Aboriginal Clergy Gathering

Revd Canon Shannon Smith

February provided the opportunity for the Aboriginal Clergy of the Province of Victoria to gather at Bishopscourt and meet with the new Archbishop of Melbourne, Bishop Ric Thorpe, and his wife Louie. We were very blessed to also have Bishop Matt Brain and Rachel join us for the gathering.

It is not often our Aboriginal clergy have the opportunity to get together to share with and support each other. It is always a delight to see our clergy from Gippsland, Reverend Kathy Dalton and Reverend Phylis Andy. I am not sure if folk realise just how much harder it is for an Aboriginal female priest out on the ground (the mission field). There have been several extreme events that have taken place in regional Victoria amongst our communities, so it is always wonderful to be able to sit with the girls and debrief.

The gathering at Bishopscourt gave Archbishop Ric and Louie the opportunity to sit with the clergy and hear them share their own story of responding to God’s call and their spirituality. It was exceptionally wonderful to hear Reverend Kathy speaking about Welcome to Country and helping the new Archbishop further his understanding of this ancient ceremony.

A second gathering is to be held later in the year and it has been proposed that our Diocese of Bendigo will host.