News from Uniting Church SA
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Tuesday 15 July 2025
Synod Resourcing Event 2025 – REGISTRATIONS OPEN
Registrations are NOW OPEN for Renew Synod Resourcing event – a dynamic event to help you refresh, reimagine and reignite the life of your church. Click on the link below for more information or to register.
From the General Secretary:
“This event is an opportunity for individuals and entire teams – whether ministry teams, church councils, or presbyteries – to grow together. By attending, you will build new connections, share insights, and return to your congregation with tangible resources that will enrich your ministry practice. The workshops are specifically designed to provide value at both individual and team levels, offering frameworks and resources to guide you in your leadership journey. We encourage you to consider the long-term benefits of the connections made at this event and the opportunity to come together and engage in the Christian practice of collective discernment through prayer and fellowship, which we hope will help anchor your ongoing growth and provide continued support as you navigate your ministry.
So, whatever your involvement in the life of the church, whether you’re part of a small community or a large congregation, Renew is a space for all who are passionate about deepening their faith and ministry. We want to welcome everyone – because when the Church comes together, great things happen!"
Rev Philip Gardner
General Secretary
New Times closing soon
Do you have any news or stories from your congregation, or other ideas that you’d like to see in New Times? Submissions for the next edition are closing very soon, so send your items in to engagement@sa.uca.org.au or call Clive on 8236 4249 to discuss your ideas.
We look forward to hearing from you!
Called as Moderator: Who is next?
Nominations are now being sought for our next Moderator. An election will be held at our June 2026 Synod meeting, and the new Moderator will take up the role at the 2028 Synod meeting.
The Moderator’s role is one of pastoral and spiritual leadership of the Synod. The focus of the role is to promote the Synod’s vision and mission for the future of the Church; to listen to, guide, and care for all the members and ministers of the UCASA; and to represent the Church in the wider community and the ecumenical and political landscape of SA.
Nominations close on 31 October 2025. Nominations must come through the presbyteries. Nominations can be made by individuals or churches (with a nominator and seconder) and then be sent to the presbytery. An office bearer of the presbytery must also sign the nomination form before sending it to the Moderator Nominating Committee. The Moderator Nominating Committee may discern further people to nominate.
Note: Please do not contact the person being nominated! This is the role of the Moderator Nominating Committee.
For further information, a role and person specification and nomination form, please click HERE. The Moderator Nominating Committee can be contacted by emailing Sue Page (Convenor) assocgensec@sa.uca.org.au.
Volunteer for the Red Dove Cafe at the Royal Show
Only 5 weeks to go until the Royal Adelaide Show and the return of the much-loved Red Dove Cafe! It’s the perfect opportunity to volunteer with family or friends and be part of something special.
If you serve just one shift at the café, you’ll also:
- receive free entry into the Show on the day you volunteer
- enjoy a delicious free meal
- still have plenty of time to explore all the fun and excitement the Royal Adelaide Show has to offer.
3 exciting opportunities
This year there are three exciting ways you can be part of the fun and contribute:
- Cooking prep before the Show opens (Tue 19 to Thu 28 August)
- Working at the Red Dove Cafe during the Show (Fri 30 August to Sun 7 September)
- Combine a shift with a day of service and reflection with the Ministry Resourcing Team (Wed 3, Thu 4 and Sun 7 September).
They’re all fun, fulfilling, and memorable ways to give back. We can’t wait to see you there!
New Disability Access and Inclusion Policy
The Synod’s new Disability Access and Inclusion Policy is now available here. Based on the UCA Assembly People with Disability Overarching Principles 2024, Disability Access Guidelines, and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disability (CRPD), the policy offers practical steps to help make our churches more inclusive. It also includes practical suggestions for physical and sensory access which can be adapted and implemented as needed.
All congregations are encouraged to read the policy and consider how to support full participation for people with disability.
For more information, please contact Anna Wilson, Graduate Disability and Advocacy Officer (8236 4268 or awilson@sa.uca.org.au) to discuss how your congregation or office can better support people with disability to fully participate in and contribute to Church life.
Closing soon – 2025 Uniting Foundation grants
Applications for a 2025 Uniting Foundation Grant will be closing on Thursday 31 July 2025.
This year there is $750,000 in grant funding available – $250,000 for Category A (Enduring) grants and $500,000 for Category B (UC Invest Springboard) grants.
More information is available on the website UCA SA – Uniting Foundation.
If you have any questions, please contact Alice Hammer on (08) 8236 4206 or ahammer@sa.uca.org.au.
Social Impact Grants now open
Applications are now open for the 2025/26 Social Impact Grants Round One, offering one off grant up to $10,000. Eligible organisations including Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisations, not for profits, and certified social enterprises can apply for projects supporting community participation, digital access, minor infrastructure upgrades, and intergenerational activities. Organisations may submit multiple applications but can only receive one grant in this round.
An online information session will be held on Wednesday 16 July 2025 from 12 am to 1 pm. Applications close at 3 pm on 21 August 2025, and early submission is recommended. For guidelines or to apply, visit the Grants SA website or contact the Grants SA team at 1300 650 985 or grantssa@sa.gov.au.
Events
Awaken Adelaide Special Lecture – Thursday July 24
An opportunity to hear from international guest speaker Professor Namsoon Kang, Professor of Theology and Religion at Brite Divinity School, Texas Christian University, as she explores:
“Practising Neighbour-Love as Just Hospitality: Toward Cosmopolitan Leadership in a Multicultural World”.
Dr Kang is a globally recognised theologian and justice advocate whose work bridges theology, ethics, postcolonialism, and intercultural leadership. Don’t miss this rare opportunity to engage with her transformative insights.
When: Thursday, 24 July 2025, 5:30–8 pm
Where: Yarthu-Apinthi, 312 Sir Donald Bradman Dr, Brooklyn Park SA.
Amplify Conference
Amplify is Australia’s largest children, youth, and family ministry conference and will be held on Saturday 2 August 2025 across four hubs in South Australia: Brooklyn Park, Salisbury, Rostrevor, and Port Lincoln. The event features exclusively recorded, inspiring messages from keynote speakers with expertise in their fields, along with a wide range of quality electives covering children, youth, and family ministry, leadership, culture, faith communities and more.
Speakers include Tery Williams (opening plenary session), Suzie and Peter Botross (youth ministry) and Ainsley Freeman (children and families). More information is available at Hubs | Amplify Conference.
Community Connections – Weaving Lives Together
On Saturday 23 August, come and be part of a day of learning and discovery focused on how God is working in our communities – and how we can join in! The event will feature small groups, electives, a marketplace of ideas, a ‘clearinghouse’ of community connections theology, sacred space for quiet reflection, and more.
Guest speaker Rev Dr Karina Kreminski, a Uniting Church minister from Sydney and author of Urban Spirituality, will share her wealth of experience in neighbourhood mission and community engagement. Local voices from the SA Community Connections Collective will also be involved.
Cost is $30 ($20 concession, or $25 each for groups of 4+ from the same church). Morning tea and refreshments are included. Bring your own lunch or grab something nearby.
Through Their Eyes: Safe environments for children and young people
You are invited to attend the Through Their Eyes full-day training on Thursday, 31 July, from 9.30 am to 4 pm at Yarthu Apinthi, Uniting College for Leadership & Theology, 312 Sir Donald Bradman Drive, Brooklyn Park.
This session is designed to help participants understand their legal obligation to report when a child is, or may be, at risk of harm. It provides an overview of child protection legislation along with practical guidance on recognising concerns and responding appropriately.
The cost to attend is $30. Morning tea will be provided, and participants are asked to bring their own lunch. Please register by Tuesday, 29 July.
Under Construction @CityView:Good Samaritan
Join with the CityView Uniting community to reflect on the story of the Samaritan man who cares for the guy attacked in the street (often called the Good Samaritan). We'll explore this story using Lego in a range of ways.
Under Construction @CityView is an event for kids (of all ages) and families (parents, grandparents and caregivers) to explore life and faith using Lego as our core media. We are a small community offering this ministry because we love Lego, exploring faith and being together.
We recognise that each child comes to such a time in different ways and, while Lego is at our core, the program seeks to cater for diversity. UCity is an accessible space where all are welcome.
When: 3 pm, Sunday 20 July
Where: UCity, 43 Franklin Street.
Upcoming events
July
19 – Christmas in July Markets – Westbourne Park UC
19 – Winter Warmers – Journalling with paint and poetry @ The Corner
20 – Live Arts at Newland – Victor Harbour
20 – Book Launch of Spicer Cottages Trust 125 Years
20 – Under Construction @CityView: Good Samaritan
24 – Awaken Adelaide Special Lecture at UCLT
27 – Community lunch at Morialta UC
30 – How does volunteering nourish our spiritual life? at Clayton-Wesley UC
31 – Uniting Foundation Grants close
31 – Through Their Eyes: Safe environments for children and young people
August
2 – 2025 Bethany Hall SALA Art Exhibition
2 – The Buddhist Monk who Loves Jesus
2 – Amplify Conference, with hubs at Brooklyn Park, Salisbury, Rostrevor, and Port Lincoln
7 – Do we need to rethink forgiveness? – at the Effective Living Centre
8 – Oodnadatta Congress Celebration Weekend
10 – Truth-telling and Listening at Unley UC
17 – KickStart for Kids Fundraising Concert at Trinity Sessions
17 – An afternoon with Henry Olonga at Newland-Victor Harbor
23 – Community Connections – Weaving Lives Together at UCLT
News highlights from the Assembly of the Uniting Church in Australia this week include:
Recent news
Called as Moderator: Who is next?
Renew: Synod Resourcing Event 2025 – October 17 and 18
Copyright reminders
AED purchasing update
Save the date – Resourcing Day!
Closing soon – 2025 Uniting Foundation grants
Every Generation Onkaparinga Awards
Australian of the Year Awards 2026
Join the Red Dove Café team at the Royal Adelaide Show!
Volunteers needed – Pilgrim Uniting Church
Volunteers needed – The Corner Uniting Church Op Shop
Volunteers needed – UnitingCare Glenelg
Clinical Pastoral Education at St Andrew’s Hospital
Frontier Services – Planting hope in Oodnadatta
Western Link Uniting Church – 20th Anniversary
Help create new possibilities for people facing poverty
Reflection of the week
Two Sides of Darkness
It is very important, friends, not to think of the soul as dark. We are conditioned to perceive only external light. We forget that there is such a thing as inner light, illuminating our soul.
—Teresa of Ávila, The Interior Castle
Experiences of darkness are good and necessary teachers. They are not to be avoided, denied, run from, or explained away. Even if we don’t experience clinical or diagnosed depression, most of us will go through at least one period of darkness, doubt, and malaise in our lives. I hope during these times we can reach out to someone—a therapist, spiritual director, friend—to support us. And when we feel strong, may we be the shoulder someone else can lean on.
Father Richard Rohr
Prayer points
We give thanks for the many blessings we receive each day but often fail to appreciate. In a world seemingly consumed by poverty, hunger and conflict may we recognise, seek out and celebrate good news – news such as the finding of German backpacker Carolina Wilga, lost for 11 nights in the WA outback; and the rescue of 27 construction workers trapped for many days in an underground tunnel in Los Angeles.
Remembering NAIDOC Week, we continue to reflect on the past and look forward to a future filled with possibility for First Nations Peoples. We pray that Christ will empower us to walk together on the journey of truth, justice and healing.
We continue to pray for peace, respect and compassion in the midst of violence and suffering. We pray for leaders to choose dialogue over destruction, and for wisdom, restraint, and compassion to guide every decision.
Resources to help people worship and pray together as a gathered community or at home. These resources are generously prepared by Rev Cheryl Wilson.
Positions and placements
Activity Facilitator – Beyond Limits Outdoor Education – Open now
Administration Officer, Mission Resourcing – Closes 18 July
Head Cook, Nunyara – Belair – Closes 28 July
Centre Manager, Adare – Victor Harbor – Closes 28 July
UC eNews is the weekly email newsletter of the Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of South Australia. If you’d like to include content in UC eNews or on the Synod of South Australia website, please submit it by COB Mondays.
