Presbyterian

The Presbyterian Church of Australia is a federation of State Presbyterian Churches formed in 1901.

Within this federation, the six State Churches preserve their own identity, although they have voluntarily handed over certain responsibilities to the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of Australia. These responsibilities include:

• guarding the doctrine of the Church and its practice of Church worship and discipline,

• world mission,

• training of students for the ministry and

• the acceptance of ministers from other denominations.

The principles adopted by the Church in these areas are set out in two documents called the Basis of Union and the Articles of Agreement.

The General Assembly of Australia generally meets every three years, and is made up of Commissioners from every Presbytery and State Assembly

Presbyterian Church in NSW

Within each State, the Church has an Assembly which consists of all ministers who are members of Presbytery, an elder from each congregation and the officers of the Assembly. The Assembly officers are

• the Moderator (who usually acts as the chairman in all Assembly meetings),

• the Clerk and various other office bearers.

These usually include a Procurator (a Barrister) and a Law Agent (Solicitor). A deputy clerk may sometimes be appointed. The Assembly is the highest court in each State, and has the right to determine many matters affecting the life of the Church except those matters which are determined at a national level by the General Assembly of Australia.

It is the responsibility of the State Assembly to superintend the work of the Church within its sphere and it is sovereign in all matters which pertain to the government of the Church. The Assembly usually appoints committees to carry out its ongoing work. The composition and function of these committees is defined by Regulations, and copies of regulations for various Assembly Committees can be obtained from the Clerk of Assembly.

The regular committees are usually called Standing Committees and other committees called Special Purpose or Ad Hoc Committees may be appointed from time to time. Each Assembly committee presents a detailed report on its activity so that every member of Assembly is aware of its work. Questions can also be asked of each Committee.

Presbyterian Social Services

One of the Committees of the Presbyterian Church of NSW Assembly is the Presbyterian Social Services Committee. This operates like a Board of Directors but reports to the Assembly.

This committee operates under the name of Jericho Road. Among other Social Welfare and Social Justice programs it has oversight of the 8 Hospital Chaplains and 3 Corrective Services Chaplains that are partially funded by the State Government.

Contact Details

Street Address (Office)

Presbyterian Church of New South Wales

168 Chalmers St,

Surrey Hills, NSW 2010

Postal Address

Presbyterian Church of New South Wales

PO Box 2196,

Strawberry Hills, NSW 2012

Phone

(02) 9690 9333

Fax

(02) 9310 2148

Mission of Jericho Road

Purpose

To work with and for the Presbyterian Church in NSW to demonstrate the character of God by providing fresh hope and care for those who are in need, in a way that seeks justice, shows mercy, and makes Jesus known.

Vision

To provide high quality and distinctively Christian care too all those in the community who are most vulnerable and who would otherwise be isolated from support.

Values

We will:

• Act in a way that shows we understand the most important commandment, acknowledging that the Lord our God is one, and that we should love Him with all our hearts and with all our souls and with all our minds and with all our strength (Mark 12:29,30),

• Love our neighbours as ourselves (Mark 12:31),

• Seek justice by allowing all people to flourish as God has meant them to as image bearers (Gen 1:27),

• Act with humility as we serve (Matthew 20:25-28),

• Act with integrity, speak the truth in love and hold ourselves accountable to each other, the Presbyterian Church in NSW and God (2 Cor 4:1,2),

• Show Christ-like compassion (Col 3:12),

• Be generous (1 Tim 6:17-19),

• Value life as a God-given gift (Gen 2:7), and

• Be committed to remaining in and reaching out to the world around us (Matthew 5:13-16).

Accountability

The delegate to the CCAC of the Presbyterian Church in NSW reports directly to the CEO of Jericho Road, Presbyterian Social Services on all matter related to Chaplaincy within the denomination.

A Senior Chaplain is appointed to oversee the day to day activities of individual chaplains and reports to the CEO.

All ministers, delegates and appointees of the Presbyterian Church of NSW are ultimately accountable to the Assembly of the Presbyterian Church in accord with the provisions of the Presbyterian Church of Australia Act

Authorisation of Chaplains

All persons appointed Presbyterian Church in NSW to a CCAC Chaplaincy position are required to

• make a solemn declaration that they personally accept the Presbyterian Churches doctrines,

• promise to keep on teaching and supporting these beliefs throughout their ministry,

• fulfil their duties as set down in the Constitution of the Presbyterian Church,

• acknowledge they will be providing both pastoral and spiritual care to people of multi faith and that they need to be respectful of the individual’s belief without compromising their own belief, and

• be qualified in both theology and in pastoral care by tertiary institutions recognised by the Presbyterian Church and the CCAC.