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441

Equipping faith partnerships

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by Jodi Brook

A big part of the work of Grow Ministries is to develop resources that support families and congregations in their ministry to children and young people.

As the end of the year approaches and we look forward to a new one, we would like to share with you two of our updated resources. These aim to equip congregations as they develop partnerships with parents and carers, and together nurture faith.

UPDATED – FAITH TRAIL BEGINNING SCHOOL MARKER

Designed to encourage conversation with parents and children about starting school, this resource provides an opportunity to share the excitement and fears around beginning school, as well as empowering families to integrate sharing of highs and lows and prayer into their daily routine. This trail marker is intended for children who are starting school or who are in their first year of primary school.

Pastor Andrew Brook from St John’s Lutheran Church Unley in suburban Adelaide explains the impact that a trail marker event has had on a family in the community.

‘Each year St John’s holds the Faith Trail event ‘Blessing of the Backpacks’ at the beginning of the school year. We invite school families from the nearby Concordia-St John’s Campus to join us.

‘Last year a new school family came. Their five-year-old son proudly came forward to be blessed with his parents. This was not just the beginning of his school journey, but also their faith journey. They started coming to worship regularly and got to know us and the God we worship. The mother said she felt a sense of peace when gathered with us. COVID-19 hit, and we didn’t hold public worship for four months. But when we returned to face-to-face gathering, so did they, and then they attended an Alpha course.

‘This September the family was baptised – mum, dad and two boys. It all started with an invitation to a blessing, asking God to be a part of their son’s life as he started school.

‘From a little thing God was able to grow the big thing of faith in him and a new community of love and support. And with that St John’s has received all the blessings that this family have to give. Praise God!’

UPDATED – CHILDREN’S ADDRESSES 

This resource offers all you need to provide an engaging children’s address during your worship time. There are Bible readings, visual ideas and other helpful tips to ensure the gospel message is shared.

‘I’m loving the Grow Ministries Children’s Addresses and use them as a base for my children’s talks from time to time. We are encouraging others to be involved in this ministry and I’m looking forward to sharing this resource with our volunteers.’
– Sharon Green, Child, Youth and Family Ministry Director, St Petri Lutheran Church, Nuriootpa SA

Jodi Brook is Director of Grow Ministries.

442

Celebrating the diversity of God’s people

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by Anna Kroehn

This month on 3 December, the International Day of People with Disability (IDPWD) is observed. And this annual event is a wonderful opportunity for our church to celebrate the great diversity and creativity God has shown in making humankind.

We know God loves us all, and we know God made each one of us with a purpose and gift to share with the church and the world.

The Christian Care Sunday project has recently released new resources for worship that celebrate people living with disability and the carers who support people with disabilities.

 You can access the resources from the LCANZ’s Worship Planning Page (www.lca.org.au/worship/wpp) or at www.lca.org.au/ccs-resources365 

SET ASIDE DATE TO RECOGNISE CARERS

The LCANZ encourages every congregation to set aside one Sunday each year to celebrate the care work in our congregations and communities – the month in which IDPWD is observed is a wonderful opportunity to reflect, plan and celebrate Christian Care Sunday.

We give thanks for the work of organisations such as Lutheran Services and Anuha in Queensland and Lutheran Care and Lutheran Disability Services in South Australia, who do vital work with people with disability, and their families, 365 days of the year.

For more information, contact me at anna.kroehn@lca.org.au

Anna Kroehn is LCANZ Christian Care Sunday Project Officer.

443

God shares his good news in mysterious ways

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by Tania Nelson

Seemingly out of the blue a few months ago, the LCANZ was contacted by Genie Hudkins. Genie is a member of the La Jolla Lutheran Church in California USA and the church runs a ‘Bibles for the Nations’ project, with Genie as their coordinator.

At the same time, Craig Heidenreich and I became aware of a developing ministry with people of Tamil background in Geelong. What do the La Jolla Lutheran Church and Lutheran outreach in the Geelong area have in common? They share the desire to reach the nations with the good news of Jesus Christ and to pray that ‘all peoples on earth will be blessed’ (Gen 12:3).

Thanks to Genie and her wonderful community, Cross-Cultural Ministry received $500 to provide Bibles to several ethnic communities so that God’s word can be read in the heart language of the recipient. One of the communities supported through this gift is the Tamil people of Geelong.

WHY IS A SMALL USA CHURCH SENDING MONEY FOR BIBLES?

Genie Hudkins explains the gift from La Jolla Lutheran Church in the USA to the LCANZ:
‘La Jolla Lutheran Church is a small “community” church in California with an average attendance of about 50 people. Small in size, but large in its desire to spread the good news of Jesus Christ!

‘Eleven years ago, God inspired our pastor to begin a campaign of ‘Praying for the nations’ – one nation per month. We pray for each nation the entire month … individually, during our Sunday worship service, and on our prayer team. Three years later, one of our members heard an interview of a missionary to China who said that three villages had to share one Bible. That inspired us to begin sending Bibles to each nation in addition to our prayers!

‘To date, we have prayed for 98 nations and have sent $US24,987 for Bibles. Our only request is that the funds be used for Bibles; the specific use is between our contact within the nation and God. It can be for hardcopy Bibles, Bibles on tape, or any other need related to Bibles. For example, in one nation where it was impossible to safely possess Bibles, our gift paid for radio communications directed into the nation. In other cases, the funds were used to help complete a native-language translation of the Bible and even a sign-language version! We have found that God has very creative ways of spreading the gospel.

‘Australia was nation 98! We had the privilege of praying for Australia the entire month of September 2021 and wired $380 (USD) to the Lutheran Church of Australia.

‘We have been so blessed to serve God and spread his word through this project! We plan to continue this ministry until we have reached every nation in the world – as long as it remains in God’s plan for our church.’

MEANING BEHIND UNEXPECTED CONNECTION

So, was this contact from La Jolla Lutheran Church an out-of-the-blue coincidence? I prefer to think of this unexpected connection as a God-incidence.

God is good. All the time.

Tania Nelson is the LCANZ Executive Officer – Local Mission.

444

Cross-cultural ministry themed journal edition

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Following the success of the August 2020 issue of the Lutheran Theological Journal (LTJ) on what a post-pandemic church may look like, this year the journal’s editorial team has produced another themed edition – this time on cross-cultural ministry and church life in Australia and New Zealand.

This edition features 24 opinion pieces by church workers from Australia and New Zealand, who responded to the call for contributions on the overarching theme ‘Developing a multicultural mindset for the LCANZ – from a European migrant church to … ’

The personal reflections unearth an eagerness to address the opportunities and challenges arising from the changing face of Lutheran churches, schools and other agencies across Australasia.

This issue is of relevance to the wider church and demonstrates that LTJ continues to serve the LCANZ by offering a space in which its workers can present a range of views that generate engagement with one another in respectful dialogue.

To become a subscriber and/or an active contributor to the journal, visit
https://alc.edu.au/research/lutheran-theological-journal/

Learn more about ALC’s service and community by signing up to its eNews at www.lca.org.au/enews  

445

Senior corporate leader next executive officer

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Brett Hausler will fulfil a long-term wish to work for the church when he becomes the next Executive Officer of the Church (EOC) early next year. Brett’s appointment to the senior LCANZ leadership position was announced last month. He will succeed Peter Schirmer, who has served as EOC since 2012 and who has resigned to pursue other opportunities.

446

Let’s not forget the suffering of others

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The COVID-19 pandemic has so dominated the lives of many Australians and New Zealanders at home for the past 18 months that it’s been easy to forget that around the world people are suffering who need our prayers. But Peter Gerang Deng has not forgotten the troubles and tragedies of his homeland of South Sudan in north-eastern Africa.

447

LLL 100 years on – changing times, same purpose

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On 14 November 2021, the Lutheran Laypeople’s League turns 100. From humble beginnings, an embryonic idea of Ben Koch to support the work of the church has become a substantial financial and administrative body. It has underpinned much of the mission, ministry and day-to-day operations of the Lutheran Church in Australia.

1921–1939: HUMBLE BEGINNINGS

The Lutheran Laymen’s League (LLL) of Australia came into being mainly as a by-product of one person’s activity in the life and work of the Lutheran Church – layperson Ben Koch. Koch’s activity in ELSA (Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Australia, later Evangelical Lutheran Church of Australia – ELCA) policymaking, educational programs and mission expansion also involved him in the problems of the church’s financial position. He wondered how the money situation could be improved.

The conviction grew that a large endowment reserve used in loan funding of church expansion programs would cut down interest loss and increase flexibility in planning and outreach.

On 14 November 1921 at Bethlehem Lutheran Church Adelaide, the LLL was officially formed. Koch was elected president. The head office of the nationwide movement was to be in SA.

During the triennial convention of the ELSA at Lobethal in 1923, members of the LLL resolved to ask the Convention for sanction of the inauguration of the LLL and approval for the continuation of the movement. Sanction and approval were given.

By June 1922, the LLL had received £570 from 24 contributors. Circulating capital by 1929 was over £4000. This amount fell well short of Ben Koch’s initial target of £20,000, but it was still a significant amount, given the economic circumstances at the time.

1940–1971: RAPID EXPANSION

Post-World War II was a growth time in church planting and home missions around Australia. The United Evangelical Lutheran Church in Australia (UELCA), which had numbered 28,602 members in 1939, grew to 63,233 by 1966; the ELCA grew from 27,154 to 51,875.

Most of the church and school building activity, which underpinned this growth in church planting in the ELCA, was provided by the growing resources of the LLL.

The increase in LLL funds in this period is not explained simply by the changed economic situation. Other factors were its tradition of service, promotion by local congregational collectors, and regular deposits by children, especially in Lutheran day schools. The work of Ben Koch in visiting parishes was another factor.

After years of discussion, the union of the ELCA and the UELCA took place on 29 October 1966. The Lutheran Church of Australia was born. The role of the LLL in this new church was constitutionally clarified as that of the Church Extension Department of the LCA.

1972–1996: PEOPLE AND PROGRAMS

In 1972, Theo Koch was the executive officer. He joined the LLL in 1953. He took the roles of secretary/treasurer and then became executive secretary upon his father’s death in 1963.

Already in 1973, an LLL Tract Mission Fund was created to enable tract distribution. The directors of the LLL believed supplying tracts not only benefitted recipients but served to remind people of the purpose of the LLL.

When Theo Koch retired in 1987, Richard Bartholomaeus was appointed executive secretary.

Despite economic problems, deposits in the LLL exceeded $50 million in 1991. In 1994 another milestone was passed when deposits exceeded $100 million.

The LLL had administered church worker pension matters in the ELCA. It was asked to continue to administer the new LCA Pensions Fund and Church Workers Retirement Fund. The LCA Superannuation Fund commenced on 1 January 1987 for pastors and lay workers. The LCA Staff Superannuation Fund commenced in 1988 for Lutheran school and aged-care employees, and other staff in Lutheran Church organisations.

In the mid-1990s the business name of the League was changed to the LLL. The popular name Lutheran Laymen’s League was changed to ‘The Lutheran Laypeople’s League of Australia’.

In 1996, the LLL reached a new milestone with the breaking of the $8 million barrier in benefits to the LCA.

1997–2006: A CHANGING WORLD

The LLL launched a website in April 2002 (LLL@Home). By February 2004, total funds under LLL management had reached $500 million for the first time and by 2005, the LLL was administering the central treasury of the LCA.

LLL computerisation provided another avenue of service for the LCA. The program known as Regular Electronic Giving (REG) allows members to give their weekly offering via electronic transaction. In 2006, around 1890 people in 252 congregations of the LCA were contributing around $324,000 per month.

In 2005 a school banking portal was created and the LLL donation portal was also launched. The latter allowed credit card donations and payments to LCA registered entities.

2007–2021: 21ST CENTURY CHALLENGES

Richard Bartholomaeus retired in 2008, after holding the position of CEO for 22 years. In this time … deposits grew from $12 million in 1977 to $430 million at 30 June 2008. Loans went from $8 million to $267 million. On 1 September 2008, Allen Kupke was appointed LLL CEO, only the fourth person to take this role.

The LLL Board identified the need to apply for a financial services licence because the LLL was handling non-cash transactions. This licence was granted in 2009.

The LLL also applied to become an Authorised Deposit-taking Institution (ADI) and accept bank status and oversight. This would provide greater security for depositors. The LLL was granted authority to operate as an ADI, effective from 1 February 2019. After nearly 98 years of operation, the LLL moved more formally into the banking world, operating as a charitable financial institution, one of the few in Australia.

February 2020 was another milestone for LLL account holders, with the launch of its long-awaited mobile banking app.

In late 2020, the LLL’s fourth CEO, Allen Kupke, retired. During his tenure as CEO, Allen Kupke oversaw the growth of deposits from $560 million in June 2009 to $1.28 billion at 30 June 2020. He was succeeded by Ross Smith.

This story is adapted from excerpts of The Challenge of Change: An expanded history of the Lutheran Laypeople’s League – 1921-2021. Depositors can order a copy of the book free of charge. See page 5 for details.

LLL TIMELINE

1921 – Lutheran Laymen’s League (LLL) is constituted at Bethlehem Lutheran Church Adelaide SA (14 Nov)

1965 – Moves from 70 Pirie Street, Adelaide to 54 O’Connell Street, North Adelaide

1966 – LCA forms from the union of the UELCA and the ELCA

1979 – Commences the practice of giving of communion sets to all seminary graduates

1981 – Moves to 175 Archer Street, North Adelaide

1983 – LCA Property Provident Fund (LCA Insurance) begins

1987 – Lutheran Tract Mission is established from a merger of LCA Tract Mission and Life at Best

1988 – Lutheran Tract Mission extension built and dedicated

1995 – Changes name from Lutheran Laymen’s League to Lutheran Laypeople’s League

2002 – LLL@Home internet banking is launched

2011 – Undergoes a rebrand and logo change from ‘Christians Working Together’ to ‘Finance with a mission’

2016 – Authorised Deposit-taking Institution (ADI) application lodged with the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA)

2019 – LLL begins operating as an ADI under licence conditions granted by APRA

2021 – LLL celebrates 100 years of service to the Lutheran Church

YOU ARE INVITED TO JOIN US
IN GIVING THANKS FOR
100 years
OF LLL AUSTRALIA

2021 marks a milestone in the LLL’s history.
It is our 100-year anniversary of serving
our supporters and the Lutheran Church
in Australia. It is right and proper to give
thanks and praise to God as we see what
he has achieved through the hearts and
hands of his people. We would like to
acknowledge and honour our founder Ben
Koch and all directors and staff who have
faithfully served LLL over that century.

Please join us for the LLL 100 Year
Thanksgiving Service, to be held on the
eve of our centenary anniversary:

Saturday 13 November
10am ACDT

Streamed live, the service will be
held at Bethlehem Lutheran Church,
Adelaide, and available to view
on the LLL’s Facebook page.
A recording of the service will be
available after the event for those who
are unable to view the livestream.

448

Editor’s letter

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Even though I almost studied accountancy and economics after high school, money management, budgets and finance are not my passion nor my strongest suit (just ask my husband Nigel, or The Lutheran’s Executive Editor, Linda Macqueen).

However, I get excited when I see the good that churches, care and service organisations, charities and schools can do with joyfully given donations or wisely invested or spent funds. What is compelling is the change that can take place in people’s lives as they are given opportunities, hope and self-worth through this investment in them – when teamed with the time and presence of others.

That’s why we, as members of the LCANZ, may give a portion of hard-earned or saved money to New and Renewing Churches, LCA International Mission, Lutheran Media, or ALWS, for example. We want more and more people in our communities, broader societies of Australia and New Zealand and beyond, to come to know Jesus and to know his love for them through practical support.

In any case, we know it’s not ‘our’ money – it’s God’s. But we have the opportunity to ‘pay forward’ his incredible generosity to us.

And this is the ethos that has underpinned 100 years of support by Lutherans in Australia for the LLL. As our church members have backed the Lutheran Laypeople’s League since its inception in 1921, so this rock-solid, reliable organisation has backed us – our congregations, schools, church plants, care communities, camps, publications, projects, resources, refurbishments and local and overseas outreach efforts. The LLL’s current tagline says it all – Finance with a mission.

Today, the LLL has 18,000 depositors, 120 separate borrowing clients and manages 48,000 active client relationships. It has had to adapt to a changing regulatory environment, especially in more recent years, but one thing has never changed – its reason for being. As LLL Board Chair Graeme Huf says, the LLL ‘operates independently of the LCANZ but with the clear purpose of benefitting the church by providing loans for church projects and supporting the LCANZ’s wider ministry and mission through gifts, donations and allocations’.

In the pages to follow, we celebrate and thank God for 100 years of the LLL, reflecting on the broad-ranging impact it has had on the lives of so many people. I pray that you’ll find joy and inspiration in the stories and snippets about this most remarkable ‘member’ of our church family.

You’ll also meet our new LCANZ bishop-elect and read other news from the first-ever online sessions of General Synod. As usual, too, we’re pleased to share devotional materials and information about resources available to support our church family.

God bless your reading,

Lisa

449

Communion joins us with Christ and all believers

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JESUS IS GOD’S LOVE.

HE GIVES US NEW HEARTS –

TO LAY ASIDE OUR OLD WAYS,

TO BELIEVE AND FOLLOW HIM,

TO LIVE WITH HIM EVERY DAY.

HEARTLAND

Rev John Henderson

Bishop Lutheran Church of Australia

From 2002 to 2009 I worked as General Secretary of the National Council of Churches in Australia. It was a remarkable role. I served 23 member churches and connected with their global counterparts, attending gatherings as far afield as the Middle East, Europe, Africa, North and South America and China, and closer to home in PNG, Indonesia, Malaysia, Cambodia and elsewhere.

During those years I noticed something about global Christianity which I still notice as LCANZ Bishop: despite being entrenched behind denominational, cultural and theological lines (usually in that order!), Christians almost universally value the practice of holy communion.

I have found this to be so even among determinedly ‘non-sacramental’ groups like the Salvation Army. As a Christian temperance movement, it abandoned the sacraments to avoid controversy. But, a hundred years on, some officers I knew still attended communion in other churches. One or two had even arranged their own baptisms. I don’t think they confessed this to their superiors, but they quietly admitted it to me.

Why is the practice of holy communion so pervasive even where there is no emphatic theology, such as Lutherans have, to support it? During important early debates on the topic, Lutherans learned to use certain words to describe what communion is and is not – terms such as ‘means of grace’, real presence’ of Christ, ‘true body, true blood’ and ‘in, with and under bread and wine’. We also learned to take communion seriously and how to prepare and receive it worthily by faith in the words of Christ.

Listening closely to other Christians, however, we find that they also describe a sacred act of God’s presence which humans cannot fully understand. Despite our partial, incomplete knowledge, we are all in awe of God’s saving work through such apparently simple means.

I highly value and passionately believe in the Lutheran understanding of the sacraments – see Luther’s Small Catechism for the simplest explanation. Luther wrote, ‘The words “given for you” and “shed for you for the forgiveness of sins”, show us that forgiveness of sin, life, and salvation are given to us in the sacrament through these words.’ This is central. The Son of God gave his life for us. In communion we are made one with Christ and, through Christ, with each other. That’s not just the people in the same room or our denominational group. It means all believers in time and eternity. All your brothers and sisters are there at the altar with you, being served and saved by Christ! So simple and yet profound. Some bread, some wine, and the word bringing together all of God’s people.

Now, if we wanted to start a global faith to save the world, how would we go about it? We would want people to know the truth, understand it and obey. We would probably opt for a set of commitments, accompanied by appropriate rules and regulations.

But what did God do? What we call the New Testament today tells the story of Jesus’ life and teaching, written from various perspectives, and some important early Christian letters. Among many important truths, it reveals these simple acts – water and the word, bread and wine with the word. They are saving acts. Through them we become members of God’s family and receive eternal life.

Whatever our spiritual or theological bent, whatever church community we come from, communion tells the truth about who we Christians are. God gathers us as one body in him, a mystery beyond our understanding and a powerful, continuing, saving grace for all who believe.

450

Leadership still about relationships – and mission

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Reflecting on the LLL’s centenary, it’s startling to realise that in 100 years it has had only five leaders, whether serving as president, executive secretary, general manager or chief executive officer (CEO). Each has prioritised building relationships with the Lutheran Church, with the ultimate goal of supporting mission and ministry.

Mr Ben Koch, President, Executive Secretary 1921–1963

On 14 November 1921, the LLL was formed at Bethlehem Lutheran Church Adelaide, and Ben Koch elected president. LLL’s initial growth was attributed to his promotional tours and parish visits. In 1944, he was employed part-time as executive secretary and later was paid as a ‘regular church servant’. Ben served in this role until he died in 1963 – 42 years.

Mr Theo Koch, Executive Secretary 1963–1986

Theo Koch joined the LLL in 1953. He took the roles of secretary/treasurer and became executive secretary after his father’s death. He steered the LLL through the formation of the LCA and consolidated its position as an auxiliary of the new church. He expanded the LLL’s support base by broadening its services. Known for his work ethic, understanding of church workings and sound financial judgement, Theo retired in 1986 after 33 years’ service.

Mr Richard Bartholomaeus, Executive Secretary, General Manager, CEO 1987–2008

Richard Bartholomaeus joined LLL as assistant secretary in 1977. Following the retirement of Theo Koch, Richard was appointed executive secretary in 1987. Later renamed general manager then CEO, it was a role he served in until retiring in August 2008. A strong and insightful leader, he offered a distinctive vision and optimistic spirit. His focus on promoting the LLL bore fruit in its growth of deposits and expansion of services to the LCA. Richard says: ‘It was always a joy to witness the people of the church respond so generously to the needs of the mission and ministry of the church.’

Mr Allen Kupke, CEO 2008–2020

Allen Kupke joined the LLL in 1988 as administration manager and became CEO when Richard Bartholomaeus retired. During Allen’s leadership, deposits reached unprecedented levels, and he led the LLL through the Global Financial Crisis and a changing regulatory environment while increasing lending to church projects. He later prompted the LLL to become an Authorised Deposit-taking Institution. After 32 years’ service, 12 as CEO, he retired in November 2020. He says a highlight of his leadership was enabling the mission dream of Shepparton congregation in Victoria to be realised: ‘God used the LLL as a conduit to join the needs of the Shepparton congregation with a generous donor who … enabled the construction of the new church complex.’

Mr Ross Smith, CEO 2020–current

LLL appointed Ross Smith as its CEO in November 2020. Ross has strong finance sector knowledge, a deep understanding of Christian schools’ needs, and brings the word of Christ to all he does. Focused on fostering long-standing relationships between depositors, borrowers and staff, he says, ‘At the heart of all that LLL performs is the trust of our depositors. They have provided the necessary financial capital to support developments in our Lutheran congregations and schools and I intend to foster that spiritual growth’.