Historic Doncaster Congregation Opens New Special Purpose Facility

Image supplied by Graham, Nunawading-Waverley

Advent Sunday was a day of community celebration for the small and vibrant congregation of the historic Trinity Lutheran Church at Doncaster.  The day marked a new beginning for the congregation with the opening of their new special purpose facility linking the heritage church with a period-built hall at the rear.
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Installation of School Principal, Hobart

(from left) Pr Brett Kennett, Pr Peter Noble and Mr Steve Illingworth. Image supplied by Eastside Lutheran College.

On Sunday 19 January, Mr Steve Illingworth was installed as the new school Principal at Eastside Lutheran College. Pr Brett Kennett (acting District Bishop) installed Steve at a service held at St Peter's, Hobart.
Steve's previous role was at Geelong Lutheran College, and he is looking forward to working with the staff and community at Eastside.
Steve was welcomed with joy by the local congregation and school communities, and numerous messages of support were brought by a large contingent of guests who had travelled for the occasion.

Safe Church Training Changes

Recently, the LCA has restructured the Professional Standards Department, with the roles of LCA Professional Standards Officers coming to an end - see LCA eNews.
Face-to-face training was phased out in 2024, and delivery of the courses is solely online from this year: self-paced or live-online. Participants can learn more and register for training through the Safe Church Training webpage.

New staff roles have been created, being:

• PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS ANALYST (Full-time)
• SAFE CHURCH SUPPORT PARTNER (Full-time)
• PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS ADMINISTRATION ASSISTANT (Part-time, 0.4 FTE)
• SAFE CHURCH TRAINER (Casual)

More details are available on the LCA website. Applications close on 17 February.

Denise Muschamp - 
New Role at LCAVD

We are delighted that Denise Muschamp, previously the LCA Vic-Tas Professional Standards Officer, has now joined the LCAVD team as our new Relationship Manager and Compliance Coordinator (two days a week).
In this new role, Denise will facilitate regular discussion between congregation leaders and District Office.  She will be phoning office bearers to listen to any questions or concerns, and help the District Office team more fully understand each community under our care.
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Nunawading Waverley Leadership Retreat

Nunawading-Waverley leadership recently took part in a retreat time, to reflect on where God has led us to and discuss where God is taking us in 2025.  This first part of reflection had the aim of developing our Purpose and Guiding Principles.  This will then lead to the second part of our discernment, a whole-congregation survey, in order to construct the Strategic Plan with Coherent Goals that give us meaning and focus our mission. One of the bigger ‘strategic’ decisions needed in our community is the future shape of our mission to our numerous Chinese neighbours. We pray that the next few months of reflection and discernment may result in clear goals and strategies for our mission and ministry.

News from German Lutheran Trinity Church

The German Lutheran Trinity Church (East Melbourne) have welcomed interim pastor, Joachim Tröstler and his wife Ursula (also a Pastor), who have arrived in Melbourne and will serve in ministry for the next few months.
Pastor Jörn Foth will commence as the new pastor in August 2025.

ALWS Celebrates 75 Years!

Our church is celebrating 75 years of caring for the most vulnerable through ALWS… an incredible legacy worth celebrating. 
To celebrate, we’ve set a faith goal to support 75,000 children to access the essentials for a happy, healthy life – food, safety and shelter.
Church members are invited to attend either the Commemorative event at Bonegilla on Saturday 22 March, or Walk My Way Melbourne (Tarneit) on Sunday 30 March.
Read more...

Reminder to submit AGM Reports to District Office

iStock Image - Credit: Shendart

It is requested that congregational Annual General Meeting reports are submitted to District Office as soon as practical.
Please email to keryn.middelmann@lca.org.au

Also, please inform LAMP2 of any changes to office bearers (lamp2@lca.org.au).

LCANZ Collaborative Learning Event:
Growing Together in Prayer

iStock Image - Credit: Kalawin

Join us for the first District Mission Directors LCANZ Collaborative Learning Zoom session of the year, on Tuesday February 11, 2025.  To make it as accessible as possible, we’re offering two identical sessions—one in the daytime and one in the evening—designed to fit a variety of schedules.
The theme will focus on Spiritual Growth—a theme inspired by last year’s LCA Leaders Retreat. These sessions will be a chance to connect, reflect, and grow in our understanding of prayer's transformative role in the life of the church.
Read More... (PDF)

Gospel Fluency

Do you ever feel awkward or unprepared to share the gospel? Maybe you know someone curious about Jesus, but you're unsure of the next steps? What if you could feel more confident in sharing the good news of Jesus?
Introducing Gospel Fluency Workshops, offered by the Department for Congregational Support. These workshops are designed to equip you and your congregation with the vocabulary, context, and practice to share the gospel in word and action.

You'll gain tools to:

• Speak the good news of Jesus confidently.
• Map your relationships for the sake of the gospel.
• Listen well to others.
• Explore practical next steps for those curious about the Christian faith.

The workshops run for just two and a half hours—perfect for a Saturday morning or weekday evening. 
Pastor Brett is now planning Gospel Fluency Workshops for the Vic Tas District for 2025. You can book an in-person session or access our facilitator’s guide for Zoom coaching, and other resources to lead a workshop locally.
Ready to grow in Gospel Fluency? Visit our website today for more information and take the next step in sharing the good news confidently.
Download the flyer HERE.

Lutheran Men Victoria - Retreat

When: 14^th – 16^th March 2025
Where: Tandara Lutheran Camp, Halls Gap

Bible Study Leader: Pastor Josh Pfeiffer
Guest Speaker: Pastor Peter Noble
Registrations due: 8 March 2023

Registration Form available HERE.

LYV Easter Camp

Easter Camp is a 5 day camp run for people aged 16 and up. It offers a chance to engage with fellow young people over the extended Easter weekend. The core elements of the camp involve in-depth study discussions and a range of different activities. 
When: Thu 17 Apr, 7:00pm - Mon 21 Apr, 12pm.
Where: Araluen Lutheran Camp, Anglesea.
Early Bird registration ($50 discount) available till 11 March.
Register HERE (we recommend you use a computer to register).

Events Commemorating the 80th anniversary of Dietrich Bonhoeffer's death

Three events are being organised at St Johns Southgate in February-March 2025. The events feature a visiting vocal quintet from Leipzig, Germany, Ensemble Nobiles (https://www.ensemblenobiles.de/)
At St John's, there is a Bach Cantata Service (16 Feb) and a Bonhoeffer Symposium and Concert (1 Mar).  There will also be a concert in Walla Walla, NSW (2 Mar). ​​​​​​

Click on the information to download the full flyers.

Sun 16 Feb - Bach Cantata BWV92 (9am)

Sat 1 Mar - Symposium (2pm) and Concert (7.30pm)

Sun 2 Mar - Concert (5.30pm, NSW)

Lenten Appeal 2025

Brochures will be sent to congregations in late February.
Any queries, or to update mailing details: Email: erin.grainger@lca.org.au
or call: 03 9236 1241

Lutheran Tract Mission

Lutheran Tract Mission has just received 34 new tracts. These have been added to the extensive range of over 1000 titles, available for anyone to order. We have tracts that suit your ministry! Check them out today.
Click the image to visit the LTM website.

Calls, Employment Opportunities and Volunteering Opportunities in the LCANZ

Employment and Volunteering Opportunities in wider Christian networks

Permission to Proceed for Activities and Programs

iStock Image - Credit: ikuvshinov

As we commence congregational activities and programs for 2025, this comes as a reminder that all events must have a safety plan and risk assessment (Permission to Proceed). If you haven’t been completing P2P to date, now is the perfect time to make a start. Templates and resources are available. Read More...

A New Year - A New Start

If you have joined a committee, lead a program, or volunteer in any way within your congregation, remember to check your WWCC expiry and ensure you have current Level 1 or 2 LCA Safe Church Training (as appropriate).  
The link to the training registration page is below.

Safe Church Training

Safe Church Training is completed online via webinars (in real-time with trainers) or via iLearn (self-paced).
Click below for more information, and registration links to your choice of training mode.

Child Safety Standards Self-Assessment & Safety Plan

A reminder that congregations need to have their Child Safety Standards Self-Assessment and Safety Plan submitted before March 2025.
Extensive information can be found at: Child Safety Standards - Lutheran Church of Australia

LCA Statistics for 2024

Congregations can now enter their statistics data for 2024 into LAMP2.
There are help guides available for statisticians. PART 1 shows and explains how to get to the Statistics App within LAMP 2.
PART 2 shows and explains how to enter statistics, download a statistics form, and more.  
Office Bearers and Statisticians with access to LAMP 2 can access and edit Statistics. Advise LAMP2 if your statistician has changed.
Statistics for 2024 are due by end-February 2025.

Help us to keep you informed

Many congregations hold AGMs around this time of year and may elect new council leaders.
If your church has new office-bearers – or even if they've stayed the same – please ensure the details are up-to-date in LAMP2. That way, you won’t miss out on any important information from your district and the Churchwide Office. 
Read more...

LCA (Churchwide) eNews (19/12/24)
SA-NT Online Together eNews (11/12/24)
LCAQD Community (Qld) eNews (18/12/24)
LCNZ December eNews (23/12/24)

Safe Church eNews (23/01/25)
ALC December eNews (20/12/24)
LDS Community Dec eNews (24/12/24)

A Prayer for Australia
We bless you, God of the universe,
for this land,
for its contrasts of landscape and climate,
for its abundance of wealth and opportunity.
We bless you for our history,
with all its struggles in adversity,
its courage and hope.
Give us in our diversity
tolerance and respect for each other
and a passionate commitment to justice for all.
Bless us so that we might be a blessing to others.
We ask this through Jesus Christ our Lord.
Amen.
Anglican Church of Australia, A prayer book for Australia; at Just Prayer.org 

Prayer Point Calendar (February)
1-7 Feb World Interfaith Harmony Week
4 Feb International Day of Human Fraternity for Peace and Cooperation
11 Feb International Day of Women and Girls in Science
20 Feb World Day of Social Justice
21 Feb International Mother Language Day

World Council of Churches (WCC) 2025 Ecumenical Prayer Cycle Calendar of Countries HERE

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