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ST STEPHEN'S ANGLICAN CHURCH

PARISH DETAILS

(©Willows Books Publishing)

St Stephen's, Wynyard, is part of the Anglican Diocese of Tasmania. It falls within the North West Network, along with Burnie, Circular Head, Deloraine, City of Devonport, King Island, Latrobe, Penguin, Sheffield, Ulverstone and West Coast. The Mission Support Officer is Ven. Jill McCoy. Further details are on the Diocesan website.

The Congregation is mainly traditional middle-to-high Anglican, drawn from Wynyard (approaching 5000 people) and surrounding areas. A feature of this attractive town is the shifting average age of the population. As the number of children in the area falls, and retirees with healthy superannuation arrive in Wynyard to enjoy the mild climate, seaside and quay, fresh fish, level walking and very adequate shopping centre, so the character of the Congregation leans towards being traditional and conservative in its tastes.

The membership, ie congregation, of the Anglican Church of St Stephen's in Wynyard boasts many highly educated people with a very wide range of work and Church experience. The February 2008 Census for the Waratah and Wynyard area (13,412 people) showed two important differences from Tasmania as a whole. First, as suggested, the educational level is on average higher than for the rest of Tasmania (page 7) and has been increasing steadily since 1996. Comfortably over 30% have certificate to postgraduate-level education. The ratio of the population engaged in the professions, health and clerical services, education, engineering and management, is higher than for Tasmania as a whole. This has important implications for a Parish like Wynyard. University and TAFE attendance, both full- and part-time has leaped in recent years. There are probably over 1000 high-income individuals in the area, and 40% of householders own their homes outright.

For this reason, St Stephen's is particularly appealing to retirees and people in the 40+ age group raised in the traditions of the Anglican Church of Australia or the Church of England. However, at vacation times especially, there are regular visitors to services from all age groups -- people who are passing through Wynyard or staying with relatives in the area. They are all made welcome with the 'welcome pack', and are greeted by nominated members of the congregation, then offered tea/coffee and refreshments afterwards in the Church Hall.

The gathering after the 9.30am Sunday Services in the fine Church Hall, in part built by members of the Congregation (as well as local tradesmen) is a happy and sociable occasion. A table is laid with plates of cakes and biscuits. The catering team works hard in the kitchen to serve warm drinks then clear up afterwards. Visitors are always struck by the joyful and friendly atmosphere at these events. Many firm friendships have been forged in the Church Hall.

There is a church Choir, the only one in the area, and a fine organ used for Sung Eucharist and for special occasions. There is no longer a Sunday School as few children are brought to Church except for special services.

Sunday Services begin with Holy Communion in the Chapel at 8am, followed by Sung Eucharist at 9.30am in the nave of the Church. On the first Sunday of each month there is Evensong at 5pm, some services being taken by Lay Readers.

The First Order Communion service at 8am is taken in the Chapel. It is normally attended by a dozen or so people.

The 9.30am Second Order Communion service can see up to 50 in the Congregation. On the whole this service follows strongly traditional Anglican local custom, although one or more 'new' 'songs' might be introduced as well. As appropriate, and from time to time, guest speakers address the congregation, eg from The Gideons, or visiting clergy who have been abroad on Missionary work.

Thursday Prayers in the Chapel at 9.30 am follows the Lectionary order for Thursday morning prayers.

There is an annual Tulip Festival Songs of Praise service where other local congregations put forward suggestions for hymns. These are usually the old favourite traditional hymns that have been sung in Anglican churches (some of them) for centuries.

Being a beautiful local landmark and focus for the town, the Church is popular for weddings and baptisms and is well equipped for large gatherings in the Hall with excellent catering facilities. The Hall can be hired by arrangement with the Incumbent, Rev Louise Priest.

Apart from the Congregation and Parish Council, there are two groups who support the work of the Parish. St Stephen's Anglican Guild fund raises for the Parish, and other projects. The Guild provides a Fellowship Lunch on the second Tuesday of each month. In February 2009, the Guild decided to cater for the Anglicare Conference that month.

The Guild raised the funds to buy heaters for the Church, which being lofty and of the old style, was somewhat chilly in the middle of winter when the wind came from the east. From March 2009 onwards, the Guild would be meeting in the upstairs room in the Church Hall, in the upstairs room, the main Hall now being in use on the regular Guild days -- the first Thursday in the month -- by the Day Centre. The Guild was also aiming to continue to pay a small grant to each school in the Parish to help with Christian education for 2009. This has been an annual commitment for some time, as has the raising of money for the photocopier.

St Stephen's Mission Group is involved in a range of projects to support Christian missionary activity overseas. The group works through the year on this important task. The Congregation assist with this by their donations, eg clothes. For 2009, the Mission Group is actively considering a range of options for fund raising, including an Antique Night, a Beetle Night, and a Bangers and Mash event in July, or perhaps at Christmas. Items for collection in March towards the 'Christmas Box' appeal to send to the needy overseas should be something to wear, eg T-shirts, shorts or knee-length shirts.

The Incumbent is supported in her work by the Parish Council, the Church Wardens and by the Lay Ministry team, as well as by ad hoc Committees set up from time to time to address particular questions. The Diocese sets the guidelines for clergy and church workers (anyone engaged in tasks on behalf of the Parish), both in the Parish Administration Ordinances and in Faithfulness in Service, a comprehensive document to do with codes of practice.

In relation to resources for supporting the Incumbent, the Tasmanian Diocesan Bishop in the document Transforming Life states this¹:

We must foster an attitude of affirmation and collaboration throughout our Christian communities.

Collaboration has been written about extensively in the Anglican world. Here is an example² from a code of conduct for Anglican ministers:

The clergy should promote collaborative ministry across the whole range of church life and activity. It is important to recognise and affirm lay ministry that already exists and to encourage new ministries, both lay and ordained. The clergy should be ready to assist others in discerning and fulfilling their vocation and to acknowledge and respect the range of experience amongst the church membership.

As for Parish occasions, a successful and regular ― popular with local people ― event is the annual Summer Fair to raise funds for the Church and its work. There is an annual Pancake Evening in the Hall for all comers from the community, and the usual special services for Ash Wednesday, Christmas and all the Easter Festivals as well as the annual Harvest Festival, when the produce is auctioned afterwards in the Church Hall.

Over the years, land has been donated to the Parish, although formally it belongs to the Diocese for legal purposes. Opposite St Stephen's is a corner block. It has been a café, a petrol station and a car-sales showrooms. A new tenant has yet to be found, so the Parish is using it as a Christian book shop, called The Book Nook. This is open Thursday, Friday and Saturday. It acts as a focus for anyone wanting to drop in for coffee/tea and a biscuit, a chat and a browse through the hundreds of donated Christian books.

The land on which the Chapel of St Paul stands at Myalla was also donated to the Parish. It was formerly a community hall. A small piece of land at Oldina belongs to the Parish as well. A chapel formerly stood there. There is no access to it so it cannot be used.

Sadly, the Saint's Day for St Stephen falls on Boxing Day. A service to celebrate this Saint's Day is a topic informally under discussion within the congregation for 2009.

St Stephen was stoned to death for criticising those whom he believed were guilty of sins.

St Stephen is commemorated in the Chapel by a shield. His story can be read here: http://www.ststephenschurch.org/lifestephen.htm

© 2009 Willows Books Publishing

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