EFAC Australia
Welcome to the EFAC Website
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- Written by: Chris Appleby
Welcome to the EFAC Australia Website!
We are a group of Anglican clergy and lay people who value the evangelical heritage of the Anglican Church, and who endeavour to make a positive, constructive contribution at local, diocesan and national levels. EFAC (Aust) is part of the world-wide Evangelical Fellowship in the Anglican Communion .
We are hoping this website will be used to connect members around Australia and keep everyone up to date with what's happening in their state. We have branches in each state plus the ACT and NT, so by clicking on your branch under the tab above, you can find out what is happening in your state. The site will be updated with news and events.
If you have any suggestions for the site please forward them to
Going Deeper in Prayer
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- Written by: Rowena Mcnicol
Accepting the role of Prayer Director at my church at the end of 2023 was definitely a stepping out of the boat kind of moment. I’d said ‘yes’ to the role due to a love for prayer and a strong belief in its transformative power. Did I have any idea what I was doing or how I was going to ‘direct prayer’ across quite a sizeable and diverse church community? No! Not at all!
I was comforted though by the Lord’s assurance that he would teach me and guide me each step of the way and that prayer was actually something he was quite keen on!
Four Things Gen Z Need to Step Into Vocational Ministry
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- Written by: Sam Oldland
Spend enough time in conversations about recruiting the next generation of gospel workers and eventually someone will ask, “So what’s the problem with Gen Z?”
The answers come quickly enough. They’re anxious. They’re slow to commit. They’re overwhelmed by options. They’re cautious about institutions. Before long we’ve built a neat diagnosis of an entire generation. They’re not offering for ministry because of something in them.
I’m not convinced that’s where the real problem lies.
Read more: Four Things Gen Z Need to Step Into Vocational Ministry
Organisational Faithfulness
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- Written by: GREG HAMMOND OAM
It’s the exception that an organisation stays true to its mission.
The natural course - the unfortunate natural evolution of many
originally Christ-centered missions - is to drift.
This statement by Chris Crane, then President and CEO of Edify and a former President and CEO of Opportunity International, is quoted in the recent book, Keeping Faith.[i] Although Chris Crane was speaking from an American context, the secularisation of Christian organisations is a worldwide phenomenon.[ii]
The authors of Keeping Faith further note “We believe that the most important thing that God requires of Christian organisations is faithfulness to the Christian life: expressed in the Bible and modelled by Jesus. This faithfulness is maintained by ensuring an overlap between the ethos (culture, spirit) of an organisation with its Christian identity and the impact that it has.[iii]
Synodically Governed
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- Written by: Timothy Arnold-Moore
Synod is the Parliament of the Anglican Church. The word “synod” comes from the Greek synodos (σύνοδος) – a common way or path.[1] Unlike historic synods, modern Anglican synods, a largely Australian invention, have significant lay representation affirming the priesthood of all believers, and the Westminster tradition of nobility and commoners separately represented.[2] Synods are a powerful tool for oversight, governance and promoting a shared vision for the ministry and mission of the Church. As a human governance construct, it has strengths and weaknesses reflecting our fallen humanity and need for the saving love of Jesus.
A long history but a short one
Synods have been called throughout the Church’s history. Although the specific word is not used in the New Testament, many consider the Council of Jerusalem in Acts 15 to be the first synod[3] and the archetype for all future synods. Following this example, the purpose of a synod is to resolve disputes[4] and discern together the Holy Spirit’s will for the church.[5] Meetings of mostly clergy often just bishops,[6] referred to as synods and common in the early church, continue in Roman and Eastern churches agreeing on canon,[7] worship practice, and the dates of Easter, [8] and the response to the Reformation. [9] Synods continued in the Church of England as Convocations of Canterbury and York meeting regularly until 1664. [10] Once major doctrinal positions were settled, the English church was largely governed by the monarch and Parliament[11] and clergy synods met more sporadically, often without debate, until their permanent revival in 1966.[12]
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