The Rev Mourad Omrani (not his real name), an Arabic minister in the Georges River Region, can’t say where the medical centre is that he meets in with four Arabic speakers for Bible study.

We are in a time of immense change, and we all know that it’s hard to bring the gospel to our region. So I wanted to share some of our latest thinking with you.

In the 41 years Beverley Donald has lived in the Fairfield area, she has observed the growth of many small ethnic based Christian churches, including ten Spanish language churches, and a decline in numbers attending the mainline churches.

It is a tough mission field in the multicultural region of the Georges River. Here Southern Cross continues its series on the new model of parish life cycles by looking at the parish of Belmore.

Letters from the July 2005 Southern Cross

Ministry moves in the Diocese of Sydney

After returning from ten years serving as CMS missionaries in Egypt, Mark, Annette and their four children, have packed their bags to leave Australia once again.

A Sydney Presbyterian minister who claims death threats have been made against him and his family has appealed for help on Anglican Media’s website.

Anglicare’s emergency relief food supplies across Sydney are at an all time low. However, the dire situation for Anglicare’s Rooty Hill office has been averted thanks to the initiative of one Sydney parish.

Sydney Diocese’s top ethicist has cautiously welcomed the softening of the Howard Government’s stance on the mandatory detention of asylum seekers.

Struck down with an utterly debilitating ‘mystery’ illness, Sydney Anglican and Sky News presenter Leigh Hatcher falls from the high-flying, adrenalin fuelled life of one of Australia’s best known TV journalists to an anonymous welfare recipient in a matter of months.

Barry McGrath, chaplain at Tara Anglican School for Girls, loves his job even when students ‘quite bluntly’ challenge him.

The success of the Katoomba conventions has encouraged Western Sydney’s men to start their own blokes-only conference on September 3 at Tyndale Christian School, Blacktown.

The region has welcomed three new rectors from the Northern, Wollongong and Georges River regions.

Christianity is booming in the Western Region, with 40 per cent of parishes seeing growth. Here Southern Cross continues its series on a strategy of reform.

Letters from the June 2005 edition of Southern Cross newspaper.

Ministry Moves June 2005

May 2005 Letters to the Editor

It appears the earth is not only getting warmer, but smaller, drier and darker. And if you believe the TV the consequences will be apocalyptic. Climate change has become serious enough for the Anglican Church to act. Last month, the worldwide Anglican Communion held its inaugural Anglican Communion Environmental Network meeting in Canberra to develop some practical guidelines to help churches tackle the issue.

The Northern Region has had a diverse range of new rectors beginning ministry in recent months.

For most of my life in ministry I have regarded bishops and archdeacons as something akin to headache tablets. They are very useful when you need them, but otherwise leave them in the cupboard and shut the door! Get on with the real ministry – at the parish! At the coalface, one can largely ignore ‘the hierarchy’, especially archdeacons. (What on earth do they do anyway?)

The Rev Ross Nicholson says he will miss the people of St Stephen’s, Willoughby, where he has been rector for the past seven years.

Homosexuality could be the trigger for a 21st century reformation, according to US evangelical preacher and writer Don Carson.

The head of one of the world’s fastest growing churches believes the conversion of 10 per cent of Sydney, or 400,000 people, can be easily achieved through prayer.

Sydney Morning Herald journalist Chris McGillion said he finds the politics of Sydney Diocese ‘fascinating’, and first became interested in writing about it in 2002 after receiving a letter from Archbishop Peter Jensen.