Fifth Sunday of Ordinary Time - Matthew 5: 13-16

Liz Little is a retired teacher and a member of the St Mary’s in Exile Community in Brisbane. She taught Religion in several Catholic secondary schools over her forty years of teaching and retains her interest in theology and the study of scripture. During her career she was Deputy Principal in several Catholic secondary schools and also lectured trainee teachers at university. She has qualifications in Geography, Theology, School Leadership, Education and Public Administration. Liz is a keen bushwalker. It is out there in the magnificence of the natural world that she feels she truly encounters the sacred. She has many other interests and involvements that allow her to fully embrace her retirement.

Fourth Sunday of Ordinary Time - Matthew 5: 1-12a

Tania worked as a solicitor for over twenty years, primarily for medical defence organisations, assisting doctors and other health professionals with complaints and claims against them. Tania has three lovely children, one of whom has ADHD and Autism and has faced incredible challenges in his schooling and social  life. To better support her family Tania gave up her legal profession and became a full time carer to her third child. Over the last four years Tania left has completed her Bachelor in Behavioural Science (Psychology) as well as earning First Class Honours in Behavioural Science Psychology (Honours). Tania works in research at QUT to improve inclusiveness in our schools. Tania is passionate about improving community understanding of ADHD and Autism and disability. It is through understanding and familiarity that we can achieve inclusion in schools. It is of course for all of us to open our minds and hearts to all children, and support them to access an education together with their peers. Tania says, "There have been periods of parenting where I have faltered and despaired. These periods have been marked by the challenges that my son has faced, and the impact of exclusion by schools and some of his peers. I felt God walk with me as I navigated my way forward through these particularly difficult nights and days. I am grateful for my faith and for God’s presence in my life. I have been an active catholic for much of my life, involved in various aspects of the church at different times."

Third Sunday of Ordinary Time - Matthew 4: 12-17

Australian Women Preach models the church we want to be, inclusive, diverse and welcoming. This week we are delighted to share our first non-binary preacher, Steff Fenton. Steff (they/them/theirs) is Co-Founder and Co-Pastor of New City Church, an independent church in Sydney’s inner city exploring faith in diverse and inclusive ways. Steff is a writer, speaker and educator, engaging the intersections of being genderqueer, trans and Christian. They recently graduated with a Master of Divinity through the University of Divinity, writing a thesis about masculinity, male entitlement, and gender-expansiveness in the Gospel of Matthew. Steff is passionate about cultivating a more equitable and expansive faith, as well as summer time, dinners with friends and scrolling Instagram for puppy photos.

Second Sunday of Ordinary Time - John 1: 29-34

Dr Dianne Rayson is a public theologian and scholar of Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Her main concerns are climate change and biodiversity loss, and how the church might ethically engage with these and other social problems, so her focus is on ecotheology. In her writing she has also addressed issues such as war, rape culture, and ecological degradation. She completed her PhD at The University of Newcastle (2017) and her book is Bonhoeffer and Climate Change: Theology and Ethics for the Anthropocene (Lexington, 2021). Di is a member of the Anglican Church of Australia where she preaches and she is regularly engaged in public contexts, including on ABC radio. She sees theology as a force for enriching both the life of the church and the community at large, and she loves to teach theology. Di is currently Senior Lecturer in Theology and Ethics at Pacific Theological College, Suva, Fiji, returning to the tropics after a long absence. She has lived and worked in Darwin, NT, and Papua New Guinea, working in public health and social policy. Her family home is on Biripi country in NSW where she gardens and grows food. She is a singer and cellist, and most at home in the ocean or the bush.

Epiphany of the Lord Solemnity - Matthew 2: 1-12

Veronica Lawson RSM is a Sister of Mercy and a biblical scholar based in Ballarat. She is probably best known for her weekly gospel reflections which have a global circulation and for her 2015 publication The Blessing of Mercy: Bible Perspectives and Ecological Challenges which proved to be a valuable resource for the Year of Mercy. She was the first woman to be elected President of the Australian Catholic Biblical Association.

Veronica volunteered to teach Biblical Studies when it was introduced into the secondary school curriculum in 1965, her first year of teaching. It was not possible at that time for a Catholic woman to study for a theology degree in Australia. While teaching at secondary level, she attended part-time theology and language classes (Greek and Hebrew) at the Redemptorist Seminary in Ballarat. Subsequent studies at the University of San Francisco, at the Ecole Biblique in Jerusalem and at Trinity College Dublin provided Veronica with the formal qualifications required for a life-time engagement with the Word of God in diverse contexts (with University students, seminarians, interfaith and ecumenical groups, teachers, priests, religious and parishioners). Her study tours of Bible Lands formed part of the graduate program in theology at Australian Catholic University for some twenty-five years. Invitations to conduct workshops in Pacific Island countries, in Kenya, France, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Timor Leste and Pakistan are among her most valued learning experiences. She plans to resume her regular ecological theology sessions in March

Mary, Mother of God Solemnity - Luke 2: 16-21

Reverend Di Langham writes:

I am Reverend Canon Auntie Di Langham. Director of Reconciliation for Anglican Diocese of Newcastle. I am also secretary of the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander Anglican Council. I am 72 years of age.

I have been a priest in the Diocese of Newcastle for the past 21 years. I was the first Aboriginal woman in this Diocese to be ordained. I was a chaplain in Corrective Services NSW for 20 years and prior to that I was a chaplain in Juvenile Justice.

I am a Boandik woman and part of the Stolen Generations history of this country, now living and working in the lands of the Awabakal and Wanaruah. I am married with 4 children, 14 grandchildren and 2 great grandchildren.

I like to weave into any of my talks Aboriginal spirituality and talk about my past experiences in any sermons I do. I was a teacher in my past life and taught in both schools and TAFE.

Christmas Day - The Nativity of the Lord

The Right Reverend Kay Goldsworthy AO,  Archbishop of the Anglican Diocese of Perth and Metropolitan of Western Australia, was born and called to ministry in the Diocese of Melbourne. She was ordained Deaconess in 1984 and Deacon in 1986 and served in parishes in Melbourne. In 1988 she was appointed Chaplain to Perth College and was among the first women in Australia to be ordained to the priesthood by Archbishop Peter Carnley on 7 March 1992.

Kay was appointed Assistant Bishop by Archbishop Roger Herft and was the first woman ordained to the episcopate in Australia on 22 May 2008. She was elected as the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Gippsland and installed on 21 March 2015.

In 2017 Kay was appointed an Officer of the Order of Australia (AO) for ‘distinguished service to religion through the Anglican Church of Australia, as a pioneer and role model for women, to church administration, and to pastoral care and equality’.

Kay was elected as the Eighth Archbishop of Perth and installed on 10 February 2018 - the first female archbishop in the Anglican Church of Australia

Fourth Sunday of Advent - Matthew 1:18-24

Penny Jones says,

I am an Anglican priest with permission to serve in the UCA. I am a spiritual director and supervisor with a background in dance. I recently co-taught Australia’s first unit in Queer theology for the University of Divinity.

Third Sunday of Advent - Matthew 11:2-11

Dr Margaret Scharf is a member of the Congregation of Dominican Sisters of Western Australia. She has a teaching and administrative background which was the springboard for other ministries, such as missionary work in the Solomon Islands, and the Dominican Sisters’ Motor Mission based in Morawa WA. After opportunities for study in the USA, Margaret Served for 16 years on the staff of the Center for Spiritual Development in Orange CA, as supervisor of the Art of Spiritual Direction three-year formation program for aspiring spiritual directors. Margaret taught many of the modules in the program, as well as acted as mentor and supervisor of spiritual directors. Her Doctorate involved the design of a formation program for supervision of spiritual directors. Currently, Margaret is part-time with the Catholic Institute of WA, and the Centre for Faith Enrichment, also providing Staff PD Days in Catholic Schools and presenting parish programs wherever the need is in the State. Margaret is the designer of a program for spiritual and faith development of potential leaders in Catholic Schools, called “Galilee” which has been on offer for 5 years in WA through the Catholic Institute of WA.  Margaret is also on the executive of the Council of Churches in WA, the Ecumenical council appointed by the Heads of Churches, and enjoys volunteering to play the music for the Aboriginal Catholic Ministry on Sundays. Margaret may also be remembered as a composer of Liturgical music with works published in Australia and the United States.

Second Sunday of Advent - Matthew 3:1-12

Frances Tilly is a lay woman, married with three adult children. Based in Sydney, she works nationally, as coordinator of mission formation with Jesuit Ignatian Spirituality Australia (JISA), a work of the Australian Jesuits. JISA is a national community of women and men including Jesuits, formed in Ignatian Spirituality working in a variety of geographic locations and online. With a background in European languages and literature, Frances has post-graduate qualifications in education and supervision and a Masters in Spiritual Direction.

At the heart of her ministry is being a spiritual director, professional supervisor, and giver of the Ignatian Spiritual Exercises in all their forms. She facilitates retreats, training, and spiritual formation, working with leadership, staff and ministry volunteers in diverse pastoral contexts. This has led to extraordinary connections with people, ministries and communities across Australia and internationally. She has had the privilege of witnessing the power of the spiritual exercises to bring us into the heart of the ministry of Jesus, freeing, healing and transforming individuals and groups, from Board room to prison cell.