Archive for the ‘Administration’ Category

Peppering- March 2010

There has been such a lot going on. We have had the induction of  the Rev Dr Ji Zhang to The Gardiner Congregation and the Rev Peter Whitaker to Leighmoor Congregation. The pictures are of the Leighmoor event.

With its new minister the Congregation is looking to become a prayerful centre of the community and a regional congregations serving in and beyond its immediate neighbourhood.

Gardiner with its new minister is looking forward to an amazing future. They have agreed to share their fabulous facilities with the English speaking Korean Congregation but wait there is more, this new part of Gardiner will have a newly ordained young Minister. Robin Yang  is to be ordained on Sunday May 2. More details later.

We still struggle with need to change and in the light of our vision we see the need have regular meetings of Presbytery in Council but also to have regional meetings to enable neighbouring Congregations to work collaboratively on the mission of the church.

We look forward to a fruitful year with our new Chair, the Reverend Nicole Lourensz who is a Chaplain at Wesley College Mt.Waverley Campus. We pray God's blessing on her ministry among young people.  Whilst on the topic of young people we have seen the great work of Pastor Hannah Dungan in getting a regional Youth Happening happening.

Within our bounds we have a number of Missions, and they are all doing really exciting things. Prahran Mission is currently redeveloping their Chapel St facilities.  Go to their website and have a look. What they really would like from the Presbytery is for congregations to be prayer partners. To pray for members of the staff and some of the people they serve who have particular needs. Please get in touch with the mission if you think your congregation might be able to offer this vital support.

St.Kilda Parish Mission is another place where the most exciting ministry is taking place. They have been working for some time on a project to redevelop their site so that it would include some socially inclusive housing as well as create a wonderful new community centre. We pray that their exciting project will proceed and be a blessing to the St.Kilda Community.

Most of our congregations are deeply immersed in the Lenten Season and preparation for Good Friday and Easter. They have walked the way the Cross and many will engage in public marches of witness. We are blessed to confess Christ Crucified and Risen. The message of peace and hope needs to be heard and seen in the public spaces of our communities. Many will start this with a Palm Sunday March or join in large festival like expressions with Christains and non-Christians alike after all Jesus said that people who were not against his teachings but who lived his vision need to be orked with by his disciples, us.

Have a Blessed Easter.

David

Pilgrimage

A new journey is planned for us as part of being on the way together!

I sit here in my office on Shrove Tuesday, reflecting on the coming weeks.What!  no pancakes?   The day before Ash Wednesday is variously known as Pancake Day, or Shrove Tuesday. The French know it as Mardi Gras (Greasy Tuesday) It is the day to clear out all the old greasy foods (yummy) and prepare to fast
during the coming Season of Lent.

Looking ahead to the lectionary readings for Ash Wednesday I observed that God doesn’t appear
to be all that interested in our fasting. It seems that the focus is on coming to live righteous lives.
I’m sure that during these coming weeks and months that we can begin to earnestly be a people at
prayerful mission. The Presbytery has set out a prayer calendar and each week invites congregations
within its bound to pray for the congregations listed.

This week we are praying for Beaumaris/Blackrock
They seek prayer for
- the guidance of the Holy Spirit for discernment and wisdom in our mission panning work this year.
- a blessing on our activities through Lent and Easter: our annual Pancake Night, Ash Wednesday service and the various special Lenten worship services and discussion groups, ecumenical Stations of the Cross on Good Friday.
- uphold the regional initiative to hold a monthly youth service among Uniting Churches in the Bayside/Kingston area which our Youth Group is keen to participate in.

and for Narre Warren North.
They seek prayer for
- their Opportunity Shop Project as they explore ways to engage with their community.
-they are building a shed as part of the project and seek the Spirit's guidance
on their increasing their inclusive fellowship.
Both these congregations have wonderful websites which can help you see what
their mission is. As we mature this process of delivering you Peppering we will begin
to see photos and information from the specific congregations.

Check the resources area of this website for the prayer calendar to see
when your congregation is listed and so that you can send information to me for inclusion.

Just last Sunday February14, the Presbytery ordained Julie Ross to Ministry of the Word at High Street Road UC in Mount Waverley. To see the Presbytery in celebratory mode is joyful and solemn. After we ordained then we inducted Julie to Ministry at High Street Rd in which she had carried out her Intern Year. Celebration and promise, joy and hope were strongly present. As it was the Transfiguration of Jesus ( The last Sunday of the Epiphany) a strong theme of ministry as transformational was put forward. The liberation theology of the Exodus and the role of the prophet in announcing God’s call of the people to justice, was seen as being summed up in Jesus.

The Presbytery has been busy in Celebration with other inductions Rev Dr Ji Zhang at Gardiner, and  Rev Peter Whitaker to Leighmoor. There are more on the way and is really exciting to see all the Presbytery together. On the 24^th we will gather as the Presbytery in Council at Serrell St East Malvern. It too will be a celebration as we install the new Chairperson, Rev Nicole Lourensz. We will also want to thank the outgoing Chairperson Rev Dr Graeme Sutton for his splendid leadership into the new Presbytery Structure.

Here at the office ( without pancakes!) I am engaged with a number of matters pertinent to my areas of responsibility. Currently we are collecting the property audits that congregations have done. After completion of the Essential Services Compliance this probably would have been seen as another drag. Given the state of the current Synod budget we need to have a clear picture of our resources and how they are being utilised. I would encourage you to see it as preparation for the Pilgrimage.

Let’s walk in the footsteps of Jesus, together,

Grace and Peace to you,

David Peel

waddyaknow

Welcome,

The Presbytery Ministry Team, is currently engaged with a range of  exciting activities. One of which is the building and developing of the  Presbytery Website. Naturally the technical stuff is being down by a Web designer and administrator – namely Joss Terrell.

As the Presbytery Minister-Administration I will be looking to develop this site as an exciting place of information sharing. Information is  more than just data, information is that which changes the behaviour of the system.

We all get messages which we ignore or miss through inattention, so we are hopefully going to see here, messages which will change behaviour. Messages that move people to change.

There’s more but don’t wait…get on with life.

David Peel