Training Event #5 in Epping (Sydney)

Posted by Ted; Saturday evening, 23 May.

Today was our fifth day in a row of teaching without a break. We even managed to leave Handorf at 4:30 pm, drive to Adelaide, and fly to Sydney last night in time to teach a full-day seminar in the Sydney area.

Francis has done a great job of posting some of our experiences. It was difficult for us both to post since we were using the same Internet sign up (to save on costs -- more expensive here than in US or Canada). But I have a couple more items to mention about our last week's ventures before describing today.

On Monday 18 May, we visited Australian Lutheran College, the seminary for Lutheran Church of Australia. As we toured, we learned that the college boards a number of students that attend other universities in the area and met a few of those students -- each one of them a great representative of the Aussie spirit. We were privileged to attend chapel at the seminary, and then join the seminary professors for tea. Most of them attended one of the two 3-day training events at Handorf, and two or three will be attending our five day Church Reconciler Training in Sydney next week. The seminary professors expressed interest in incorporating this training into the seminary curricula for preparing pastors for the parish. It is very exciting to see such a large percentage of seminary leaders attending the training and express their desire to incorporate peacemaking into their work.

On Tuesday, 19 May, we taught 14 people from the education side of LCA. Teachers, Principals, Chaplins, Deans, and people from the district administrative staff all came together to learn about biblical peacemaking. The Lutheran School system in Australia is impressive. Those we met with could see how biblical peacemaking can be incorporated into several aspects of school ministry. Through the schools' ministries, they reach a huge number of non-believers because so many take advantage of their Christian education. Unlike the US, Australia provides a large percentage (60% or more?) of the financial support needed to run a Christian school. Thus, they are able to provide quality education as reasonable costs to families, and they attract many from outside the church. What better place to teach the Christian faith than how the schools deal with conflict? I suspect we'll hear more about biblical peacemaking in the schools in the future.

Since Australia features people from all over the world, our events have included people who originally came from a number of places: Aboriginal peoples, Europe, India, Sudan, Ethiopia, Canada, US, Malaysia, and more. I especially enjoyed visiting with some from India, since I have taught peacemaking among Lutherans in India over five different trips.

I was quite interested in talking to several people who are involved in Aboriginal ministries. The Lutheran Church of Australia has a significant number of Aboriginal people in its churches and schools, especially in the Alice Springs area. As Francis and I have talked to Aboriginal ministry leaders (including Aboriginal people and white people), they have expressed a great need and desire to use biblical peacemaking among the people they serve. They have shared how they envision adapting the material for their cultural context, but were thankful to be a part of this training and excited to use it. Pastor Simon (Aboriginal pastor) expressed his personal excitement and appreciation for the training. He works in the Alice Springs area. Also from that area is Pastor Basil who works with Pastor Simon to serve several tribes with different languages. Over the years, Pastor Basil has seen tremendous growth in attendance by native peoples as he has incorporated several languages into one worship service.

Today, in Epping (Sydney area), we had the privilege of teaching mostly lay people again. They express their appreciation in so many ways, both in person verbally, through their faces, and in written feedback. They overwhelmingly thanked us and the Lutheran Church of Australia for today's Bible study seminar. And, they are asking for more training and resources in peacemaking. It is clear that the laity are eager to learn about biblical peacemaking and saw immediate application in all their vocations.

Also at today's seminar was Kaye Simpendorfer, who has been one of our key contacts in Australia helping set up everything for the last several months. Kaye works in the New South Wales District office with District President Neville Otto (my main contact for this training), and she made many of the arrangements for travel for us, lodging, helping print and distribute training materials, and much more. She's been just fantastic to work with, and all of us at Ambassadors of Reconciliation praise God for her servant's heart and work.

Helen, who works in the South Australia District Office for District President Robert Voigt, was also great to work with. She was largely responsible for receiving over 800 books and tape sets and sending them out to individual pastors throughout Australia and New Zealand. Her office was piled high with boxes from the US (which Melissa in our office put together), and then she had to ship materials to about 400 different places. Just imagine what that takes, all in addition to normal duties.

Our Lutheran Aussie friends are simply amazing to work with. What a privilege to be with them and serve them in sharing God's peace. We see God at work in his people, and we know that God will bring forth a harvest of righteousness. As St. James declares, "Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness" (James 3:18).