Simon Gilham: Mark, you’ve been Bishop of Bathurst for almost five years. What have been some of the joys and challenges of working in this Diocese?

 

Mark Calder: It’s been a huge privilege. Most people know that the Diocese had been going through some very hard times. So when I sat down with the Bishop’s election board to chat about the role, they asked me to bring gospelfocused Christ-centred change. 

 

Under God, we’ve seen that happen. When I came, there was virtually no one under 70 in many of our churches. But new ministers have come, and we’ve been able to lower the average age of ministers, who are now serving with their young families. 

Churches have doubled and tripled in size. Some have gone from seven to 21. That’s still tripled! Churches are growing and flourishing because the ministry is now a little more relevant to younger families. A church in Millthorpe is running its first Sunday School in 30 years. At the Cathedral where James is, they’ve established an afternoon kids club and a morning playgroup. These sorts of things haven’t been tried successfully for a long time. 

 

People are getting excited. Furthermore, as they begin to understand the gospel, people are getting excited about it. In one of our churches, people have noticed that the Bible has been taught and opened in a way they haven’t experienced before, and they’re saying, “Why hasn’t anybody told us this?” They’re wrestling with the Bible in a way they haven’t before.

 

SG: Praise God! James, you’ve been part of that change Mark is talking about. You’ve been at the Cathedral for a year and a half. What brought you from Sydney to Bathurst?

James Boardman: The plan after theological college was that I was going to be a minister in Sydney. Then all of a sudden, this opportunity came up: Mark posted on Facebook about a two year training role at the Cathedral funded by the Bush Church Aid Society (BCA). 

 

Unlike the Armidale Diocese, Bathurst doesn’t have roles or funds for ten assistant ministers. So instead, BCA have come in and very generously funded this role to train ministers who then go on to become rectors. 

 

After some prayer, we were convicted that this was the right move. Since we’ve  arrived, it’s been a real joy, getting alongside the team and seeing some wonderful growth in the gospel. Coming out of College, I wanted to know how to do a baptism, how to do a funeral, and how to run a parish council. This is giving me the opportunity to do all of that. 

 

SG: Fantastic! The partnership with BCA also connects you with a broader group of churches. Tell us about that.

 

JB: It’s been phenomenal. BCA has 30,000 supporters across the country, so lots of people are praying for us. I’ve got partner churches at Surfers Paradise, Nowra, Randwick and Cremorne who pray for us regularly. One church raised $750 to buy equipment for our playgroup. Another bought a train set for our playgroup. It’s wonderful to have this broader network, knowing that we’re all on the same mission to make Jesus known.

 

SG: What have been some of the joys? 

 

JB: The greatest joy has been seeing four people come to faith. We started a Christianity Explored program: three came to faith through that, and we’ve got another two going through our current course. 

 

Also, as Mark said, we established a playgroup last August. That’s now grown to 25 kids. All of them are hearing the gospel, week in, week out, and that’s opened up some phenomenal gospel conversations.

 

SG: Mark, who can come serve in Bathurst? What kind of people are you looking for? 

 

MC: A range of people with different gifts and abilities at different stages of life. Basically, we want people who love Jesus, who want to make him known, and who’ve had some training in the Bible so that they’re able to help people to understand it.

 

I keep saying I don’t want people to come and run our churches, spending all their time doing programs and rosters behind computers. One of the people who just started with us said, “I think shepherds should smell like sheep, because they’ve been spending time with them.” That’s exactly the sort of people we want— people who will spend time with people, getting out into the community, coming alongside people and opening the Bible with them. Many of these people have never had a minister visit them. They certainly haven’t had anyone sitting down and reading the Bible with them before. 

 

As much as possible, though, I want people to be involved full-time. Some parishes say, “Mark, we only need somebody part-time.” I reply, “No, you need someone full-time.” A part-time minister will keep things ticking over. But someone in full-time ministry will be able to make those extra connections, go those extra miles, and immerse themselves in the life of the community. They will end up really making a difference.

 

A church can’t grow and flourish without a dedicated shepherd. We only have 28 parishes, but we’re a third of the size of New South Wales. The distances are huge. Of those 28 parishes, I still have eleven without clergy. Some of them have been without clergy three, four, five, six years. That’s taking its toll. The lay ministers do a fantastic job, but they’re getting tired, and some of them, by their own admission, are getting old. 

 

I really need people to come to those eleven parishes. We can tailor the situation to fit the needs, gifts, skills and life experience of people who are putting up their hand. So if that’s you, let’s have a conversation and see where that goes.

 

Watch the full video interview here