In 2011 I interviewed Revs. Charles Gallacher and Kerrie Lingham about their congregations at Queenscliff and Point Lonsdale UC on the Bellarine Peninsula in Victoria. These are retirement communities, elderly and relatively affluent. At holiday times the Peninsula experiences a tourist boom. The Queenscliff church is on the main street, a block from the esplanade. Charles and Kerrie (who share a full-time placement) explain that they had been with the congregations for seven years before the structure of Sunday morning services changed, making a whole lot of other changes possible. They went from having two morning services (one in each church) each Sunday to having one service alternating between the two sites every three months. This allowed the time and space for them to start the Wednesday evening meal and contemplative worship described here.
As you watch these clips, ask yourself what they say to you about
- congregations as lifelong learning communities
- leaders as effective educational leaders of learning communities
- formation and education as linking discipleship with mission
You can download this handout to take notes and then have a discussion about what you have observed. Three Lenses Handout
Part A is 11 mins 42 secs. Part 2 is 9 mins 24 secs. There are excerpts from a 90 minute interview. More excerpts will be available in time. If you want to download the videos, click on the Vimeo symbol at the bottom right of each clip. This will take you to my Vimeo page where you can click a download link.
Charles Gallacher and Kerrie Lingham Part 1 from Craig Mitchell on Vimeo.
Charles Gallacher and Kerrie Lingham Part 2 from Craig Mitchell on Vimeo.
More FED Stories videos many be viewed here. I will be adding multiple clips from 22 interviews across Australia conducted in 2011, and also adding new interviews.
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