Tales from the Team

  • 19 January 2022
  • Jeff Ware
Ministry
For the last three Sundays Annette and I have driven across the Harbour Bridge from the North Shore to meet with fellow worshippers at St Michaels and St Peters. We are not the only ones to travel from outside the area to be part of South Head Anglican Parish. We are not alone in being very pleased to be able to gather together, despite our shared concern about the spiralling number of Covid infections across our region and our need to put measures in place to reduce the risk, especially for those of us who are more vulnerable.

As you may know, I have commenced part-time ministry and am looking forward to being involved at SHAP on Sundays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays. Some of my time will be allocated to working alongside Meg Matthews and others in our aged-care ministry where a few new initiatives look really promising. I’m also keen to catch up with as many people as possible in these early months, to hear your stories, to support you in whatever way I can, and to pray with you.

People have asked me about my first impressions. One thing that has stood out has been the warmth of the welcome we and other newcomers have received. Another is the willingness of so many to use their gifts and to contribute to the life of the community in a variety of ways. I remember reading some words of Rowan Williams, the former archbishop of Canterbury: ‘Communities, in spite of the sentimental way we sometimes think of them, don’t just happen. They need nurture, they need to be woven into unity.’ I am so glad to have joined you at SHAP, and am very keen to play a small part in the God-directed nurturing and weaving that is going on in our community.