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Assembly 2000 will have a strong emphasis on the role of congregations, according to assembly president-elect, Rev Professor James Haire.

"Assembly 2000 will deal with some issues of great importance," he said. "Perhaps the most significant issue will be brought up by the strategic planning unit.

"It will introduce its material on the Sunday afternoon of the assembly. That will be in conjunction with the launch of the assembly theme, ‘Here we are … + … send us’.

"The strategic planning unit looks at our situation as a church in Australia at the present time. It has a very heavy mission focus and looks at the kind of things we should be doing.

"One significant point it wants to make is rather than critiqueing or criticising what we are doing presently, we should rather suggest to congregations that they try to do things alongside what they are already doing — in parallel.

"So it's positive. It says, ‘Why not try these ideas? Why not have a go at these?’ "It's bringing resolutions to the assembly which focus tightly on the mission of congregations in the years immediately ahead of us.

"It’s very practical. It wants to focus very much on the kind of things that congregations do."

The unit’s proposals ask assembly to adopt the four principles in the report:• Developing an outward focus.

• Developing a sense of vision.• Developing new ways of being church.• Making space.The principles, it says, should be a basis to help the church to undertake its strategic planning in the next three years.It has a series of proposals dealing with congregations. It:

Asks congregations that have not developed a vision statement in the past two years "to develop one in consultation with their presbytery, or synod mission planners, and submit the statement to the presbytery".Encourages each congregation "to identify an appropriate way, every three months, of renewing their commitment and ownership of their vision for the life and witness of their congregation".

Encourages congregations to have a meeting each year devoted to reviewing their mission plan and re-invigorating it. It asks them to invite their presbytery liaison person, and a member of a neighbouring congregation, or some other suitable person not in the congregation, to this annual meeting. Urges groups and congregations to develop different styles, times and places of worship as part of a spectrum of worship options.Asks medium and larger sized congregations in particular (but not exclusively) "to identify a group not well represented in current worship services and, where possible, to work with them to develop new and appropriate celebrations of worship".Asks congregations to report back to presbyteries by December 1, 2001, on these initiatives and their progress so far.The unit will encourage presbyteries to:Affirm the congregations in their choice of initiatives in mission and worship.Encourage and support congregations as they implement these initiatives.Make provision to regularly receive reports from congregations on progress being made and to share ideas and stories.Review regularly the progress and outcomes being achieved.Encourage congregations to identify and implement further mission and worship initiatives.Support the ongoing development of these initiatives in congregations and to report to each meeting of their synod on what has been achieved. The unit encourages moderators during the next triennium "to give particular attention to new faith communities and emerging congregations and report at least annually to their standing committee or council of synod in regard to this area of the church’s life". And it asks editors and communication officers in synods and the assembly to "feature stories on the implementation and outcome of these mission and worship initiatives of congregations". It has several proposals on education for ministry. It asks:

• Presbyteries "to encourage and further develop new and flexible models of ministry appropriate to the changing context of ministry and report to each meeting of their synod on progress being made".• Synods and the ministerial education commission "to consider the impact of new models of ministry on both initial preparation and continuing education for ministry" It also encourages them "to develop appropriate models of training for these ministries, and report to the assembly standing committee on progress made in this regard by March 2002".• Assembly standing committee to identify, after appropriate consultation, a theological college willing to develop a pilot program focussed on both preparation and continuing education for new and alternative models of ministry. The unit affirms the key role that chaplains can play in furthering the mission of the church in its interface with the wider society. It calls on synods, presbyteries and congregations to:

Support chaplains in their various ministries.

Engage with them in discerning how their work might be developed in the future.

Identify strategies appropriate for that purpose.It says the strategic planning unit itself should "continue to monitor the broader social trends in society in order to alert the church to the implications of these changes for its ministry and mission".

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