New & Renewing Ministry
We live in times of great change and the Uniting Church continues to adapt in order to bring life in all its fullness as promised by Christ. Indeed, one of the Synod’s strategic priorities is “inspiring and enabling more new contextual Christian communities to be born, and to renew existing ones to be more faithful and missional”.
Throughout Victoria and Tasmania many communities have responded to the call of living out the Gospel in fresh ways, with the number of new communities now totalling about 50.
The greatest opportunity for further renewal may lie within the vast missional activities that already operate within the church. A report of New & Renewing Communities across the Synod of Victoria and Tasmania has identified 206 of these. To download the report, click here.
Opportunities and Resources
eLM provides many opportunities and resources for presbyteries, congregations and individuals who are seeking to explore what it means to be at mission in new and renewing ways in the 21st century. This includes providing workshops and sharing video stories.
Resources
Online Learning – The New Paradigm Project
To discuss this unique opportunity please contact Mat Harry (contact details below).
Workshop
We offer the popular workshop If Jesus Wrote a Mission Plan to all presbyteries and congregations throughout Victoria and Tasmania. It provides an introduction to a simple discipleship process for congregations and communities and is particularly valuable for congregations who are already engaged in missional activities.
For further information or to book your workshop, please contact Mat Harry (contact details below).
What people have said about our If Jesus Wrote a Mission Plan workshop:
“It was really a great day and your method of delivery and the content was positive and engaging. I found it really thought-provoking.” Geoff Trease, Leongatha
“It was really helpful to think of the steps for Jesus's mission. I would like to have a copy of your Powerpoint presentation so I can discuss it with others.” Rev Gi won Kang, Mooroopna
“We really enjoyed your engaging leadership and input. The challenge now is to keep the impetus alive.” Rev Denise Naish, Wodonga
Ideas for conversation
Here’s some thoughts from Mat about using what we have learned in lockdown.
Email List
It is important for those attempting to do things differently to be encouraged and supported; to hear what other practitioners are experimenting with and learning. To that end a regular email of encouragement and provocation can be sent to your inbox. If you would like to receive this please email our New & Renewing Communities Catalyst, Rev Mat Harry.
Stories
Our New Ways video series showcases five examples of churches attempting new or renewed ways of being. We hope these short stories inspire you to think about the possibilities within the contexts that God has located you.
Rev Mat Harry
New and Renewing Communities Catalyst
Mat came to faith in his mid-20s and responded to a call to ordained ministry. Within his first placement, Mat helped the congregations of Hampton Park and Narre Warren Nth realise how they were already strongly engaging with the local community. With the help of congregation, pastoral support groups and other agencies, such as UnitingCare and Messy Church, Mat was instrumental in helping form new Christian communities. Mat has been in his current role since 2018. To find out more about Mat and his job, click here.
Email: [email protected]
Mobile: 0413 309 280
Phone: 03 9340 8823
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Related Documents
| Title | Date modified | Download |
|---|---|---|
| New and Renewing Report to Synod 2022 | 24-05-2022 | DownloadPreview |
| New and Renewing Report | 25-05-2021 | DownloadPreview |
| If Jesus Generic Flyer | 03-12-2019 | DownloadPreview |