Raymond Terrace will welcome a new Minister to the parish in December as a long-awaited replacement for Father Chris Yates.
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Father Stephen Niland will be commissioned in December at St John’s.
“Raymond Terrace has had three locums in the past 12 months and while they’ve done a great job, locums are only there half a week, they’re not full time,” Fr. Niland said.
“Initially, I want to get to know the people and the area, not just the people in the church but the wider community.”
Fr Niland was ordained as a minister of the Harrington parish and has been priest-in-charge since July 2013, after 18 months as curate at Taree.
He will move into the rectory with wife, Marea. It’s almost a home coming since they raised their family at East Maitland.
A former accountant, Fr Niland has had a long association with the Newcastle Anglican Diocese.
As a layman he served on the board of the Anglican Savings and Development Fund in Newcastle and was a member of the Diocesan Audit Committee. He currently serves on the board of Anglican Care, the aged care provider for the Diocese of Newcastle. He has been Chaplain to its two nursing homes in the Manning Region for more than half his time in that region. He continues also serves as Spiritual Director to Newcastle Diocese’s Cursillo Movement and as the National Spiritual Advisor to Cursillo; the Anglican worldwide movement that began in Spain and grew in Australia, to help participants discover their personal calling to God.
In his posting to Raymond Terrace Fr. Niland hoped to restore stability.
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“It’s difficult after a vacancy of this time,” he said.
“We’ll come to the parish, settle in and talk to people about which direction they would like us to go.”
Arriving at a most holy time on the Christmas calendar Fr Niland said it was not the time for change.
“As far as the services are concerned they are already set and available to people through the Raymond Terrace St John’s Facebook site,” he said.
“I like to do things a respectful and relaxed way, I’m a little laid back but I do like to see things done the right way.”
His core challenge will be to grow the number of disciples.
“At the end of Mathew’s Gospel, Jesus gives us the great commission, to make disciples of Jesus and baptise them. If we don’t make disciples we’re not going to have a church,” Fr Niland said.
The handover will take place at St John’s from 7pm on December 4 with parishioners from as far as Harrington and Taree in attendance. Bishop Peter Stuart will commission Fr. Niland.
Father Chris Yates returned to England in October 2016 to take up the vicar’s position at St Saviours Church in Eastborne. Fr. Yates had been rector for six years.