John Bruce MONTGOMERIE

MONTGOMERIE, JOHN BRUCE (b. Melbourne, Vic, 5 Aug 1893; d. Sydney, NSW, 14 June 1961). Anglican clergyman.

Born of Scottish and English parents, Bruce Montgomerie was converted in his school days. On leaving school he did a business course becoming manager of a large city office in Melbourne, but was called to the ministry, and entered Ridley College. He was ordained deacon by Bp George Cranswick (q.v.) at Sale, Gippsland, in 1921 and priest 1922. He spent the next few years as curate of Thorpdale and Walhalla, priest-in-charge of Wonthaggi, vicar of Alberton, and of Orbost, where he stayed from 1926 to 1932, during which time a new church was built. In 1922 he married Brucinda Ferguson, teacher at Lake Tyers Aboriginal Mission Station, where her father was manager. They had one child, a daughter, Joy. While at Orbost they offered to CMS for service among the Aborigines in NT but this did not eventuate. Montgomerie was also a trained scoutmaster and formed a scout troop at Orbost.

In 1932 Montgomerie accepted a call to be rector of St Luke's, Whitmore Square in the city of Adelaide. Arriving in the middle of the depression, he immediately confronted the poverty of the people in Adelaide's West End and organised what became widely known as St Luke's Mission. Assisted by Radio Station 5DN and The News, he was able to publicise their needs to the more fortunate of Adelaide's community. In winter, up to 250 children from Sturt Street School were provided with a free hot lunch each day in the parish hall, organised by Mrs Montgomerie with voluntary helpers. Meals were provided to needy families at Christmas, while food, toys, groceries and linen were distributed.

Montgomerie's energetic 'social service' work in Adelaide was in the evangelical actionist tradition; it was virtually the only organised Anglican response in Adelaide to the depression, and it was widely acclaimed. To achieve these goals required furious effort and great pragmatism. The Evangelical Trust of SA, established by David Knox (q.v.) a previous rector of St Luke's, was deployed to provide funds and a corporate structure independent of the Anglican parish. The integration of the Trust into this parochial social service work was eventually to produce disaster for both parish and Trust a generation later. In the meantime St Luke's was at the height of its influence as the leading Adelaide evangelical Anglican parish. Each January, up to 200 boys from poorer homes in the city had a holiday in tents at Port Noarlunga, led by Montgomerie as chief, who engaged in character training through the methods of the Boy Scout movement.

Montgomerie continued his keen interest in CMS. While at St Luke's he was a vigorous and effective secretary of the SA branch of the society, overseeing the vigorous growth of the League of Youth led by Rene Jeffries. He was also commissary for Bp Chambers (q.v.) of Central Tanganyika, from 1934 to 1939. He was chairman in 1938 for the evangelistic campaign at which the Rev Oswald Smith of the People's Church, Toronto, was the guest speaker.

In 1939 he accepted the offer to be vicar at St Matthew's Prahran, Melbourne. The Vestry of St Luke's recorded their appreciation of Montgomerie at a farewell on 27 April 1939: 'loyal to the evangelical traditions of St Luke's [he] had not let them down ... It was through his influence that a number had been accepted for full-time service in training for either the Mission Field, the Home Ministry, the Church Army and Deaconess work ... all ... will through his influence uphold the evangelical traditions of the church'. [St Luke's Vestry minutes 12 April 1939] Following a Civic Farewell given by the Lord Mayor of Adelaide, he moved to Melbourne, where, during the war years, he exercised another powerful ministry against many obstacles. A man of prayer, he was a firm believer that God blessed the church that made missionary giving a priority. Being vitally interested in young people, he encouraged them in their Christian lives. Many young men entered the ministry under his guidance who then have served God in evangelical churches in Melbourne and Sydney.

He continued his association with CMS and was honorary clerical secretary for four years and regional secretary for Africa and the Middle East. This brought him into contact with the work of the Federal Council of CMS, of which he was a member up to the time of his death. Montgomerie was full-time CMS secretary for Aborigines, based in Sydney, from 1947. He made frequent visits to the NT. He was responsible for the establishment of the Rose River Mission, Umbakumba and then Angurugu Missions on Groote Eylandt, and CMS headquarters in Darwin, as well as the maintenance and development of Roper and Oenpelli Missions. He was a first-class deputationist and made several films of the NT work which were widely used. He was deeply concerned for the welfare of the missionaries in his care, encouraged initiative and creative effort, based on his capacity to discern potential. His complete sincerity, devotion and singleness of mind, far-seeing vision, ability in organising the work of the office in Sydney and the missionaries in the field, will always be remembered by those who knew him. Montgomerie confronted the opinion in CMS that it should concentrate on overseas work, but possibly at the cost of making the Aboriginal work of CMS a self-contained operation. He was spectacularly successful in convincing the Commonwealth government to increase its support. So dominant was his impact on this area of CMS activity that it required a major series of structural and personnel changes to carry it on after his death in the changing circumstances of the 1960s, especially when Aboriginal participation in leadership became expected.

'JBM' or 'Monty' as he was affectionately known, stood positively for the Gospel of Christ, confidently asserting the great truths of historic Christian faith: the Second Coming of Christ was very dear to him, and he preached on this theme regularly. In the late 1950s his health began to deteriorate, and he died in June 1961.

Scrapbook of News Items, Letters, and Personal Reminiscences by daughter, Joy B Haddon; Evangelical Trust of SA, minutes; St Luke's, Adelaide, Vestry minutes; K Cole, From Mission to Church (Bendigo, 1985)

JOY B HADDON