Ordination meetings draw 1200 members – and counting

Heading into the final month of the LCA’s ordination consultation meetings, 1196 people have so far been a part of the church-wide process.

The meetings are being held in all LCA districts from March to October this year to consider draft documents presented by the LCA’s Commission on Theology and Inter-Church Relations (CTICR) in response to an instruction by the 2015 General Synod. Synod requested that CTICR present a theological basis for the ordination of both women and men, and why this need not be church divisive.

Four consultations will be held in Victoria next month – at Laverton (9 September), Shepparton (10 September), Traralgon (23 September) and Croydon (24 September). St Peter’s congregation in Hobart will host the last of 33 meetings on 1 October.

Work is underway on collating the feedback that has been received to date from the consultations. The feedback will inform CTICR as it revises the draft doctrinal statements. There will be opportunities for debate of the revised documents next year, firstly at the LCA General Pastors Conference, then at the LCA General Convention of Synod.

The CTICR Secretary, Rev Dr Peter Lockwood, thanked members who had participated in the consultations and ‘provided thoughtful and helpful input’. ‘A special word of thanks is owed to Mr Timothy Pietsch, a member of Bethlehem congregation in Adelaide, who has served the church faithfully as project officer for the consultations’, Dr Lockwood said.

Go to the OWL website at owl.lca.org.au for more details.