- National Council of Churches in Australia
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For other uses, see NCCA (disambiguation).
NCCA Logo
The National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) is an ecumenical organisation bringing together a number of Australia's Christian Churches in dialogue and practical cooperation.
It works in collaboration with state ecumenical councils around Australia. It is an associate council of the World Council of Churches, a member of the Christian Conference of Asia and a partner of other national ecumenical bodies throughout the world. Act for Peace is the international aid agency of the NCCA, which aims to empower war-torn communities to protect refugees, reduce poverty, prevent conflicts and manage disasters.[1]
Contents
Background
The modern ecumenical movement began to take shape at the end of the 19th century. Initiatives among students and between church mission agencies led the way. In Australia, these included the Australian Student Christian Movement, formed in 1896, and the National Missionary Council, created in 1926.
Organised ecumenism in Australia at the national Church level was first formalised through the Australian Committee for the World Council of Churches (1946). Initially, this movement involved only the Anglican and Mainline Protestant churches. In the 1960s and 70s, however, Eastern and Oriental Orthodox churches joined the ecumenical movement. This developed into the Australian Council of Churches (ACC). Following the Second Vatican Council, the Roman Catholic Church in Australia began exploring possibilities for relationships with other churches. In 1994 the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) succeeded the ACC, with the Catholic Church as a member.
Logo
The symbol of the boat has long been used to represent the ecumenical movement, and its origins are unclear - perhaps in the Gospel story of the calling of the Galilean fishermen to be disciples - "fishers of men". The boat represents the Church as a ship sailing the sea that is the world. The mast, in the shape of the cross, recalls the Christian faith.
The NCCA's version of the boat includes waves and the Southern Cross and was adopted at the formation of the NCCA in 1994. The use of the Southern Cross identifies the NCCA's geographical location.
An updated version of the logo, pictured above, was adopted in 2006.
Member Churches
The NCCA has nineteen member Churches.
Member Church Head of Church Anglican Church of Australia Archbishop Phillip Aspinall Antiochian Orthodox Church Archbishop Paul Saliba Armenian Apostolic Church Archbishop Aghan Baliozian Assyrian Church of the East Archbishop Metropolitan Mar Meelis Zaia Chinese Methodist Church in Australia Bishop Dr James Kwang Churches of Christ in Australia Craig Brown Congregational Federation of Australia Allan Filipaina Coptic Orthodox Church Bishop Suriel - Bishop of Melbourne and Affiliated Regions & Bishop Daniel - Bishop of Sydney and Affiliated Regions Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of Australia Archbishop Stylianos Indian Orthodox Church His Grace Dr. Yuhanon Mar Dioscoros Lutheran Church of Australia Mike Semmler Mar Thoma Church Bishop Joseph Mar Barnabas Religious Society of Friends Maxine Cooper Roman Catholic Church Archbishop Philip Wilson Romanian Orthodox Episcopate of Australia and New Zealand Bishop Mihail (Filimon) Serbian Orthodox Church Bishop Irinej Syrian Orthodox Church Archbishop Mor Malatius Malki Malki The Salvation Army Commissioner James Condon & Commissioner Raymond Finger Uniting Church in Australia Rev. Alistair Macrae Presidents
Year Name Denomination 2009 - Bishop Michael Putney Roman Catholic Church 2006 - 2009 Bishop Richard Appleby Anglican Church July 2003 - 2006 Rev Professor James Haire Uniting Church in Australia 1999 - 2001 Rev Lance Steicke Lutheran Church 1997 - 1999 Archbishop John Bathersby Roman Catholic Church 1994 - 1997 Archbishop Aghan Baliozian Armenian Apostolic Church General Secretaries
Year Name 2009 - Tara Curlewis 2001 - 2009 John Henderson 1994 - 2001 David Gill (Source: National Council of Churches in Australia)
See also
Notes
External links
Categories:- Christianity in Australia
- Catholic ecumenical and interfaith relations
- National councils of churches
- Christian denominations in Australia
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