Sandy Brodine
Younger Generations Education and Strategy Coordinator
What has been your journey with, and connection to, the Uniting Church?
I have been a member of the Uniting Church since I was 14. I switched across because I saw that the Uniting Church had women ministers, and that excited me, even though I’d never met one. I also liked the more creative approach to worship. Oh yes, and the youth camps and events were awesome.
As I got older I came to appreciate the Uniting Church’s theology of radical inclusion, and its commitment to social justice. I began studying theology in my 20s, candidated in my 30s, was ordained at 40 and I still love the UCA.
What makes the Uniting Church so special?
Whenever I meet people in the wider community and mention the Uniting Church, people are aware that we are a Church that “walks the talk”. We are committed to caring for those at the margins, and we are not afraid to have the difficult conversations.
As I work ecumenically with people committed to younger generations, I am grateful for our ability to embrace different styles of worship, and to try new ways of being church. Our commitment to “ordered liberty” in worship makes it much easier to make creative changes to welcome people of all ages, and also to embrace people who are neurodiverse.
You are heavily involved with Messy Church: why is it so important?
I love Messy Church. I’m involved locally, as well as with the Australian team and the international key leaders. Messy Church embodies all of the things that I love about the Uniting Church in its core values: Being Christ-centred, creative, open to all ages and abilities, being creative and offering hospitality for all. Messy Church is an ecumenical movement that provides resources and support that make it possible for people who want to start an all-age community but have little experience to give it a go.
Why is your role within eLM as Younger Generations Education and Strategy Co-ordinator so important?
I am fortunate to be able to travel around the state and offer enthusiastic mentoring and training where people are working with younger generations. I’m also involved in educating people in intergenerational ministry as part of the eLM team. I see it as an opportunity to connect, to inspire and to encourage learning as UCA communities seek to grow thriving intergenerational communities of faith. As the Faithful Futures project rolls out around Victoria and Tasmania, there are more opportunities to work directly with presbyteries and congregations to develop their own visions for how they will work with younger generations in their local communities.
What does the future look like for the Uniting Church?
I see a bright future for the Uniting Church. Whilst there are clearly hurdles to overcome in many places, as I travel around Victoria and Tasmania I see many new shoots of communities where people are coming to know Jesus and are learning to follow Christ. Although the UCA of the future may be smaller and look different, I have no doubt that at heart we will remain a church that embraces people of all ages, cultures, neurodiversities and genders. I am excited to see what emerges as we continue to journey on the way together.