Official welcomes from the Diocesan community were given at Bishop Peter’s consecration. Below Bev Birch writes on behalf of the laity and Archdeacon Stephen Pullin on behalf of the clergy of the Diocese.

Bishop Peter, it is my very great privilege to welcome you, Nicki, Rebekah and Ben to Newcastle on behalf of the Lay community of our Diocese.

We have been praying for you all since your calling to this role, and I assure you of our prayers as you all settle into the new lives which each of you are now commencing. 

As we meet  each other over the coming weeks and months, you will add richly to the colour of our Diocese – for we are miners, we grow grapes and export wines, we are farmers, office and construction workers, we are teachers, students, healers, and volunteers, and we are all  people serving our Lord. 

We look forward to all your special gifts, Bishop Peter, as we continue our journey into new expressions of Church, and offer to you, to Nicki, Rebekah and Ben our hospitality, but above all, we offer you our friendship.    

Welcome!

Bev Birch

It is a great pleasure and privilege to welcome you Bishop Peter on behalf of our Diocesan Clergy and of course to welcome also Nicola,  Ben and Rebekah as you begin your time in this Diocese.

The Diocese of Newcastle has a long and proud history of service among and with the people of God.

As one of the earliest established Dioceses of the Australian Church, it has sought to live its commission in a focused way with an attitude of faithfulness to the God who has called us, and of dedication to the proclamation of the Gospel of truth and life among the peoples with whom God has placed us.

Of course in its 162 years of existence, there has been enormous change in the nature of the communities we serve, and in the challenges that we face.

That same fact of change continues even today as we once again face the issues of both economic stress and societal uncertainty and apprehension.

Nevertheless, our parishes and faith communities, our sector ministries and agencies, our schools and community ministries all remain faithful, and continue to engage in the processes of living the Gospel today and supporting and encouraging those whom we are called to serve.

It is to this place and time that God has brought you, Bishop Peter, and from this place and time that we now share together in the privilege of ministry together as servants and stewards of all that our God has entrusted to us.

You and your family will find among the clergy of our Diocese a warm welcome and a strong commitment to all that we do.

We look forward to working with you, and to getting to know you and you getting to know us in the tasks we will share together individually and collectively in the future.

We are a diverse group, from many different backgrounds, who offer to the people of God in this Diocese both a wealth of experience and a desire for openness to the leading of the Spirit as we move into God’s future together.
I assure you of our prayerful and practical support in the ministry God has called you to exercise among us.

We look forward with anticipation to recognising and affirming the gifts and talents that you also bring to our shared journey, and the contribution that you will make to enriching the life and witness of our many ministries.

Our prayer continues for you, and indeed for us all, as we write the next chapter of the history of this Diocese.

May it be seen to be led by the spirit of God enabling the people of God and lived to the glory of the God whose love and power we proclaim together.

Archdeacon Stephen Pullin

Visit the gallery to view more pictures from Bishop Peter’s consecration.

The Primates of the Anglican Communion met in February in Alexandria, Egypt. A report follows:

The title of the Primates’ official communiqué is “Deeper Communion; Gracious Restraint”, highlighting the common theme of the Primates’ meeting.

At the press briefing the Archbishop of Canterbury said the spirit of the meeting had been very constructive and while people might not have changed their minds on key issues there had been a willingness to listen and to try to find accommodations for each other.

The Archbishop of Canterbury went on to outline the main items from the meeting including the report of the Windsor Continuation Group which contained three main elements as outlined in the communiqué:

1) The need for a shift of focus in the life of the communion from autonomy of provinces with communion added on, to communion as the primary reality with autonomy and accountability understood within that framework.

2) A set or recommendations about the instruments of communion and how they should work. All four, the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Primates’ Meeting, The Anglican Consultative Council and the Lambeth Conference, need some looking at as to whether their present structures of working are adequate to the situation.

3) The current situation in North America and the coalition of the Anglican churches of North America.

The continuation group report notes the enormous difficulties of parallel jurisdiction but also recognises the desire of these groups to be Anglicans and be in relationship with the Anglican Communion.

The recommendation was that the Archbishop of Canterbury convenes a professionally resourced mediation process.

In addition there was support for the appointment of a pastoral forum and pastoral visitors who can act as consultants in situations of stress and conflict.

The Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Rowan Williams also spoke about the Primates’ statement on Zimbabwe and of hearing harrowing first hand reports from the region and from Zimbabwe itself. He also talked about the statement on the situation in Sudan and about the brief statement on Gaza, calling for greater support for humanitarian effort and support for ceasefires.

ACNS

The Encounter spoke with Dr John McDowell, the inaugural Morpeth Chair, to learn more about his background as well as his impressions of Newcastle.

Can you explain your background and experience?
 
I was born and brought up an Irish Presbyterian in the town of Larne in Co. Antrim, although my real passion for scriptural reading came largely through  attending a large local Brethren Sunday School.  From as far back as I can recall I, as do most children, asked provocative questions, but was rarely satisfied with the responses I received – I suppose that’s a pretty common story among academic theologians.  Fortunately that early inquisitiveness remained unquenched the more I learned and participated in church life, and it contributed to my desire from my mid-teens onwards to enter the ministry. 

In 1989  I pursued theological study at Aberdeen University, and that felt like something of a coming home for me.  Not only was I able to experience the richness of the ancient Christian traditions, and the complexity of Christian discernment and reasoning in an hospitable environment, but was able to meet, befriend, argue and worship with people from Christian traditions other than my own (I even met, and married 3 years later, Sandra who is the daughter of a Baptist pastor). 

It was there that I learned the importance of refusing to be dogmatically ignorant about “others”, and yet equally refusing to be indifferent to real differences. What was particularly important for a Northern Irish Presbyterian like myself, schooled as I had been in a rather stringent denominational partisanship, was coming to believe that fear and ignorance too easily cloud our judgment about “others”, and that these are not qualities worthy of a follower of Christ called to witness to the oneness of the Church in him. 

Around my third year there my sense of what type of ministry I would engage in began to shift, and an academic training beckoned.  In 1994 I moved to Cambridge University to study under the significant English Roman Catholic theologian Nicholas Lash. By this time my wife and I were attending an Anglican church, another string in the burgeoning ecumenical bow, and working with a large youth group. 

In 2000 my dream job arrived in the form of the Meldrum Lectureship in Systematic Theology at Edinburgh University.  I had a wonderful eight years there, teaching Christian dogmatics, acting from 2006 as the School of Divinity’s Director of Undergraduate Studies, developing an interactive multimedia approach to lecturing, preaching in various churches, and being involved as a member of the Church of Scotland’s Doctrine Commission. 

What are you most looking forward to about this new role?
 
With the publication of another book in a couple of years’ time I was heading for a personal Chair in Divinity, and then the opportunity arose in the form of the new Chair at Newcastle.  There were a number of things that intrigued me about the Morpeth Professorship.  Most importantly, the fact that it was a new position would give me a blank canvas on which to contribute to the development of theology in Newcastle. 

The fact that the study of theology largely takes place in denominational colleges in Australia makes Newcastle’s an appealing position, which hopefully means that it will prove to contribute significantly to theology in Australia in general. 

The prospect of encouraging theologians to maintain the highest educational standards, while forcing both them to engage with many different disciplines and the universities to take theology seriously in their own business, is exciting.  Also, with the close links particularly, but not exclusively, to the Anglican Diocese I believe that there is real potential for theology to serve the church in deeper ways than merely training its ministers for  three to four years.  Also, there is the possibility of developing links both with theologians and theological colleges in South East Asia, and with the vast range of disciplines at Newcastle University this was too good an opportunity to pass up for both myself and my large family (wife Sandra and 5 children). 

What are your first impressions of Australia? 

My wife and I have been deeply impressed by the generousness and hospitableness of the people we have met so far.  Australians have a reputation among the Brits of being “laid back” and this is certainly also true of many I’ve encountered in Newcastle.  These are qualities my wife and I very much appreciate, especially in moving from the rat race of Scotland’s capital city.  The great sunshine, beaches and coastline, of course, hardly need a mention, and the food has been of a high standard.  So far we have thoroughly enjoyed ourselves, and the only thing my boys and I have missed has been watching top quality football, soccer I should say, as we’re huge Liverpool fans. 

If people wish to find out more about studying theology at Newcastle University what can they do? 

The first and most obvious port of call would be the theology section of the School of Humanities and Social Sciences’ website.  This site is an ongoing project, however, and is still at a relatively early stage.  The ladies in the School’s office would be very helpful to contact.  Lastly, prospective students can always contact me with any further queries they may have: john.mcdowell@newcastle.edu.au<//link>.