More than half the people aged over 55 in the Blue Mountains would go to church if a friend invited them, according to a recent doorknock and phone survey conducted by Springwood-Winmalee Anglican Churches. Churches in the lower Blue Mountains have now decided to bring church to their neighbours instead, in a series of moves to reach the growing number of retirees and families attracted by lower real estate prices and the semi-rural lifestyle.
Eight laypeople have experienced their first taste of full-time and part-time ministry through the ‘Mid-Mountains Ministry Training Strategy’ (MMMTS), an initiative of Springwood-Winmalee. The training program uses the structure of the well-known Ministry Training Strategy (MTS), but has a focus on reaching out to the tight-knit community, from ‘young children to senior citizens’.
Locations for ministry are also changing, with traditional buildings being renovated or moved out of altogether. A converted factory will house Christ Church, Springwood’s two growing congregations by the end of the year. The evening service moved to an RSL club and is now meeting at a local school.
The Rev Graham Crew, rector of Springwood-Winmalee, says the new locations have proved to be ‘less threatening’ to non-churchgoers.
“Most people move to the Mountains because of the lifestyle and are often looking for the sort of loving community our churches offer,” he said. “Many in our area are sympathetic to the Christian faith. While life is busy here there is still time to build relationships which foster the openness to talk about God.”
It is an experience that strikes at the heart of the vision behind MMMTS.
“We’ve taken up the MTS idea of ministry apprenticeship especially by focusing outwards and saying ‘this is more than just a local church thing’,” Mr Crew said. “MMMTS is not just for the benefit of local churches but for God’s work more broadly. We wanted to indigenise [it] so we’ve tried to give it our own local flavour.” Springwood-Winmalee hopes that within five years another ten people will be trained in MMMTS through ‘Club 10’, a spin-off from the successful Club 5 conference series.
The plans are part of a larger church plant strategy to double the size of Springwood-Winmalee within five years. The church hopes to hold a Kid’s Club in every local primary school with a church plant attached.
Strong training partnerships are a response to the considerable distance from Sydney’s theological colleges. Springwood-Winmalee and Glenbrook are in their second year of running the Blue Mountains Bible College. Both churches are running Moore College’s Preliminary Theological Certificate for their members unable to travel the long distance to Moore’s Parramatta campus.
Despite these developments, clergy say they share the same struggles in evangelising their community.
The Rev Wayne Presbury, rector of Glenbrook, says it is easy for thriving churches to become too comfortable or complacent, especially when the church building is too full to house any more people.
“The struggle we’re having is not just to welcome people, but to open our lives to them. When you get to a certain size you think ‘we have all we need’. Part of the way to break that is to start new congregations.”
But the benefits of ministry training do not cease at the foot of the mountains. “Our motto is ‘training and ministering locally, sending globally’, says Mr Crew. “We’re not training people to stay here. MMMTS has the aim of sending out our best people to serve in Christ’s world mission.
“The local church associations are strong in the mountains. Events often work well when there is sufficient commonality. We work with other churches on a ministry-by-ministry basis, not for the sake of some false ecumenism, but where we believe it is the most effective for God’s kingdom.”
