedious proceduresdo seem to help each per-son contribute while keep-ing things on track.I was also warned Synod

could get a bit political andthat there could be contro-versy. I noticed there arevery differing views beingexpressed on some topicsand I became aware ofmany underlying storiesand history that, as anovice, I am not conversantwith. Yet, among our diversity, I

observed all people spokewith and were heard withrespect and graciousness.There was no angry verbalsparring as we see in ourpoliticians; rather calm,thoughtful and considereddebate.There were pages of re-

ports to read beforehandand I confess I just couldnot read them all. But itwas good to hear the verbalreports of the many thingsoccurring around the dio-cese. They were time bound

(thanks to the procedures),so speakers could not dragon; and through them wascaptured not just the thingsthat were done, but the en-thusiasm and commitmentof those involved. It brought to me a new

perspective of the diocesebeing many-faceted.Just being there and

meeting people made thediocese less distant to theparish church I am in eachweek.I went to this Synod with

no intention of speaking;just to listen and learn. Iam glad I did because thereis so much to learn, even

just about were to saysomething and how to sayit. Yet I confess that, on re-fection, I wonder whethermy silence was more a lackof courage than wisdom. There is much I find my-

self in disagreement withand yet my slow brain andfear that my words will beinadequate keep me silent.Later, after thought, I re-alised some things I wouldlike to have expressed. Ihave written one down. Itwould have gone somethinglike this…:“Gordon Dowthwaite,

Leongatha. I rise to speakagainst the motion.I feel somewhat awkward,

Mr President, speakingagainst a motion of thanks,yet this appears to be theplace to comment on thePresident’s address and atleast it flags that I am notin full agreement. My attitude is certainly not

one of ingratitude, nor oneof total opposition, yet Ifind myself in a state ofsome confusion.Mr President, you have

spoken in some detail aboutpower and its mis-use, yet Ifeel no more enlightenedabout what is the right useof power. I hear you say that, to im-

pose a level of purity onothers is a bad use ofpower, yet you also say thedecrees that forced all An-glicans into a common formof worship as the only per-missible way, is in fact thefoundation of the genus ofAnglicanism; and thereforea good thing? You seem very concerned

the global south may usepower inappropriately toexpress to the Church itsopposition to homosexualrelations, a position theyconscientiously hold asbeing true to scripture. Yet, Mr President, you also

seem to expect those of usin this diocese who alsohold such a view to stopbeing contentious and ac-cept your position. I am left wondering

whether Jesus’ fierce con-demnation of the Phariseesand his arguably violentturning out of the templewas in fact a mis-use ofpower.I am also, Mr President,

feeling confused about

what you hold to be thegoal of the gospel. It ap-pears from your addressthat the highest goal is in-clusion on the basis ofGrace and the absolute ab-sence of exclusion. This appears, to me, to be

much the same as the sec-ular humanist position of“I’m OK, you’re OK”; weare all acceptable just aswe are, provided we agreeit is only on the basis ofGrace. I am sure we all hold to

the great protestant cry of“Salvation by Grace alonethrough Faith alone”. Butwhat has happened to whatwe are saved for? Any sug-gestion of being trans-formed seems to bemissing. The woman caught in

adultery found acceptanceby Grace, but was alsochallenged to change herways and sin no more. Paulreminds us our acceptanceby Grace gives us no li-cense to carry on sinning;rather, we have becomeslaves to righteousness andmust now work out our sal-vation with fear and trem-bling. While you call for personal

change in the Journey In-ward, what does this mean?The only change called forin your address seems to bethe demand for full inclu-sion regardless of how weunderstand God’s Word.

Mr President, I note 25 percent of your address is de-voted to current issues inthe community. What Iheard was predominantlyimmediate political issues inan election year. I do thank you for not

telling us how to vote. Iwonder, though, that otherissues, arguably demandinga Christian response, likehuman embryo cloning andthe rumblings of changes toabortion law, were notmentioned, but recognisethere are too many to in-clude. Is what you mean by the

Journey Outward, simplyconfined to being engagedin the political process? Be-cause little else is given usin your address to considerhow we make that part ofthe diocesan vision a real-ity. Rather, within hours of

hearing your address, MrPresident, this synod, at therequest of Bishop in Coun-cil, agreed that, at thediocesan level, it was inap-propriate to give funds toGod’s work overseas. I am reminded of the rich

young ruler who could claimto have done and said allthe right things but reallyjust wanted to hold on towhat he had for himself.As for the Journey To-

gether, Mr President, I re-main confused. That thereis division and discord

among us over unilateraland controversial action iswithout doubt. There is a motion for later

debate that seeks a betterconsultation mechanism tohelp prevent similar discordin the future1. However, Istill hear I am being askedto listen to others, yet con-sistently feel unheard whenI speak. I feel horrified that a mo-

tion of the last synod hasbeen expressly ignored byBishop in Council twice, Ibelieve; and now over-turned. This does not rep-resent to, me at least, acooperative Journey To-gether, but an imposing ofthe will of the powerful.Mr President, it may be

that I have not heardclearly what you have triedto convey. It may be I haveonly heard parts of your in-tention. I wonder whether this

simple brain’s ability tohear the message of thewords would be better if myeyes could perceive action’sconsistent with thosewords.”

1 This motion was laterdefeated by Synod, effec-tively giving Bishop andBishop in Council permis-sion to act unilaterally ondivisive and controversialissue without prior consul-tation.

By Sue JackaTrafalgar parish

THE recent news item of the threewomen kidnapped and held hostage insuburban Cleveland (in America) hasunderstandably appalled people acrossthe world. Many of the neighbors arereported to be shocked they did not no-tice anything amiss through the pastdecade. That is a very long time!We are left wondering just how it could

be possible that a neighborhood can be-come so focussed on individual con-cerns that no-one notices any hints thatthings are not right. Since the victims’release, some neighbors have reportedhearing banging from inside the appar-ently empty house; and more chillingly,seeing a naked woman chained up out-side. We are left with a number of probing

questions: How does a police recep-tionist dismiss calls like these? Whattype of society enables generally caringpeople to be so unaware? There has been a good deal of re-

search into ‘bystander engagement’

and how it helps prevent crime. It ismostly about changing our communityvalues so we place real care for othersover feeling we only need to look out forourselves. If we are engaged as by-standers, it will change our behavior. Many people read the parable of the

good samaritan as an example of whathappens when we simply focus on ourown business; the ‘good’ people walkon by and the injured man is left bleed-ing and in pain.

If you see something that does notseem right, it probably is not. If youthink someone is in trouble, ask if theyare okay. Be honest and direct in ex-plaining your concerns and reasons forintervening.If you do not feel comfortable ap-

proaching a situation on your own, aska friend or someone else for help. It isour social responsibility as Christians tostand for justice. An awareness of violence in its many

forms and being prepared to do some-thing to check people in suspicious sit-uations are okay is a step towards acaring society where people are safe.

Bystander engagementConfessions

of a synod

noviceOccasional contributor to Perspectives,Gordon Dowthwaite, attended his first

synod in May this year. He shares his ex-

perience.

RIGHT: Former and currentclergy of Corner Inlet parishwere present for the weddingof Lawrie Grady and BarbaraGrant at Christ Church Fosteron April 28: (left to right)Reverend Ken Rogers, Rev.Fran Grimes, Rev. TimFletcher, Rev. Ron Cozensand Rev. Neil Thompson.

Contributor/Photo: Carole Williams

July/August 2013 Our Diocese - Features 17


BILL Harrington, a valuedmember of the congrega-tion of Trafalgar parish, haspassed away. Bill was or-ganist in Trafalgar parishand brought his love formusic, along with hisfriendship, wisdom, faithand humor to his engage-ment with people.Bill was an active member

of the wider community andthe longest serving council-lor of Baw Baw Shire Coun-cil. He was Mayor in 2000and 2001.Bill was a dedicated hus-

band and father, a well re-spected Justice of the Peaceand active member of thecommunity, participating onmany sporting club andcommunity boards.He was a member of the

Thorpdale and DistrictBowls Club, the AnglicanChurch, Trafalgar Commu-nity Bank, Trafalgar ProbusClub, Trafalgar Rotary Cluband the West GippslandCatchment ManagementAuthority.Bill was also heavily in-

volved in the arts, serving

as chairperson on council’sArts and Culture AdvisoryCommittee and often seenat art events around theshire. He was a longstanding

member of Warragul The-atre Organ Society, beinginvolved from the earlydays of its installation andthe restoration of Wesley ofWarragul.Bill was a past president of

the Rotary Club of Trafalgar,involved with the ThorpdaleCommunity Newspaper anda large number of commu-nity groups. He was Vice President of

Timber Towns Victoria anda member of the GippslandWaste Management Group,the Australia Day Commit-tee, the Keep AustraliaBeautiful Committee, theTrafalgar RecreationPrecinct Masterplan Board,the Old Gippstown Commit-tee and the Towns andRural Communities net-work.He was regularly seen at

community events and isdescribed as a true gentle-

man, an active mentor andengaged listener.Bill is survived by Eleanor,

their four children and 10grandchildren.

MRS Val Higgs recentlytook this tapestry (above)to a Sunday service to showthe congregation of StThomas’ Bunyip.Her children are related to

every person named on thelist; they are Mrs Higgs’ fa-ther, his brother, his sons,and nephews; her husband,his father, grandfather, un-cles and brother.The framed version of this

picture is worked in crossstitch. The priest read outall the names and asked fora blessing for all of those on

it from World War I, theRoyal Navy, World War II,Royal Australian Navy, Ko-rean War and Vietnam War.Mrs Higgs said she lived

with returned men all herlife and knows firsthand ofmany of the lasting effectsof war on, not only the menthemselves, but also theirfamilies. They were mostlyonly boys when they wentaway and many sufferedhorrors that gave themnightmares for the rest oftheir lives; their boyhoodwas gone, she said.

A work of love

and honourVale, Bill

Vale, Frank

Vale, FrankBy Les Ridge

FRANK Lyons, a faithfulChristian, a good friend anda hardworking parishionerin Bass Phillip Island parish,has passed away.For almost 25 years, Frank

has been a leader in manyaspects of parish life.Most of us met Frank and

Una when they ’retired’ toPhillip island almost 25years ago. We first knewFrank as a parishioner, thenas a member of St Philip’svestry, as St Philip’s rector’s warden, as a parish council-lor, as a synod representa-tive, twice as chairman ofthe clergy appointmentsboard, as occasional chair-man of parish council, aschairman of the buildingcommittee and member ofthe finance committee. All these positions entailed

a great deal of time andwork, and often a greatdeal of patient negotiationto bring disparate opinionstogether. As a very practical person,

Frank was skilled at gettingjobs done; his tools were always properly sharpenedand ready for use, whether

it was building a shed,fixing a fence or hanging abell. There are many StPhilip’s people who havehappy memories of cheerfulworking bees and of thejobs being done with goodhumor and lots of laughter;all led by Frank.Frank greatly enjoyed

meeting and serving theguests at the Grand Prixbreakfasts; and in tallyingup the results of our effortsboth at the breakfasts andat the parish fair. Frank was, to all of us, an

example of a faithful Chris-tian, and of a multi talentedperson who used his abili-ties for the good of thechurch and the community.

By Ted Gibson

FRANK Johnson (1922 to2013), a former registrar ofthe Gippsland diocese(1977 to 1987), wasfarewelled at St Paul’sCathedral, Sale, on Friday,May 24. The recent retired Dean

and two former Deans offi-ciated.Frank’s family came from

Western Australia, Queens-land, New South Wales andVictoria to attend his fu-neral. Frank was 91 yearsof age.Frank was invited to the

diocese by Bishop GrahamDelbridge, who knew of hisability when he was an ac-countant in the Sydneydiocesan registry office.Frank quickly won his way

by his quiet, self-effacingmanner and is rememberedby his contemporaries forhis meticulous attention todetail. With his wife, Nancy, they

became a faithful and gen-erous unit at St Paul’sCathedral, Sale.Frank introduced central

payment of clergy stipendsto the diocese and greatlystabilised the diocesan fi-nances. He also served for signifi-

cant periods on the Cathe-dral chapter and waschairman of the GippslandGrammar school financecommittee.

Frank was farewelled bysynod in 1987 and re-mained living in Sale. Hewas appointed as a dioce-san lay canon and contin-ued to be involved inchurch matters until hisdeath.At his funeral, two of his

daughters read the lessonsand his granddaughtersread the eulogy from thefamily.

Archdeacon Ted Gibson ledthe service and ArchdeaconAllan Huggins took thecommital at the Sale lawncemetery.Refreshments were served

in the Delbridge hall after-wards.He was a good man, full of

the Holy Spirit and of faith.Mrs Nancy Johnson is a

resident at Domain, in Maf-fra road, Sale.

ABOVE: Frank Johnson (seated) surrounded by Jan Hug-gins, Annabel Gibson, his wife Nancy and Allan Huggins,at the centenary celebrations of Kilmany church last year.

18 Our Diocese - Commemorating 110 years of diocesan news July/August 2013


By Jeanette Severs

THE beginning of 1954saw The Church News con-tinue to be printed as a fourpage broadsheet newspa-per. Mrs Blackwood, wife ofthe bishop, was the guestof the ladies guild of StPaul’s Warragul. She spoke about Divine

Healing, which was onlyjust becoming knownabroad and was barelyknown about in Australia. Aconference of doctors andclergymen had been heldrecently in Melbourne onthe subject and the Arch-bishops of Canterbury andYork had appointed a com-mission to investigate di-vine healing further.Queen Elizabeth II visited

Traralgon parish on March3. Students of St Anne’sschool travelled from Saleto be among the schoolchildren who lined the routeat Traralgon.Bishop Blackwood

farewelled his daughter, DrKathleen, a doctor and herclergyman husband, Rev-erend Philip Taylor, to amedical and evangelisticmission in Pakistan. Theytook with them their chil-dren, Margaret andStephen. Gippsland diocesededicated a mission van thefamily took with them.Another vehicle was dedi-

cated on April 28; theWinifred Shoobridge Moth-ers’ Union Van, given by theMothers’ Unions and LadiesGuilds of Gippsland, for useby Sunday school andYouth Organisers in the dio-cese.Bishop Cranswick and his

son, Dr John Cranswick,visited the diocese in Juneto talk about ABM and CMS.They were hosted by dean-ery rallies and spoke at sev-eral church services. DrJohn and his wife, Dr JoyCranswick, were diocesanown missionaries to southeast Asia.The August issue, 1954,

carried an article describingthe completion of the firstcottage at Clifton WatersVillage, one year after theestablishment of the vil-lage. In all, three cottageswere completed in 1954.Plans of the village werepublished in the Octoberissue. A photograph of Mr and

Mrs T Richards, the firstresidents, was published onpage one, November 1955issue.Unfortunately, the Novem-

ber 1954 issue carried thenews Bishop Cranswick,elected the second bishopof the diocese when stillaged in his 30s, had died.Cranswick served for 24years in Gippsland.This issue contained the

news, also, that BishopBlackwood would retire onNovember 3, to take effectin March, after 12 years atthe helm of Gippsland.The February 1955 issue

marked the return of TheChurch News to a smallerthan A4 size, its pre-warformat, which it continuedthrough the next couple ofissues. It was printedacross eight pages.This newspaper also an-

nounced the election ofCanon Edwin John Davidsonto be the fourth bishop ofGippsland. Davidson was nostranger to Gippsland, hav-ing lived in Sale at the Di-vinity Hostel during hispreparation for ministry.In addition, Deaconess

Georgie Harvey and Dea-coness Nancy Drew had ar-rived in Gippsland, to workat Sale and at Nowa Nowaand Lake Tyers settlementrespectively.The March 1955 issue con-

tained a list of ordinationcandidates; included is FredMorrey, who in 2013 is stillresiding in Gippsland andonly recently retired fromfull time ministry. He wasordained in Gippsland onMay 1, 1959.Still in March 1955, Dea-

coness House Auxiliary wasstarted by Deaconess MavisRodgers, to support and en-courage young women in-terested in this ministry.Reverend KBE Raff was

editor of the newspaper didhis parish was on the frontpage of the September1955 issue, with a photo-graph of the bishop andcommunicants at Morwell.This issue also contained

the news his wife had deliv-ered another son.Upcoming synods in dioce-

ses across Australia weretasked with the responsibil-ity of discussing a proposedconstitution for the Angli-can Church in Australia. Thesubject was first introducedin Brisbane in 1913.The September 1955 issue

of the newspaper grew to10 pages and the Decem-ber issue grew to 16 pages.It was back to eight and 10pages in 1956.Rev. Dr John Flynn, who

spent some time in Gipps-land, was honored in 1956with a Flynn MemorialChurch at Alice Springs anda map was drawn by Shell’scartographers.Also in 1956, the price of

the newspaper increasedfrom fourpence to sixpenceper issue. More photo-graphs began to be seenthrough the pages of thenewspaper.May 1956 saw the cente-

nary celebration of ChristChurch Tarraville, with acommemoration service atthe church at 2.30pm.

A new editor, Rev. KL Mc-Conchie, took over in Sep-tember after Rev. Raff leftthe diocese for Melbourne.The annual conference ofthe Church of EnglandMen’s Society was held atMaffra in June. The front page of Septem-

ber 1956 contained an arti-cle about government aid tochurch schools facing criti-cism. It appears this is thefirst time the Common-wealth had become in-volved in funding churchschools. It was precipitated by the

removal of public servantsto the new capital city andtheir wish for churchschools to be provided fortheir children, in Canberra.The editor also wrote

about changes in the news-paper. He wrote the reader-ship was 6500 but thenewspaper costed £1200 toproduce; the editor encour-aged people to subscribe.In March 1957, the state

of St Paul’s Cathedral andgrounds came under severecriticism. Also criticised wasthe lack of a verger and nogardener.In 1957, Bishop and Mrs

Davidson hosted a gather-ing of synod representa-tives at Bishopscourt at agarden party on the firstevening of synod.Unfortunately, in early

1958, Bp Davidson passedaway and a memorial issuewas produced in May 1958.The Vicar General, LWABenn, met Davidson whenthey were divinity studentsat Sale and wrote abouthim learning to ride a horsein isolated areas such as

Dargo and ride a bicycle be-tween such places as Saleto Rosedale or Lake Tyers.Bp Blackwood returned to

open a Sunday schoolbuilding at St John the Di-vine, Yallourn, on Sunday,May 11.The August 1958 issue an-

nounced the election ofCanon Dr David Garnsey asthe next bishop of Gipps-land. His father and grand-father were clergymen andhe himself was an academicand a Rhodes Scholar, suc-cessful in cricket and row-ing and was a leader in theStudent Christian Move-ment.An Anglican debutante ball

was held in Garfield hall, inBunyip parish, in July 1958and Rev. WL McSpeddenwrote about his calling toprison ministry in the Au-gust issue.Garnsey was consecrated

on February 2, 1959 and hewas enthroned the follow-ing day. On February 21,Gippsland clergy met anAfrican assistant bishop,Yohana Omari, on his CMStour in Australia.St Paul’s church in Bass

celebrated its 80th anniver-sary in November 1958, re-ported in the February 1959issue.The October 1959 issue

contained an article askingreaders to take note of thegovernment’s intent tobegin a Department of So-cial Welfare. The combinedchurches had written to thegovernment expressingconcern about how the of-fice would operate andwhat its terms of referencewould be.

The September 1960 issueprinted a concept plan ofGippsland Grammar Saleand a report that £14,000had so far been raised,from Bairnsdale, Yarram,Sale, Morwell, Leongatha,Orbost and Omeo.The Anglican Family Pro-

gram began broadcastingon 3TR every Saturdaymorning, from February 11,1961.Gippsland’s young adults

and youth were invited toparticipate in the Young An-glican Fellowship camp inMelbourne diocese in Feb-ruary 1962. It was the firstcamp of its kind in Aus-tralia.An article in the June 1962

issue raised the subject ofthe youth camp at A’Beck-ett Park being developed asa conference centre andcamping centre.Christian family year

began in the Latrobe Valleyon June 6 with a rally at-tended by 700 people.The July 1962 issue con-

tained a farewell from theeditor, Harry Kirby, who hadbeen in the role the previ-ous three years. He wassucceeded by Rev. DL deDear, of Foster.Maurice Super, a well

known synodsman, wasawarded an MBE by theQueen, in June 1963.Bp and Mrs Blackwood vis-ited Maffra parish in May1964. The Primate, HRGough, visited Gippslanddiocese in August 1964.A proposed conference

centre for A’Beckett Parkwas published in TheChurch News, October

ABOVE: Bishop Blackwood leads the blessing of the fleet at San Remo, in 1955.Photo: Diocesan archives

From post World War II to VietnamThis month, we look back through the diocesan newspaper, for the period 1954 to 1973.

continued next page

July/August 2013 Our Diocese - Commemorating 110 years of diocesan news 19


from previous page

1964. Bp Garnsey also an-nounced two new editorsfor the newspaper, Revs KLMcConchie and Frank MLowe.In December 1964, the

newspaper printed a photo-graph of the Pratt Buildingrising at A’Beckett Park.In November 1965, Bruthen parish farewelled

Dudley Timmins, who hadserved 60 years on thevestry committee of StMatthew’s, 40 years as achurch warden and manyyears on synod and ondiocesan committees.In December 1965, Rev.

Peter AJ Arch was commis-sioned as the first residentminister of Churchill.Rev. G Bundu, of PapuaNew Guinea, was a guest ofsynod in 1966.In May 1967, the Anglican

Women’s Fellowship helddeanery meetings atDrouin, with guest speaker,Sister Geneveive Cutler, ofCMS Tanzania and atBruthen, with guestspeaker, Deaconess NancyDrew. At a special meeting at

Bairnsdale in April 1966,bringing clergymen, ruraland timber workers to-gether, it became apparentthe church has moved awayfrom being relevant to ruralpeople and rural industries.In February 1967, Rev. AlanScott, of Bruthen, tabled apaper to discuss this matterfurther. An action group was

formed under the Bishop ofGippsland to meet twiceyearly to find solutions tothe problems identified.Miss DE Beadle was look-

ing for information aboutthe Girls Friendly Society, tohelp Mrs KH Bright compilea history from the 1880s inGippsland.Sex was the topic of an ar-

ticle about criticism ofyoung people, in TheChurch News of November

1967. Marriage is the realtalking point, according tothe author.The November 1967

newspaper carried the newsof the funeral of Dr Kath-leen Taylor, late daughter ofBp Blackwood, a missionaryand more recently a resi-dent of Rosedale. The Kath-leen Taylor homes arenamed after her.‘Young people and sex’ is

the topic, again, of an arti-cle in The Church News ofMay 1965. Emphasis wasplaced on Christian stan-dards being upheld withinChristian homes and byChristian people.The August 1968 newspa-

per published a report onGippsland Grammar school,which was offering scholar-ships for entry for boys in1969. Day boys’ enrolmentwas 100 and only two bedsremained empty in GarnseyHouse.In December 1968, the

diocese was looking for twoadditional employees; onewith bookkeeping and typ-ing qualifications and theother to be someone inter-

ested in education and ableto organise the church mailbag school and assist in or-ganising the diocesan boardof Christian education.In October 1968, the

newspaper carried a newname: The Gippsland Angli-can Church News.The July 1969 issue carrieda new page; one devoted tonews of women’s activitiesand points of view in thediocese.In late 1969, Rev. Tasman

Regnier resigned from War-ragul parish, after 13 yearsas rector; the longest in-cumbency in that parish.‘Responsible living today’

was the topic tackled by apanel of four women at theAnglican Women’s Fellow-ship rally, at Moe. Speakerswere Deaconess S Payne,Dr J Solly, Mrs TG Littlejohnand Mrs L Drummond.The war in Vietnam was

mentioned in the issue, No-vember 1969, with an anal-ogous lead article on thefront page, continuing in-side.An article by the editor in

December 1969 encour-

aged churches to not spendmoney on buildings, point-ing out the number ofchurch buildings that wereno longer, or little used bydwindling congregations. In the February 1970

issue, the editor wroteabout the straitened eco-nomic times and ques-tioned why, at times offinancial crisis, the printedword was under threat. Itwas at these times, he ar-gued, it was necessary toinvest in the printed word,to carry the evangelicalmessage.Bishop Garnsey, at an in-

duction service at Moe,spoke of the need for ten-sion between the Churchand State. “Because ofmoral cowardice, theChurch often presents theimage of pro-establish-ment; she misses her voca-tion and finally becomesirrelevant,” the authorwrites.The emerging computer

technology was writtenabout by Bob Clayton in1970; he espoused how thecomputer can be used formost jobs, except those re-quiring creative thought;and endorsed how much itcan add to life and socialdevelopment.Ted Gibson was the editor

of Around the Parishes.Frank Lowe was the news-paper editor. Shirley Savigewas editor of Women’sMeeting Point, pages forwomen’s business.The annual Gippsland

Youth Camp, at A’BeckettPark in March 1970, had asits theme, War, Conscienceand National Service andencouraged each youngperson to examine theirown opinions. Organised byAllan Huggins, the campwas for young people aged15 years and upwards.The lead article in May

1970 was devoted to theChurch in the Space Ageand the motives behindman’s venture into space.The Australian Primate,

Archbishop Strong, an-nounced his resignation inmid-1970. An Englishmanand ex-World War I service-

man, on his journey to be-come Australia’s Primate,he had served as bishop inNew Guinea during WorldWar II and was commendedfor how he led his staff inthe face of the Japanese in-vasion. As Australian’s Anglican

leader, he travelled to everydiocese, travelled to Viet-nam to spend time with theallied forces and preachedat the memorial service ofthe late Harold Holt, PrimeMinister of Australia.In 1971, Bishop Garnsey,

still serving in Gippsland,was also the President ofthe Australian Council ofChurches and took the na-tional stage when Pope Paulvisited this country.Bp Garnsey’s star contin-

ued to rise; he was also theCo-President of the JointSecretariat on Action forWorld Development, along-side the Roman CatholicCo-adjutor Archbishop ofAdelaide, James Gleeson.Mothers’ Union held their

Lady Day celebration atSale on March 25, 1971. Atthe meeting, Mrs E Little-john welcomed Mrs Man-chester, who appealed forcooperation between MUand Young Member’s De-partment (later, Caritas),

ABOVE: Miss Beadle, Amy Turner andMiss Kohn prepare lunch on the road, atthe back of the school bus, while on aschool excursion, 1955.

ABOVE: Reverend Aimes with the congregation after serivice atHedley church.

Photo: Diocesan archives

ABOVE: At Morwell, July 7, 1955, the combined choirs of St Philip's-on-the-Hill andSt Mary's churches, Morwell, at the first confirmation to be conducted in the parishby Bishop of Gippsland, Right Reverend Edwin J Davidson, held at St Philip's-on-th-Hill, Morwell East.

Photo: Diocesan archives

ABOVE: Bishop Blackwoodpainting Blackwood House,1954.

continued next page

20 Our Diocese - Commemorating 110 years of diocesan news July/August 2013


from previous page

whenever possible. Guest speaker was Rev.

Charles Sligo, who dis-cussed primary, secondaryand tertiary education. TheAnglican Women’s Fellow-ship held the annual ruraldeanery rally at Morwell inMay 1971.The August issuecarried coverage of the vio-lence between police anddemonstrators against theSouth African Rugby Tour.In October, the principal of

St Paul’s Home for Boys atNewhaven appealed for bi-cycles for the boys. “To befree to feel the sense of ad-venture and individualitywhen you have a bike ofyour very own,” he wrote.The November 1971 issue

carried a report on the firstyear since a decision wasmade to amalgamate StAnne’s and GippslandGrammar into one school.Rev. Charles Sligo was prin-cipal and Miss Lorna Spar-row was vice-principal; JanIngram, from New Guineaand Russell Needham, ofTraralgon, were the jointschool captains. “One im-mediate benefit has beenincreased academic compe-tition,” the author writes.The Gippsland Anglican

Women’s Fellowship wrotein support of an enquiryinto Australia’s social secu-rity system; covering pay-ment of pensions and otherbenefits to aged, widowed,sick, unemployed peopleand deserted wives.Gippsland’s own Nancy

Drew published a book, TheArt of Being Single, in early1972. Its topic, interpretedas that of retaining virtuewhile remaining a singlewoman, created contro-versy and caused intensepublic scrutiny of the au-thor.Gippsland’s Social Respon-

sibility Committee, ap-pointed by synod, took asits first topic the effect ofdecentralisation on urbanand rural communities; lackof tertiary education andjob opportunities force

many young people toleave Gippsland.Attendees at the YMD con-

ference in April 1972 wereto hear from Mrs Joy Star,of YMD Wangaratta, aboutthe ‘open house’ groups.The AWF annual deaneryrally would be at Maffra inMay 1972. Guest speakerwas to be Mrs Dizon, publicrelations officer for the Mis-sion of St James and StJohn.The Diocesan Board of

Christian Education held atseminar on responsibility atSale in April 1972. A cross-section of the communityattended. Among the top-ics, Eric Kent spoke aboutleadership in public affairsand the value to politiciansof opportunities to meetgroups of people and dis-cuss issues with them.In November 1972, Frank

Lowe wrote “the traditionaltype sermon will be with usfor quite a while if the reac-tion of the recent GippslandClergy Conference is anyindication”. A suggestionthat sermons should be re-duced to one a month wasnot looked on favourably. Lowe suggested that ser-

mons should be well pre-pared and adequatelyresearched, otherwise thepreacher insults the intelli-gence of the listeners.Another suggestion of pre-

marital counselling was metwith scepticism.The February 1973 news-

paper carried an advertise-ment for applications fromdeacons and priests for theBishop Cranswick MemorialScholarships. A sum of$500 per year was payablefor one, two or more years,to promote and encouragepost-ordination training.Gippsland synod met for

six days, from 20 to 26May, in the Cathedral Hallat Sale. Bp Garnsey an-nounced the Primate wouldvisit Gippsland in Novemberthis year. Marriage of di-vorced people was a con-troversial topic that beganto be debated.Mothers’ Union celebrated

its golden jubilee, at StPaul’s Cathedral in Sale, ac-knowledging the first dioce-san meeting atBishopscourt in 1923. In1973, 200 women werewelcomed to Bishopscourtfor a casserole lunch, acake iced in gold and en-joyed a range of speakersand a fashion parade. Mrs ELittlejohn spoke about herparents, and particularlyher mother’s involvement,in beginning MU in Gipps-land in Bishopscourt itself50 years previously.

As 1973 was coming to aclose, Bp Garnsey was look-ing to move on. In fact, hewrote his last letter for the

October 1974 newspaper.He and Mrs Garnsey’s offi-cial farewell was September30.

ABOVE: Fancy dress ball, St Anne’s students, Memorial hall at Sale, 1959.

ABOVE: Youth group at Cowes camp, 1960s, in-cluding Lynette Banks, George Fuhrmeister,Kathryn Ridgway (near centre), Heather and JudithReid (standing) and Ken and Trevor Fuhrmeister(front).

ABOVE: At the CEBS fa-ther and son banquet,1957, at St Philips onthe Hill, Morwell, wereReverend P Pickburn,rector of Morwell, Rev.David Fisher, vicar ofNewborough and CEBSMorwell leader, JohnMatthews.

ABOVE: Madge Browntakes religious instructionin a classroom.RIGHT: Canon GF DouglasSmith, founder of CliftonWaters Village, in Bairns-dale.Photos: Diocesan archives

July/August 2013 Our Diocese - Commemorating 110 years of diocesan news 21


Mothers’ Union turns 50

and hosts fashion parade

TOP: Apparently, not thebishop’s wife!ABOVE: Judith Godfrey, ValAnderson, Gladys Watts,Heather Wigg and Kay Staffwere among the models.LEFT: Bishop and Mrs Gar-nsey hosted Mothers’ Unionmembers to lunch at Bish-opscourt before the fashionparade.

Photos: Diocesan archive

A fashion parade was heldat Bishopscourt on March27, 1973, to celebrate 50years of Mothers’ Union inthe diocese. See page 20also.

ABOVE: Examples of fashion through thepast 50 years, 1923 to 1973, were modelledby Mothers’ Union members, including shoesand jewellery.RIGHT: Merle Jackson, nee Savige, coyly re-veals a hint of bloomers below her dress.

22 Our Diocese - Media and Literary Reviews July/August 2013


By Fay Magee

ONE of the issues creatingconfusion for congrega-tional singing these days isthe use of song or worshipcategories such as ‘tradi-tional’ and ‘contemporary’.The main challenge is thatthe terms are not reallyspecific and I have noticedin different congregationalsettings the terms take onlocal meanings. Broadly speaking, both

terms refer more to pack-aging than content.While ‘popular-sounding’

music has increasingly beenused in worship for morethan 60 years, the mainchallenges have been aidedmore recently by ‘contem-porary’ technology, avail-able through cheaper dataprojectors and music down-loaded from internetsources.What may have been

missed along the way af-fects how we all ‘do wor-ship’, not just those whodisagree with us. Ten yearsago, Marva Dawn wrote aninsightful commentary onPsalm 96 where she foundsome important questions:“How shall we sing the

Lord’s song in this strangeland? How should churchesconduct their worship in themidst of a culture that lessand less knows what wor-ship is? “How might congregations

nurture in their membersdeeper insights into themeaning and practice ofworship? What does itmean to worship?”*To what extent is the mes-

sage of the church andtherefore our worshippingcommunity, helpfullycounter-cultural? Our duty is to show an in-

clusive church and one of

the most useful phrases Ihave come across is ‘inclu-sive yet discerning’ fromprominent writer FrankBurch Brown. It is the title of his most

recent book, Inclusive yetdiscerning: navigating wor-ship artfully, providing aguide to that deeper think-ing about balance, abouttaking in all we can possiblyuse in our worship of God,yet being prepared to eval-uate these resources.One of the critical ideas we

seem to have taken onfrom our wider culture isthat we confuse taste withvalue. It is particularly evident

when talking with adoles-cents about their musicalworld, where what they likemust be good and thatwhat is different will bebad. As a long-time music edu-

cator, I know it is possibleto introduce any sort ofmusic to my students if theapproach is thought out,with an eye to developing abroader perspective. In our worship settings,

while music has an incredi-bly important role to play, itis not the main game.Another issue from our

culture is the way music isoften a signifier of our iden-tity and we expect churchto take that into account. As we think more deeply

and wonder about moremature questions otherthan what we personallylike, perhaps we canachieve a perspective onthe diversity of our commu-nity which can be repre-sented and celebrated in adiversity of music.*Marva Dawn’s book: How

shall we worship? BiblicalGuidelines for the WorshipWars (Tyndale 2003)

FAY Magee (right), music reviewer forThe Gippsland Anglican, recently grad-uated with a Master of Arts from theMCD University of Divinity.Fay described her graduation as a

very atmospheric event. Here thesistopic was Examining contemporarycongregational song - beyond sungtheology.The thesis provided analysis of exam-

ples of congregational song from thelast 30 years as the basis for examiningcontemporary issues in worship. Inparticular it demonstrates how singingconveys meaning beyond the interre-lationship of music and text. Songanalysis can contribute to a more con-structive critique of the use of music inworship and what happens when con-gregations sing.

Faye adds

another bow

to her talent

Well done, Fay and thank you for con-tributing reviews over the past twoyears. Editor.

Singing

diversity in

community

Powers, BW (2013)The Sin We Treat as aVirtue .

THE most serious problemfor us in today’s world is asin that is not regarded asa sin at all. Yet, accordingto Jesus Christ, it is themost subtle and serious ofsins, a deadly danger atwork destroying our lives;and all the while being un-recognised for what it is. Bible teacher and Anglican

priest, Ward Powers, ex-plains in his new book, TheSin We Treat as a Virtue,that this, in its various as-pects, is the major issue inChrist’s teaching: it is thefocus of two-thirds of hisparables; it is prominent inevery major sermon in histeaching; it is the point of agreat many of his shortsayings. Jesus warns about it re-

peatedly: “Watch out! Be-

ware! Be on your guard!Take care!” “It is so subtle that it can

hold us in its grip withoutour being aware of it. It isso common, so ‘normal’ inthe world around us, thatwe do not even see it as asin,” according to Dr Pow-ers.This sin is greed. It is the

desire for more and moremoney, more and morepossessions. More of thestatus and prestige thesethings will bring us. Those who have a meas-

ure of worldly affluence aimto retain it and add to it;those who are poor (or seethemselves as poorer thanothers) yearn to be richer.We are always wantingsomething we do not have.Coveting it.Dr Powers points out how

this universal craving formore and more is even re-garded as a good thing.“This fuels the economy, it

is the motivation forgrowth, it makes the worldfunction,” he states.“Yet Jesus taught it is so

serious a sin that it hindersa person entering the King-dom of Heaven and de-prives them of eternal life.Paul said greed is a form ofidolatry and can destroy aperson. “We dare not treat this

matter lightly. Christ didn’t.Paul didn’t.”The author, Dr Powers, is

an Australian Anglican min-ister. His book The Sin WeTreat as a Virtue (180pages) examines the Bible’steaching about how God in-tends us to handle thisworld’s goods and how tolive in accord with theteaching of Christ. The book is $14.99 and is

available from St Andrew’sCathedral bookshop,Koorong, other bookshopsor from the author, B WardPowers, 02 9590-3944.

Author warns about the

danger in Christ’s teaching

Walker, D (2012) Peculiar Goings On.London: Canterbury Press

By Jeanette Severs

IN Australia, the cartoons of Michael Leunigare popular for their philosophical musings.Dave Walker applies a talent for cartoondrawing with philosophical musings aboutchurch.Church is sometimes described as the place

where things that don’t fit anywhere else can

happen, he states, applying this perspectiveto his Guide to Church cartoons.Walkers cartoons vary from the periodic

table of churchgoers, such as organist, reader,acolyte, young mother, concise intercessor tochurch warden; to the chair straighteners atthe cathedral; the verger’s store cupboard;and posing the question, ‘what is behind theladders in the north transept’.For a refreshingly amusing take on the is-

sues facing the church as well as secret busi-ness and ordinary activities, dip into Walker’sbook.

Cartoons or philosophy

July/August 2013 Our Diocese - Media and Literary Reviews 23


Blythe, R (2013) VillageHours. Canterbury Press.

By Nick Mattiske

RONALD Blythe, now agedover 90 years, has writtenmany books, including the best-selling Akenfeld; and there arenow at least half a dozen in theWormingford series, where hecompiles weekly articles forChurch Times (United King-dom). Regular readers of Blythe will

see the familiar here in VillageHours; the turning of the sea-sons on his farm and surround-ing countryside, the rhythms ofthe church year, keeping hiswild garden under some sort ofcontrol, the pleasure of booksand the seemingly timelesslandscape that is never-the-lessquite different to times past.This instalment sees him com-

menting on the way the fieldsnearby are graced by a tractor,or a solitary girl attending ahorse, where 50 years ago andmore the fields were a bustle of

human activity. A friend is planting an orchard

full of forgotten varieties, inorder to recapture some of theglories of this past rural life. In his house, bequeathed to

him by the artist John Nash,whose paintings regularly fea-ture on the cover of Blythe’sbooks, he deals with books that“topple about”. Outside, he plants beans,

prunes trees and monitors thecomings and goings, and mostlyrestings, of his white cat.As John Updike has noted,

Blythe’s work has a particularityabout it regarding place thatsometimes requires from thereader a measure of under-standing of local village andparish life with which Blythe issaturated. This familiarity is repeated in

his attitude to writers, such asSamuel Johnson and VirginiaWoolf, who he may not havemet, but who are never-the-less treated like friends.This is especially true of the

English rural poet, John Clare,of whose society Blythe is pres-

ident. Clare’s life tangled artand rural working life, twothings too often seen as sepa-rate. Blythe has a natural affinity

with Clare, as his writing is fullof what a recent interviewercalled “the union of physical andartistic concerns”. The style in these Worming-

ford books is different to hisother writing, being less consid-ered and less academic, butmore poetic. These are diary entries, but of

an exquisite sort. They are honed and succinct,

but enthusiastic, engaged andsurprised by beauty, especiallyin the natural world. Not in the sublime elements

though; rather, in the small,sparkling moments oftenmissed by those with a lesskeen eye and quicker gait. He recognises that not every-

one sees as he does, but hisbooks continue to give pleasurethrough their never-nostalgicbut heart-warming concentra-tion on his slice of rural and lit-erary life.

Blythe writes about life’s rhythms

Greenman JP,Schuchardt RM andToly NJ (2012) Under-standing Jacques Ellul.Wipf and Stock Pub-lishers.

By Nick McKenzie

JAQUES Ellul was a Frenchphilosopher, historian andlay theologian, most fa-mous in France for a fivevolume work on the historyof legal institutions. Officially he was Professor

of History and Sociology ofInstitutions, but he alsospent time in the French re-sistance and in local gov-ernment, which contributedto his scepticism, from aChristian perspective, overmodern society, for whichhe is best known in theEnglish speaking world, inbooks such as The Meaningof the City and The Techno-logical Society. He was heavily influenced

by Karl Marx’s analysis ofthe problems of capitalistsociety, while being criticalof Marxism’s solutions. Another major influence

was Karl Barth and one wayof looking at Ellul’s volumi-nous output is to see it as

using the second Karl tobuild on the first. Ellul saw a Christian in so-

ciety as, in Stanley Hauer-was’s phrase, the “residentalien”, very much involvedin worldly, political affairs,but as an outsider fightingparticularly against moder-nity’s tendency to dehu-manisation. Ellul’s books critique the

modern tendency to seetechnology and techniqueas valuable per se, ratherthan simply means to anend. In a memorable image, he

suggests we are movingever faster, but have for-gotten where we are going. These views saw him la-

belled as a technophobeand made him an outsider,but his prophetic viewshave become weightier asthe cost in environmentalterms of technological ad-vance becomes ever moreapparent. Ellul’s critique also reaches

into the Church, particularlythe tendency, after statesanction from Constantineonwards, to imitate theworld in various ways. This critique takes some

interesting turns, such aswith his view of women in

the Church. He argues the Church has

imitated the world in termsof hierarchy, which has re-sulted (he argues in TheSubversion of Christianity),among other things, in theexclusion of women fromthe leadership roles theywere used to in the earlychurch. This is an upending of the

usual view that the push forwomen’s ordination is a re-sult of the influence ofmodern, secular ideology. It is a hallmark of his work

to relentlessly questionwhat we take for granted inour thinking about bothchurch and world.

Insights into Ellul

reveal a critic with

humanist interests

Book explores

Australia’s PMs

and their faithsWilliams, R (2013) InGod they trust? BibleSociety of Australia.

By Suzanne Schokman

ROY Williams poses thequestions: Which of ourPrime Ministers believed inGod? and Who were the‘best’ Christians? in thisnew book.Most of Australia’s leaders

since Federation believed inGod. Some were seriousChristians and very fewwere indifferent towards re-ligion.In this timely and original

book, In God they trust?,Williams examines the spir-itual life of each of ourPrime Ministers, from Ed-mund Barton to JuliaGillard. He explores theways in which, for good andill, their beliefs or agnosti-cism has shaped the historyand development of the na-tion.Featuring a foreword by

Kim Beazley and extensiveinterviews with JohnHoward and Kevin Rudd,and pulling no punches, InGod they trust? will appealto voters across party linesand excite plenty of debateamong believers and non-believers alike.“Williams is examining

statesmanship at its mostcomplex but perhaps deep-est source,” writes KimBeazley.Roy Williams was born in

1963. He won the SydneyUniversity Medal in law in1986 and practised as a lit-igator for almost 20 yearsat one of the country’sleading firms. He nowwrites full-time. Since 2006, his book re-

views have appeared regu-larly in the WeekendAustralian newspaper. His first book, God, Actu-

ally, a rational defence ofChristianity, was a best-seller in Australia and hassince been published inBritain and North America. In God they trust? RRP:

$19.95, hardback. ISBN978-0-647-51855-7

24 Our Diocese - Pictorial July/August 2013


At Mothers’ Union June Join In

LEFT: Alisha Jones, Roma Hornbyand Jan Misiurka.RIGHT: Judy Bunting in charge ofthe trading table.BELOW: Helen Davis and BishopJohn McIntyre.BELOW left: Jean Benjamin andMargaret Raymond, both of New-borough, share fellowship withMoe members, Beryl Brien(standing), Shirley Ryan andLainey Moore.BOTTOM: Tim Rock, Alan Priceand Luke McCord were the guestspeakers.

Photos: Karin McKenzie

Mothers valued at

Orbost’s breakfastORBOST parish often feels blessed theirrector, Bevil Lunson, was a chef. For theMothers Day breakfast, the men cookedand the womens were waited on. Lotsof great food, starting with cereal andcontinuing with bacon, eggs of everydescription, sausages, croissants andpancakes with berry sauce. Thirty-sixmembers of the congregation and other

people from the community enjoyed thebreakfast. BELOW left: Barbara Anderson stand-ing, Margaret Webber seated and HelenMcDonald in background.RIGHT: Judy ‘Walcott, Beryl Macalister,Joe and Ann Aalbers and Marj Norton.BELOW: Veronica Day and daughterJanelle.

Documents

TGA July/August 2013