A feast of creativity and connection!
At least 130 congregations across Australia and New Zealand sat down to Longest Lutheran Lunches on or close to 30 October, with all reports indicating that the innovative event has been a huge success.
The Longest Lutheran Lunch is the first event to be run under the LCA's Operation Connect initiative, which is a new resource for congregations that uses food and hospitality to connect with friends, families and community.
'The real inspiration for the Longest Lutheran Lunch is the example of Jesus, who enjoyed food and hospitality as a way to break down barriers and connect with those for whom society had no time', says Operation Connect volunteer Jonathan Krause.
The following congregations, schools and family are known to have held a Longest Lutheran Lunch. Click on the links to view the stories and photos.
If your stories and photos aren't here yet, please send them to linda.macqueen@lca.org.au
New Zealand
'New Zealand churches are world's first to lunch'
- Auckland - Mountainside - read our pre-Lunch story
- Auckland - Botany - 'How many ingredients in a Reformation lunch? 95, of course!'
- Hamilton and Bay of Plenty Parish (Kawerau, Whakatane, Tauranga)
- Manawatu Parish (Palmerston North, Feilding)
- Summerset Retirement Village - an outreach project of Manawatu
New South Wales
- Belconnen
- Epping - 'Lutheran Lunch hits new heights'
- Gerogery - 'NSW's oldest congregation celebrates long history at Longest Lutheran Lunch'
- Gosford
- Henty
- Moree
- Narraweena - 'Lunch guests outnumber members at Narraweena'
- Orange - read our pre-Lunch story
- St Marys
- Sutherland
- Tamworth
- Tuggeranong - 'Liberal lashings of lamb and lentils: Tuggeranong loves the letter "L"'
Queensland
- Beaudesert
- Bethania
- Bethany/Raceview
- Biloela
- Bundaberg
- Cairns
- Dalby
- Everton Hills - Prince of Peace Lutheran College - 'Hats off for school's fundraising lunch'
- Gladstone
- Hervey Bay
- Indooroopilly
- Kumbia/Taabinga
- Laidley
- Maryborough - the oldest Lutheran Luncher Frank Kahler (98) who is also the longest confirmed Lutheran Luncher
- Miles - with Wandoan, Chinchilla, Downfall Creek and Meandarra
- Mt Gravatt - 'Food and fellowship put the fun into FUNdraising'
- Murrumba Downs
- Nambour
- Neldner family (enough of them to constitute a small congregation!) - 'First family feast to become a Longest Lutheran Lunch'
- Oakey/Norwin (combined with Pittsworth Parish)
- Pialba
- Pittsworth Parish (Pittworth, Millmerran, Nobby, Yandilla) - 'The banquet that lasts forever ...'
- Redlands
- Rochedale (with Redeemer Lutheran College) - 'Lamingtons, Lutherans and lots of laughter'
- Ropeley
- Rosewood
- Theodore
- Toowoomba (Good Shepherd)
- Toowoomba (Redeemer) - read our pre-Lunch story
- Toowoomba (Trinity)
- Toowoomba/Highfields
- Townsville
South Australia
- Aberfoyle Park - 'Hundreds flock to mega community event'
- Adelaide (Bethlehem)
- Albert Park - read our pre-Lunch story
- Angaston - 'Proud hosts of the Wurst Lutheran Lunch'
- Barmera
- Balaklava
- Birdwood
- Blackwood
- Blair Athol
- Bordertown
- Buccleuch - read our pre-Lunch story
- Carlsruhe
- Cleve
- Cowell
- Freeling/Rosedale
- Greenock
- Gawler (Zion)
- Golden Grove
- Hahndorf - St Paul's
- Hallett Cove
- Kapunda - 'Kapunda oom-pahs through lunch'
- Keith
- Lobethal - 'Longest Lutheran sausage gets longer overnight'
- Lock
- Loxton (St Peter's)
- Magill
- Mannum
- Morphettvale
- Mt Barker - read our pre-Lunch story
- Mt Gambier
- Murbko/Blanchetown
- Murray Bridge - 'Murray Bridge: true to its name - it connects'
- Nairne
- Nuriootpa - Redeemer Lutheran School - 'It would be amazing': Students already dreaming of next year's lunch
- Para Vista
- Paringa
- Pinnaroo Parish (Pinnaroo, Murrayville, Walpeup) - 'Lunch in the footy club: a community-friendly event'
- Port Lincoln - 'A crackling good time'
- Rowland Flat
- Salisbury (The Ark) - read our pre-Lunch story
- Seaford
- South Kilkerran - 'Door-to-door invitations bring new friends to lunch'
- Tanunda - Combined Churches - '70 metres - a long lunch by any measure'
- Tea Tree Gully
- Waikerie - 'Waikerie's German-inspired lunch a community affair'
- Warradale
- Woodside - 'Woodside bikes into their Longest Lutheran Lunch'
Victoria
- Ararat
- Box Hill
- Footscray
- Geelong (St John's)
- Hamilton
- Laverton
- Moorabbin - 'Moorabbin tucks into long food'
- Outer Eastern (Croydon/Lilydale) - 'Rain no dampener for Melbourne's Longest Lutheran Picnic'
- North Geelong
- Rainbow/Pella/Hopetoun
- Ringwood/Knox - 'Pass the pasta and pizza please! - Ringwood/Knox serves up Italian'
- St Albans - Combined Churches
- Southgate - 'Lunch under the cross, thanks to Melbourne rain'
- Stawell - 'Three-way celebration packs Stawell church'
- Wodonga Parish
Western Australia
- Albany
- Duncraig
- Kalgoorlie-Boulder - 'The longest-from-anywhere lunch'
- Katanning
- Morley
- Narrogin
- Parkwood (with Perth Finnish) - 'A lunch engagement'
- Perth (St John's)
