1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 The Uniting Church Adult Fellowship National Committee is a very different Assembly Agency from any other.

1.2 As the national body for Adult Fellowship throughout the land it is perhaps one of the largest, yet it is also in other ways one of the smallest. Large in membership – estimated at 40,000 – we are small in our organisation with a minimal budget and no National Director or paid staff.

1.3 Another difference is that by decision of the National Consultation 1997 the "chairperson" of the National Committee is appointed as National President. This is reflected in the Interim Mandate wherein the National Committee is to consist of a "President and up to 11 members......". This decision was made because of the widespread use of the term President within the fellowship groups in our own church, the equally widespread use of the term in other churches with which we have relationships in Australia, and the absolute use of the term in ecumenical and international circles in which this Committee represents the church, namely Australian Church Women, World Federation of Methodist and Uniting Church Women, World Alliance of Reformed Churches Department of Partnership of Women and Men, and Bridgebuilders International.

2.1 Membership of the National Committee (cf "Reference Committee"):

Evelyn Kitney

Kay Lockley

2.2 This is the first time the National Committee has been based in Western Australia and we have appreciated the support of the Synod. Despite Information Technology communica-tion has at times caused much frustration. This is particularly the case in our contacts with the South Pacific area, but has applied in the church beyond UCAF between the west and east coast of Australia. We have realised the human element is an important factor even with modern technology, and delays and lack of response seem even less acceptable within the new range of possibilities opened up in this modern era.

3.1 The Commissioning Service for the National Committee held on the Sunday morning at the end of the last Consultation was a meaningful beginning to our term for those of us from Western Australia able to be there. We have given a priority to the request of the last Consultation that this National Committee consider "the question of reimbursement of costs for attendance at Consultation of non-executive members of the outgoing and incoming National Committees" and have worked hard at making this financially possible.

3.2 We firmly believe this is a wise use of resources as the contribution of outgoing members is needed for the efficient organisation of the Consultation, and the new National Committee members need the experience of being part of the Consultation, plus exposure to the representatives of the Synod Committees.

4.1 Our activities as a National Committee included:

Further information about the last four of these follows.

5.1 The Sixth National Adult Fellowship Confer-ence was held in Perth in September 1998 and was preceded and succeeded by Wildflower Tours which were opportunities for those attending to share in rich fellowship while exploring the beauty of our wildflower season in both northern and southern parts of our vast state.

5.2 The conference theme was "Signposts for our Journey" and people journeyed from all states to share the Bible studies, electives, coach tour, devotions and meals, to enjoy the sing-along and guest speakers, to hear of the Assembly decisions affecting our journey, to listen to the keynote speaker relate our journey to the Word, the Sacraments, and the Spirit, to be involved in a very meaningful eucharistic service and enjoy one another’s company and the fellowship shared.

5.3 Our hope for the future is that the conference, with its emphasis on fellowship, spiritual growth and recreation, may attract a much larger number of adults within the church so that it may become an occasion of real significance to the membership and meaningful witness to the community.

6.1 I am pleased to report that Adult Fellowship is alive and well in the church, with some very active synod and presbytery leadership. As well as fellowship within congregations it was apparent that activities for fellowship and service beyond the scope of local groups are organised by the synod and presbytery committees. These range from much hard work in "Mission Projects" to luncheons and dinners (fellowship and fundraising), outings, rallies and tours. With opportunities to meet members at synod, presbytery, local and individual level I became aware of one general concern: the membership of Adult Fellowship is mainly in the "older age" group! This is a "given" but does it need to be of such great concern? Demographically the nation and the church populations are aging! People of both genders are employed in the workforce; people without employment are likely to spend their time seeking work, honing their skills and feeling too anxious to join a Fellowship group! So, much of the membership of the traditional Fellowship groups will be elderly. And there is a real place for such groups, and a real contribution they can make within the life of the church locally and beyond. For as long as there is a felt need we should affirm such groups and value the contributions they make at all levels.

6.2 But these groups are not the totality of Adult Fellowship! Bible Studies, craft groups, parents’ clubs, book clubs, discussion groups, Scrabble and games meetings, friendship circles, luncheon clubs are all adults meeting for fellowship. The list could go on. The traditional Adult Fellowship must resist the urge to attempt to organise such groups along traditional lines. We must accept that the business meeting and its structures is not necessarily part of the ethos of all groups. Such structures are not essential for group life – and groups will work out the way that is right for them, if allowed.

7.1 The National Committee is responsible for ecumenical and international relationships within the "fellowship organisations" of the three churches from whence we came. These are the World Federation of Methodist and Uniting Church Women, the World Alliance of Reformed Churches – Department of Partner-ship of Women and Men – and Bridgebuilders International. We also represent the church with an official voting delegate to the National Assembly of Australian Church Women. I had been President of the National Executive of ACW for a term in Western Australia, and was pleased to attend the two meetings in Canberra and Brisbane, valuing the opportunities of sharing grass-roots ecumenism. Leadership is shared by women from all churches, from Roman Catholic to Churches of Christ, but unfortunately there is not yet any representation from any of the Orthodox Churches.

7.2 Bridgebuilders International began in New Zealand five years ago with a concern that Presbyterian and associated women should have a forum for fellowship and the study of issues raised at the Bejing International meeting of women, and gain consultative status with the United Nations. Membership includes churches of the Asia/Pacific region and southern Africa, with the present International Board of Officers sited in South Africa. The WARC Department of Partnership of Women and Men has not provided any leadership within our region and the hope is that Bridgebuilders International will forge close links with the world-wide body. We agreed to become a member at Consultation 1997 and our representative to the Consultation held in Fiji in July 1999 was the Ecumenical and International liaison person, accompanied by the Vice President. Phillis Dolling and Claire Jones both contributed to the Consultation and reported back to the National Committee and Synod Committees. Many of the churches from the region are united, and this is another opportunity for us to "be in sympathy with global organisations", and to honour our commitment as a church to "seek special relationships with churches in Asia and the Pacific".

7.3 The World Federation of Methodist and Uniting Church Women has been part of our remit since the formation of the National Committee, and the South Pacific Area Seminar was held in Samoa in August 1999. Twenty-six Australians attended the delegation I led, and this included seven women (and a husband) from Thursday Island, a representative of Congress, a Pacific Islander and a past-Missionary to Samoa now in a wheel-chair. The theme was "Holy Spirit, weave the people of the Pacific together" and the culture was strongly south-Pacific with less than fifty Anglo-Celtic members of the total of around five hundred women. Bible Study and Worship themes covered similar topics to the Bridgebuilders International Consultation: Women and ...... –The Aged; -Poverty; -Violence; -Children’s rights; -the Environment; -AIDS. The South Pacific churches’ represent-atives are young and vital, struggling in developing nations with a culture very different from ours. It truly was good for us from Australia and New Zealand to have been involved in what was a learning role, with some opportunities for leadership.

8.2 The outgoing National Committee has valued the opportunity to form an Assembly Agency and has found the responsibiliities and opportunities worthwhile and challenging. For most of our term six of our members lived in various country regions, resulting in the need for journeys of up to three hours each way to attend our monthly meetings. That is one facet of the experience no-one will miss! We believe in the worth of Adult Fellowship within congregations, and the extra dimension that is possible at Presbytery, Synod and Assembly level, and thank God for our three-year term as the National Committee.