Reflecting on a week at Christ Church, St Laurence, Sydney.

As I write this I am waiting for my flight back to Brisbane. Airports are strange places, full of people on the move, in a rush to get somewhere else!

Over the last three years, it has seemed at times that parish life has been similar, people coming and going, and a sense of urgency to “get somewhere” and move the parish forward. Taking some time away from the business of parish life to reflect, talk to colleagues and experience a different setting has been hugely helpful to me, and a time of prayer and peace.

Christ Church St Laurence is our sister parish in Sydney. They share a similar history, and hold a particular ecclesiology which is common to us. The parish is highly developed, and has a large congregation which is continually growing. 3 full-time clergy work in the parish, along with a number of lay workers in a range of roles.

The work of the parish is underpinned by various trusts, which are managed by the Rector and Wardens who are trustees. There is strong evidence that the work of this dedicated team unites the parish in a common sense of mission and ministry, whilst ensuring buildings are maintained and developed in line with an overall mission plan which serves the people of the city and beyond.

The worship at CCSL is as unique as it is at ASWT. The parish uses the Anglican text A Prayer Book For Australia and overlays elements of traditional Anglo-Catholic ritual practice. All masses use modern language, and are said versus populum, which is very different to us. There is, of course, the practice of wearing a Cope to say Mass, which is a diocesan rule and has a history far beyond the parish. Once i got past the oddity of seeing a priest say Mass in a cope, I found worship to be beautiful, lovingly led, and prayerfully accepted.

By far the most interesting thing for me was the people I met. Fr Daniel, Mother Kathryn and Fr Ryan made me feel very welcome, and were generous with their time. Fr Daniel in particular shared his journey, trials and tribulations openly and I found the collegiality to be hugely refreshing. We have much in common as priests, a musical background, a love of liturgy, a passion for mission and a desire to serve in the place we are called. Fr Daniel has been in post 13 years, and much has been shaped by his leadership. Most notably, he has built people around him, lay and ordained, who see the beauty and brokenness of God’s church, and seek to nurture it with a common vision.

One of the most powerful aspects of the week for me was visiting with Christians in a house group who felt displaced from their historic worshipping communities. The pace of change in the diocese has left many behind, and CCSL is a place that has responded by offering sanctuary, and a traditional Anglican ministry. I was deeply moved by the group who wanted to pray together, use Anglican texts, and share fellowship around the breaking of bread.

I was fortunate to see the music department at work. Underpinned by a trust, which the Rector and Wardens manage, the Director of Music and Organist produce some very good results. Most notably, the choir includes auditioned volunteers, as well as paid clerks and scholars. Standards are still high, and there is a sense of the choir being a part of the community, not simply a group of paid staff. This helps with the cohesive sense that pervades parish life; everyone is valued, and everyone can contribute.

Many people choose to volunteer to keep the church open each day. Parishioners sit at the back of church and welcome the visitors who come in to light a candle and pray. They deal with a wide range of people, and often are the first point of contact for those in need, signposting where necessary.

Recent innovations include the development of the St Laurence Centre, which is being overseen by Mother Kathryn, and will provide significant outreach services to those in need. It was good to spend time with her, learning how she is going about targeting the work of the Centre to ensure it complements services on offer elsewhere. Her work is exciting, innovative and deeply rooted in catholic spirituality. She models service, and others learn from it. Her interactions with people are gentle, kind, resolute and determined.

There is a growing group of younger people who attend. Fr Ryan does much with this cohort and provides support and leadership to them. His background and age no doubt aid him in meeting the needs of a younger group, and at times I found myself wishing I had his youthful energy!

There are a few take-aways that I am thinking about and praying about.

1) Parish growth occurs when there is a common sense of vision.

2) There is a very clear vision from the Rector, who shapes mission, financial planning, personnel and premises accordingly.

3) The parish is unashamedly proud of it mission; more than its music, more than its liturgy! That’s not to say those things don’t matter, but a catholic missional heart is evident in pretty much everyone I met. The kitchen is full of people, old and young, cooking for the needy. People greet newcomers on the street, encouraging them to come to Mass and making them feel welcome before they even get in the church! People volunteer to run livestreams, serve, clean, and on and on and on!

4) The parish is lucky. Much of the numeric success it achieves (340 the Sunday I attended) has occurred because of the unique set of circumstances which occur in the Diocese of Sydney.

5) People come because they want dignity in worship, sacramental priestly ministry, good preaching and a welcome that is genuine. They don’t need to fit in, the church fits around them. This in my experience, is rare in Anglo-Catholicism. We can often seem club-like, clique-ridden and all about fitting in. It was so refreshing to be in a parish which seems to have found the way to transcend much of that. I know it still exists, but it is wryly kept at arms length, modelled particularly well by the Rector.

As i conclude, I am reminded of the need to take the long view and to love as Jesus did. On the day I preached, there was a gentleman member of the public at the services who was determined to get up and speak from the pulpit. He was lovingly managed by Fr Daniel and a retired priest, but Fr Daniel told me that the following conversation occurred quietly as i was finishing my sermon.

Man - I am going to preach now….

Fr Daniel - Well, no, we have had the sermon and Fr Duncan preached.

Man - Call that preaching?