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Ministry in ACT and NSW

As in previous years, my ministry path has taken me to the Swedenborgian/New Church group in Canberra, in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT.) Canberra, being the capital city of Australia, is the seat of the Federal Government, with the two houses of Parliament, and the High Court. Since 2008, when Prime Minister Rudd made an official apology to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, Parliament opens daily with an Acknowledgement of Country as well as the Lord’s prayer, which has been traditionally been said since Parliament was formed in 1901. Christianity is not a state religion in Australia, but was the predominant religion at the time. Whenever there have been attempts to discontinue daily prayer, the legislators keep it as part of the Australian Parliamentary tradition.

Old Parliament House and the War Memorial
The Carillion on one of many lakes
Black Mountain Tower. My cousin was the architect.
Parliament House

Acknowledgement of Country is now a cultural norm in Australia as a way to open meetings, gatherings and events. I like the spirit of respect for all indigenous people that this practice encompasses. When the name is known of the people on whose land the gathering is taking place, a typical Acknowledgement of Country might be “‘I begin today by acknowledging the <name of people, e.g. Ngunnawal)> people, Traditional Custodians of the land on which we gather today, and pay my respects to their Elders past and present. I extend that respect to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples here today.’

The Canberra group has been meeting in the lay leader’s home, in the large screened sun-room at the back of the house, for several years now since their minister moved to Melbourne. During my weekend visits in November and December we covered, in by now the usual pandemic-inspired hybrid style, three of four sessions in the “Seeing Providence” program that had been developed in the Swedenborgian/New Church in Bryn Athyn, PA, USA. We also worshiped together, including a lovely Christmas service in which we shared our favourite readings and carols. We were blessed by some very good singers in the group! I stayed in the home of one of one of the congregants, and also took some time to visit some of the tourist highlights in Canberra.

Early in December, there was a hybrid Women’s Weekend for Swedenborgian/New Church women in Australia and New Zealand. With my ministry outreach to women in various ways over the years, I felt right at home with the purposes of the retreat. This was the eighth retreat I believe for this wonderful group of women. My contribution was a presentation on “Feminine Swedenborgian Spirituality.”

During the retreat we attended sessions, put together birthing kits for women in poverty, walked the tracks in the bush around the Conference centre, played games, and enjoyed sharing some spiritually-focused time together. At the conclusion of the Women’s Weekend I enjoyed a ride back to Sydney in Jenn’s bright yellow BMW convertible! Since my focus for this part of my path was really on supporting Jon, Angela and Evie, this was the extent of my ministry activities until my road trip, which started just before New Years Eve, when they went away with friends for the holiday weekend.

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Joy in NSW

While in the process of helping Jon, Angela and Evie settle in physically and emotionally to their home in Australia, I made sure to have fun and to treasure the joy of being with them in NSW. Every day that I was not off doing some aspect of my ministry, I spent part of the day having an adventure with Evie, while Jon and Angela attended to the business of setting up a new life. Beach adventures, rock pool explorations, playground fun, swimming, playing with dolls, dancing.

While Jon and Angela were busy lodging his complicated application for a permanent resident visa, buying a car when decent used cars were hard to find, and finding a more permanent place to rent in a competitive market, we found plenty of ways to enjoy ourselves. Angela has several school friends who live nearby on the South Coast.

Someone caught a salmon during our evening walk
Plenty of beach time!
Shark on an evening walk!
Imaginative play
BBQ with friends…
…followed by trampoline games
Picnic with rellies and friends
Evie loves “family…
…charades” after dinner

Walking on the beach, especially at that liminal space at the edge of the water as the waves meet the sand, is probably my favourite way to access joy and at the same time appreciate my grounded place in this amazing universe. As Rumi advises, “Listen to the Ocean.” I walked many miles/kilometres along the stretches of beaches north and south of Bulli, any time of day (and swam in the surf as well.)

And of course there were various fun celebrations in December! My birthday, Christmas, and New Year’s Eve with fireworks on Sydney Harbour (another bucket list item!)

Evie helped make my birthday cake
Birthday Pavlova, a favourite Aussie dessert
Christmas morning “gag” gift
Christmas with Angela’s family
On the beach on Christmas Day
New Year’s Eve fireworks
Poor quality attempt at capturing the amazing fireworks on the Harbour!
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“At home” in New South Wales

As soon as the Coronavirus pandemic had settled down enough to allow international travel, I booked my tickets. On with my ministry and travel paths in Australia! Whereas in the past my focus was re-connecting with my church, family and school communities, this time a significant focus for me has been supporting my son Jon, his wife Angela and their daughter Evie as they move permanently to Australia.

Evie waving goodbye as the family leaves USA
Angela was very happy to re-unite with her twin sister
Beach life!
Jon and Angela rented an airbnb in Bulli NSW (south of Sydney) for the first two months after they arrived

Usually when in Sydney I’ve stayed in Baringa (pictured left) , the guest house/social centre/office of the Swedenborgian/New Church in Hurstville, NSW, and travelled an hour by train to help out in the other NCIA (New Church in Australia) congregation in Roseville, NSW. This time being in Bulli, I was an hour from Hurstville and two hours from Roseville.

The Hurstville church, on the “south shore”
The Roseville church, on the “north shore”

What with wanting to help Jon and Angela and Evie make their geographic and emotional transition to living in Australia, the distance and time to travel to the church centres, and contracting Covid within a few days of arriving, I spent much less time than in previous ministry trips actually helping out in the churches in Sydney. I was able to contribute to an Open Discussion at the Swedenborg Centre, an outreach of the Roseville church, as well as participate in a Bible study (below.) For the Hurstville church, whose piano player has now retired after many years of service, I returned to my former music ministry to record 18 hymns and songs on piano for them to use during Christmas and regular worship services.

Connecting with friends from my faith and school communities in the Sydney area is always a blessing! The people and places from my early years have deep meaning, still providing healing for the “third culture kid” part of me (google it!) Walked the Como bridge with Murray and Lori Heldon, went to Sydney Harbour with Cliff Adamou, had lunch with school friends (no photo 🙁 ), saw a play with Lori and Jenn Beiswenger

Arriving as I did in mid November, it was Christmas time in summer in Australia! Seemed normal to me growing up in Sydney, but it took some re-adjusting for me after decades of winter Christmases. We entirely missed Thanksgiving, which isn’t celebrated in Australia anyway, except as a religious Harvest Thanksgiving at the end of summer. Jon had bought some turkey for the occasion, but he and I had Covid that week, and somehow in a summer setting I didn’t really miss it. On Christmas day I was able to check off a bucket list item: go to the beach on Christmas! We saw many families in their “Christmas tents” on the beach, complete with lights and decorations.

Woolongong, near Jon and Angela’s
Hurstville church
Sydney somewhere
Martin Place in Sydney, with Jenn and Lori
Evie making a gingerbread house
Christmas morning
Beach on Christmas!
Traditional Christmas mimosas
Christmas tent on the beach
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The Path in 2020

Welcome back to “Walking the Path with Ros”! In 2020, as the global pandemic was starting to rear its head in China, I was in Australia for 2 months and got back to the USA a week before borders were closed to international travel. In this post I’m summarising that part of my ministry and travel path, as I didn’t manage to do so as it unfolded! I had been (finally) ordained as a minister in the Swedenborgian Church of North America on 1 July 2019, in Valparaiso, Indiana, during the annual Convention of the denomination. Many family members were able to be present, which was an incredible blessing. In Australia in 2020, I was a visiting minister from the SCNA, fully recognised as clergy even though women’s ordination in the New Church in Australia is limited to non-traditional ministry.

The first stop in 2020 was Adelaide, South Australia to visit with family and friends, and an obligatory beach day! Pictured are my cousin’s daughter with her partner and their daughter (and first son in utero) at the most pristine and paradisal “off the beaten track” beach I have ever been on, near their home in Port Lincoln, SA

The next stop was the annual New Church Family Retreat, which has only been held virtually since then because of Covid. This time it was held in Adelaide, South Australia at the Nunayara Conference Centre. I gave a very participatory workshop about “Spiritual First Aid,” held a children’s session in which they wrote and illustrated a psalm in Biblical style, and narrated a play reading of “The Great Change” by Walter Horner. My parents had given me a copy of the play many years before, written by their dear clergy friend, which had never been performed. Two of his descendants were in the audience and one was in the cast. Rev. Jane Siebert, the President of the SCNA, who had ordained me, attended the Retreat – the first time I know of that a SCNA minister had attended.

Spiritual First Aid
Children’s psalm
Retreat photo
Retreat clergy
Play reading
Dining
Choir performance under Rev. Julian Duckworth’s baton

There had been devastating bushfires all around Australia that summer, including near Adelaide. We could smell the smoke at times. Several people were re-routed due to active fires, as they drove interstate for the retreat. On outing day I found a baby koala who had bravely ventured to a duck pond, presumably because s/he couldn’t get moisture from gum leaves

After the Retreat, my path lead me back to Adelaide and Tintinara, SA to visit family and help out in the Adelaide New Church.

The final stops on the path for 2020 were Sydney and Canberra. There are two Swedenborgian/New Church congregations in Sydney, one on the “south shore” of Sydney Harbour, and one on the “north shore,” though neither are actually anywhere near the waters of the harbour. In Hurstville I gave a presentation/class, and in Roseville I helped out in the Swedenborg Centre.

Roseville
Hurstville
Swedenborg Centre at the Roseville church

The ministers in those congregations sometimes visit the Swedenborgian/New Church group in Canberra, 3 hours drive southwest of Sydney, which does not have a minister. One weekend I drove down to minister to the group, and visit relatives. Michelle (in the photos) had been feeding and offering water to kangaroos who had been displaced by the bushfires nearby.

Lunch out after church at…
…historic Lanyon Homestead
Pastoral visit
Displaced kangaroos…
…being cared for by Michelle

An important part of the path for me is re-connecting with my Aussie communities: family, church and school. So as usual, I visited various friends, went to favourite places, and relished the wonderful Aussie birds and other wildlife.

Pelican cruising
Chinese NY in Hurstville
Circular Quay performers
A Heldon family gathering
Favourite rockpools

But I also met new friends, like a woman who had been listening to “Off the Left Eye” and didn’t know there were church organisations. And went to new places, like the hotel where we met her in the Blue Mountains, and this beach at Watson’s Bay that was new to me.

New baby
New-to-me Watson’s Bay beach
The Carrington Hotel in Katoomba, a former 1880s mansion

As my path in 2020 came to an end, with my joy tank filled, I returned to the United States, just in time to hunker down as the Coronavirus pandemic began.

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The Path Winds Up

The path home started with an evening in Sydney, taking in the amazing annual Vivid festival. The city is all lit up for 3 weeks. My friend Cliff and I walked over the Sydney Harbour Bridge, which neither of us had done for decades, after a bit of wandering the streets in the historic Rocks district. Then on to the Swedenborg Centre for a pizza/discussion/farewell event.

  • Official Vivid sign
  • Display in the CBD
  • Cafe lit up in the Rocks
  • The other side of the Bridge was lit up
  • Vivid Circular Quay
  • Vivid Rocks
  • Magical Circular Quay under the influence of Vivid

Near the end of that long flight from Sydney to LA, the captain announced our flight path had been altered due to a rocket being launched. The people on the other side of the plane could see it. Never heard of that before! When he started talking about a rocket, I’ll admit I had a flash of fear that it was coming towards us. But all was well!

My last stop was Denver, Colorado where I visited my brother Jon, sister-in-law Lucie, nephew Brock whose high school graduation I had just missed, niece Ava who will one day be President of the USA, and canine nephew Moose. The snow-capped Rockies are an ever present and majestic backdrop.

As usual, I had the joy of going on a run/walk with Moose on the bluff near their home, until he got too hot, lay down in the shade and refused to get up until Jon came to rescue us. The next day I twisted my knee while playing too energetically with him, so that was the end of run/walking. I suspect he deliberately tripped me up to prevent any further heat exhaustion! We also enjoyed a family dinner with Lucie’s parents who are always a joy to be around. Then onwards to home in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania for a joyful reunion with my family.

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Ministering and Meandering in Victoria

Historically there’s a long-standing rivalry between cultured Melbourne, Victoria and fun-loving, beautiful Sydney, New South Wales. Can you tell I grew up in Sydney? But both sides of my family have roots in Melbourne and rural Victoria, so my ministry and travel in Victoria straight after my month in Sydney was in a sense a familial homecoming.

Within a week of my arrival in Melbourne to be a temporary spiritual leader for a month, the sale of the church building was finalised. I had attended services in the building a number of times when visiting family and friends in Melbourne since my early teen years.

For now, the congregation is meeting in two rooms in a community centre, while carefully looking around for a new permanent home. A full-time minister will be starting early in 2020, after a hiatus of a few years since the congregation had a minister.

During the month I was there, the programme included weekly Bible study, two Saturday seminars, Sunday worship, some pastoral visiting, helping put out the monthly newsletter, and a presentation for the Melbourne Swedenborg Association. We also had a BBQ at a park, and dinner at a Thai restaurant. For all of these events, I worked closely with Neville Jarvis, who has very ably lead the congregation since their pastor passed on.

Neville was able to show me some of the congregation’s record books, which included entries from my mother’s side of the family. My maternal grandmother’s baptism is recorded on the top line.

The New Church in Victoria also includes a group in Ballarat, a Gold Rush era town, about 1.5 hours drive from Melbourne. After participating in a Sunday afternoon service lead by Judy Robinson, another capable leader, I joined in the potluck evening meal. I had visited this group before, so it was great to see everyone again, and meet some new people.

During all of this ministry work, which kept me plenty busy, I was also going through the last throes of preparing for my July ordination in the USA. I submitted two written assignments, started writing my mini-sermon for the Ordination ceremony, and was involved in multiple planning emails about the service, travel and other details. My month in Melbourne was definitely my busiest ministry month, and it was good to feel like a “real” pastor. It was a fitting conclusion to my ministry path in Australia, and one for which I am very appreciative.

Just have to include some photos of classic Aussie activities! Two Aussie barbecues in Melbourne – but no shrimp on these barbies! Backyard family cricket at my cousin’s home (he’s the bowler, with his grandkids at bat.) Making tea from loose leaves in a teapot with a knitted tea cosy to keep it warm.

Below you can see some of my meanderings in Victoria. There was one road trip that started with lunch with Rev. John and Mary Teed and Pam Teed north of Melbourne, whom I’ve known since age 6 and whose family goes back three generations with mine. From there to Ballarat for the church group , then to Trentham overnight at my friend Suzanne’s place. From there it was up to Majorca to visit Barrie and Edith, including a jaunt over narrow country roads in his Mini Minor that he has been nurturing along since 1967. The other road trip was to Terang to visit Susan Heldon and her son Justin, who took me down to see the popular 12 Apostles. I drove back to Melbourne from there along the Great Ocean Road, renowned for spectacular views of the coastline and tortuous hairpin curves with sheer drop-offs down to rocky beaches. Very fun but challenging driving, especially for someone who is more accustomed to driving on the right.

  • On the road in Victoria
  • Snow in Trentham, VIC at my friend Suzie’s
  • More driving through the bush in VIC
  • 2 llamas near Majorca, where visited Rabones
  • Running 1967 Mini Minor
  • My Dad’s birthplace
  • Terang farmland, typical of Dad’s birthplace
  • Visited with Susan and her son Justin
  • I could only count 8 of the 12 Apostles
  • View from the Great Ocean Rd, south VIC
  • Twisty, turny but fun and scenic Great Ocean Rd
  • Reminder for people like me!

This gallery shows some touristy meanderings around Melbourne. L-R, top-bottom: Melbourne lit up, with the famous “South Bank” on the left, pseudo Eiffel Tower to add to the Seine south bank feel, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra concert, the Queen sat in this chair in 1950s when opening Victoria State Parliament, inside a State Parliament chamber, Melbourne CBD from the Shrine of Remembrance, Shrine of Remembrance in which I saw records of my grandfather and great uncle’s service in WWI, two displays at a native plants nursery in the Dandenong ranges, four sculptures which Helmut and Toni took me to see in the William Ricketts Sanctuary which protects his famed indigenous rock sculptures, and finally 3 views of the South Bank of the Yarra by day with my friend Martin.

Victoria has some stunning bushland and wildlife which I enjoyed in my meanderings. In the Dandenong ranges where I stayed my last week, the gum trees are exceptionally tall and straight. I love the stringy bark gums especially. At least daily I could hear kookaburras laughing, but only managed to photograph cockatoos and a king parrot that visited my deck railing.

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Sydney, NSW and ACT: Spirituality and Sights

This ministry trip I’ve been struggling to find time for blogging and the other projects I thought I’d get caught up on while in Australia for three months. Story of my life! Between ministry activities, and traveling to visit friends, and dropping everything to go and have fun here and there, I’ve come to almost the end of my trip with not much of a blog to show for it. But I do have a great sense of satisfaction about the work I’ve done, the relationships I’ve enjoyed both new and old, and reconnecting again with my “sunburnt country.”

I’ll start with spirituality in Sydney, which includes ministry of course. Palm Sunday and Easter involved many lovely events and traditions. In the Hurstville New Church, in the southern suburbs, I was able to give the regular piano player (my friend Margaret Heldon) a break on Palm Sunday and the week after Easter. Very fun for me to revive memories of playing the piano for Sunday School in the same church, when my father was the minister there decades ago. The tradition in Hurstville is real Hot Cross Buns – not the sad, sticky version that is available in the USA! – after Holy Supper on Good Friday evening. After celebrating “He is Risen” at the Roseville New Church, on the “north shore” of Sydney Harbour, my dear Baringa (church guest house and church hall) roomie Margaret Ward and I made a rainbow of roast veggies for Easter Dinner with the two ministers’ families i.e. Todd/Jenn/Zach Beiswenger from Hurstville and Howard/Debra/Lance Thompson from Roseville. We dined in the house where I grew up, on the property I still consider “the centre of the (my) Universe.” Just wonderful to celebrate with such dear people in a place so dear to my heart.

Two of the photos in the gallery above show examples of some spirituality/ministry activities in Sydney. One shows some volunteers at the Swedenborg Centre in Roseville, putting together a newsletter. I spent two days a week there, working with the director Joe Vandermeer on a couple of projects. The Swedenborg Association of Australia is based in the Centre, and I had the pleasure of being the “international speaker” for the April meeting. The other photo is of an evening dinner and talk in Hursy, where I was rehearsing and getting much appreciated feedback for my Swedenborg Association talk. I ended up giving two evening talks in Hursy and a testimonial during a church service.

To get to the Swedenborg Centre, I took a train over the Sydney Harbour Bridge which offered views of the Bridge I hadn’t often seen before, and fantastic views of the beautiful Sydney Harbour, especially on sunny days. Sadly a video I took of riding across the Bridge on the train was unable to load here. One day I left early to visit my favourite sites on Circular Quay (on Sydney Harbour) and take a nostalgic ferry ride to Manly beach and back, even though it was a cloudy afternoon.

Exquisite shot of the safety fencing and bridge climbing path taken through a train window, with a bit of the west side of Sydney Harbour as a backdrop.

  • Historic stairs from 1863
  • Love the city palm trees
  • Ferry ride!
  • Out past Opera House
  • Back with Bridge sunset

Some of my favourite Sydney sights are the beaches! I was fortunate to get to a few before the weather got too cold. This is Cronulla beach, the closest beach when I was growing up in Sydney.

  • Near Tumbi Umbi, NSW
  • Carss Park, a childhood spot
  • The famous Manly Beach
  • Paddle surfer at Shelley Beach, near Tumbi Umbi
  • Taylors Bay beach on Bradleys Head on Sydney Harbour
  • Taylors Beach in 1973, with me standing “tall”

Sydney has a beautiful harbour, and up and down the coast there are other magnificent bodies of water that soothe the soul. In my travels in Sydney and up the coast to Tumbi Umbi in New South Wales, and down south to Canberra in the Australian Capital Territory, I was able to relish a few, though almost always on cloudy or rain-spattered days.

Clockwise starting from top left: Sydney Harbour, “Miriam’s Manly” as we affectionately call this little beach on Sydney Harbour (ask me or Miriam for details!), Hawkesbury River up the coast, Lake Burley Griffin in Canberra, George’s River in southern Sydney, Lake Ginninderra in Canberra, and Tuggerah Lake near Tumbi Umbi.

Aussie wildlife and plants and trees also get my attention as sights that renew my spirit. I was blessed with several opportunities to enjoy them on the many different trails I was able to walk/run on – still healing my foot so not running distances yet. Tuggerah Lake has a large flock of these majestic pelicans. You can see more of them in the gallery above. I wish I had moved quickly enough to video one of them flying down onto the lake and making a spectacular water landing with outstretched skidding legs. Below are more nature sights I was able to photograph along the way.

  • Gum trees
  • Tibouchina
  • Birds of Paradise flowers
  • Don’t know…
  • Termite nest in gum tree
  • Sulfur-crested cockatoo
  • Autumn colours in ACT
  • Dusky moorhen
  • Baby blue-tongued lizard
  • Grevilia in Norman’s Garden
  • “Kookaburra sitting in the evergreen tree”

Visiting with friends in NSW and ACT was a high priority for me. Relationships with families I’ve known since I was a little girl, and with friends from school is precious too me. I have few opportunities for those sorts of long-term relationships when I’m in the USA.

Donna and Jason’s cutie twins Anna and Eric; al fresco dining with Kerry L in Tumbi Umbi; lunch with school friend Helen and hubby Greg; Kerry L made a perfect Devonshire tea for her visitors; dear friends Ken, Babette and Kerry Horner; Kerry L and adorable granddaughters; lunch with “girls” from high school; official annual reunion of St George Girls’ High School for which I offered the blessing before lunch; two senior citizens trying a selfie (Barrie) in Canberra; al fresco dining again with Owen, Margaret, Rachel and the little cousins visiting/being babysat by their grandparents.

To finish off, a few more touristy sights around Sydney and Canberra. To the left is Parliament House in Canberra, where the Parliament of Australia meets. Below are two views of Circular Quay in Sydney: my favourite cafe near the Opera House, and the Central Business District towering above the quay and the ferry wharves. The scary dungeon is Fort Denison on Pinchgut Island near Circular Quay, where intransigent convicts were sent back in the day.

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Fun, Family and Friends in South Australia

The path in South Australia (SA as Aussies say) also included fun and family and friends, and a funeral.


Since it was the final days of summer, I packed in as many trips to the beach as possible! The church, where I was staying, was a quick train ride away from Brighton Beach, so I spent a few afternoons there. These photos show the lovely shops at Brighton where I bought a much-needed hat, a very comfy Adelaide train, elevating my surgical foot on the rock wall at Brighton, new and traditional architecture for homes overlooking the beach, north view with a life-saver hut to keep us all safe, Brighton Beach looking south, and view from a beachfront cafe where my sister-in-law Soula and I had lunch, with the landmark Brighton jetty behind me.

I was also able to get to the famous, more touristy Glenelg Beach and enjoy an icecream with my friend Michael from the Adelaide Christian New Church.

Sadly, within a few days of arriving in Adelaide I learned that my uncle Frank Brock had passed on. I knew he was failing but hadn’t been able to get down to the southeastern part of SA where he lived. The blessing, besides that he was no longer physically and spiritually suffering, was that the family was able to get together and enjoy some good times and good memories of Frank.

I stayed overnight with my cousin Christine at her place in “the hills” which encircle Adelaide, enjoying her abundant garden and serene verandah. On the way to Tintinara we stopped to see (and massage) her brother David who was hospitalised with back pain. From the hospital we could catch a glimpse of Lake Albert, a far better view than from the hospital where I work in North Philadelphia, Pennsylvania! David was released for a few hours the next day to attend his father’s service and life celebration.

Frank loved his farm…
…including friendly pet sheep.
Beautiful growing families
Claire surrounded by her family…
…the night before the service.
Afternoon tea Life Celebration…
…at the Tintinara Footy Club, of which the Brocks are huge supporters. My cousins Michael Brock and Christine Brock are facing the camera.

Growing up in Sydney, we had learned in school about Coober Pedy, an opal mining town in the outback of South Australia, famous for its underground buildings. Early 20th century miners had dug into the hills to construct homes where they could escape the extreme heat in the summer, and enjoy consistently comfortable temperatures inside year round. I had always wanted to see Coober Pedy, so I made a “bucket list” trip via Greyhound bus, a few days after returning from Tintinara with my brother Stephen and his wife Soula.

It was an 11 hour overnight journey from Adelaide up north to Coober Pedy, transitioning from elegant urban Adelaide to scrub gum country to huge red-earthed sheep stations to sunset over flat countryside with sparse trees. I wasn’t able to get photos of the sheep and kangaroos crossing the road during the night via walking or hopping. But I got one of a phone booth, lit up in the middle of nowhere after midnight at a petrol station, where we were so remote that there was no mobile phone service.

Finally we got there and I was able to check into my underground motel room at the Radeka Backpackers’ Inn and Motel. The rooms had been excavated out of the claystone hill – sandstone with red clay streaked throughout. After a quick nap I was heading out to explore!

My underground motel room
Every undergound space has to have a capped air vent to the outside
Air vents visible above some motel rooms

A German couple and I were the only tourists on our very personalised tour for the afternoon. Our excellent guide was Dimitri AKA Jimmy, who had been an opal miner for many years, an active citizen in Coober Pedy, extra in some movies filmed there, and now tour guide extraordinaire. We learned a lot, and ended up having wine and cheese on the Breakaways where a Mad Max movie was filmed, followed by a drink at an underground pub in the underground mall.

L-R, top -bottom: 80% of residents live in dugout homes like this; an impressive underground Orthodox Christian church; our tour group above the plain that was the floor of an inland sea millennia ago which contributed to forming opal; I came across a friendly old-time miner in this opal mine that Dimitri had once worked in; the Dog Fence, which is the longest fence in the world and keeps dingoes away from sheep stations in Queensland, New South Wales and South Australia; cocktail hour at the Breakaways with Dimitri; one of many warning signs in the mining areas; a hole AKA mine shaft that Dimitri had dug years ago; relaxing in the underground pub before dinner.

You can turn around 360 degrees at The Breakaways and see nothing but flat, red, outback desert. And your shadow taking the panorama shot.

The next morning I spent above ground, shopping for opal jewellery in town and climbing a hill to get a wider view of Coober Pedy. The name is derived from “kupa piti” which allegedly means “white man’s quarry” or “burrow” in a local indigenous language.

Afternoon adventure: explore a 1916 opal mine
Miners dug a hole they could climb up and down
Miner’s quarters 1916
1916 miners’ kitchen underground
Coober Pedy from a hilltop view lookout

I had dinner with a friendly Aussie couple who had been stuck at Radeka’s for 3 weeks, waiting to get their broken caravan/camper fixed so they could finish touring around Australia. Before leaving for another actually restful overnight journey back to Adelaide, I stopped for a peaceful moment in the only underground Catholic church in Australia, which happened to be next door to the motel. I prayed for travelling mercies on the Greyhound bus through the outback, and for my Radeka friends’ journey onward.

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Stepping out in Oz 2019

It’s always an emotional moment for me when the Australian coastline comes into view. The emotion of homecoming, the excitement of starting a new chapter in my journey, the inevitable questions and anxieties about what lies ahead.

  • “First look” at Australian coastline, just south of Sydney, NSW
  • Fuzzy, rainy morning view of Sydney Harbour, with the iconic Bridge and Opera House

Literally within an hour of getting settled for my overnight stay in Sydney at Baringa, the Hurstville New Church’s office and guest house, these two lovely friends whisked me away. Thanks Jenn and Lori for a lovely lunch at the Rising Sun Cafe and shopping and touring in Sydney for the afternoon!

After resting my foot which had survived the long flights and Sydney excursion remarkably well, and enjoying the company and environment of the church property where I had grown up many moons ago, I was off the next afternoon (Saturday) to Adelaide, 1375 km/850 miles west on the southern coast of Australia. Stepping out to start my month of ministry in the Adelaide Christian New Church. My grandfather Rev. C. Douglas Brock had pastored the church for decades, and my parents were married in it before it moved out to the suburbs into its current building, designed by my architect cousin Jeffrey Brock. Last year the congregation had created a small flat within the church, where I have been staying again this time.

By now it’s a small congregation that meets fortnightly, but somehow the memo hadn’t quite made it to everyone that there was no worship service on the day after I had arrived. After a leisurely morning I was just getting out of the shower when two members arrived early for church! Definitely a first for me, possible a first for all clergy for all time! But within 20 minutes we were in the sanctuary starting an impromptu worship service, based on a Home Church in Bryn Athyn service that was saved on my computer and a worship programme from a previous service in the church. We even managed morning tea after the service! Since then we’ve had two more worship services in which I’m both worship leader and organist, ongoing jewelry making classes as a community outreach, my class on Pastoral Care in response to members’ experiences supporting a congregant who had recently passed, and several morning teas and shared lunches. At an open Committee (Board) meeting, the congregation affirmed their interest in my coming back next year for three months, so I will be submitting a formal proposal.

A major focus of the congregation at the moment is preparing for the 175th anniversary of the founding of the church by a group of the earliest settlers in South Australia, lead by Rev. Jacob Pitman, whose brother Sir Isaac famously invented shorthand. The anniversary celebration coincides with “South Australia’s History Festival,” which runs for a whole month starting 27 April. Museums, libraries, churches and other organisations hold open houses, displays, tours and other special events. The photos show a work in progress! Of historical note, the Adelaide congregation was the first in Australia to have a female lay leader, since 2015.

  • Booklet written by my grandpa Rev Brock during WWII, and relevant today.
  • Some historical material
  • Autographed photo of Helen Keller, who visited during my grandfather’s ministry
  • Part of the reference library that contains some Swedenborgian treasures
  • Swedenborg, Pitman, Arcana Coelestia
  • Display materials
  • Three prominent pioneer surveyors in SA, who were founding members of the congregation 175 years ago.
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Walking Again

Welcome to my 2019 ministry and travel path! I appreciate having you along as I start walking again. Walking again on this path in Australia, and on my convoluted ministry path, and walking again after foot surgery a few months ago. There has been a bit of a delay in getting this blog going again, due to needing to get it set up on WordPress, so don’t believe the dates on the first few posts of my 2019 path. On my last day of work in early March, my friends celebrated my new semi-retired status, starting with “Walking the Path” again. I was very touched by the message and blessing on the cake.

“Roz” Have a Great Trip at the “Land Down Under” May You Fulfill All Your Dreams That You Always Long For”

For my many flights I was assisted by friendly Mobility Team members, which opened my eyes to the world of assistance running in the background of all airports and air travel. It was humbling for me to be the one being wheelchaired around, instead of being the one who walks around fast and confidently. And I’ll admit it was fun to be on the zooming golf carts that beep loudly!

Like last year, my path started with visiting my son Chris and his partner Robyn, who by now have lived in Spray, Oregon for almost a year and a half. We ended up spending the night in Redmond, OR because my flight to Redmond had been massively delayed in San Fransisco. Luckily there was a Walmart right across the street from our hotel, because my luggage announced it didn’t want to go to Australia after all! A wheel broke irreparably at the airport, and at the hotel the zipper broke. So I repacked and relabeled my new luggage with the piano-themed luggage tags that my daughter Miriam had given me.

Massive snow storms had swept across the USA, which was part of my 16 hour delay in California. Our mostly sunny ride back to Spray was quite beautiful, a gracious gift after a snow and ice storm, but it had been treacherous for Chris and Robyn the day before.

Chris and Robyn are now living in an apartment on the property where they have been living and working since their arrival in Oregon. They’re also now working alongside mostly immigrant and migrant workers from Mexico in an orchard nearby. “Nearby” in Oregon terms is a half-hour drive! Until Chris gave me a tour of the orchard, I hadn’t realised how dangerous the work can be, especially atop 12 foot ladders pruning tall trees! I’m definitely keeping them and their colleagues in prayer.


  • Tree care demo by Chris
  • Long lines of fruit trees waiting to be pruned
  • “Fruit stand” where summer customers can buy freshly picked fruit

A huge development in Christopher Robyn’s life (yes, they love all things Pooh Bear) is the school bus that they bought and are renovating. They plan to start touring the country later this year in their “tiny home on wheels.” Who knows where I’ll be visiting them next year! The renovation work is happening in the warehouse on the property, and the adjacent garage.

Do you see Pooh Bear peaking through the future skylight? The unique interior has been designed by Christopher Robyn, and they’re now through the planning and prepping, and onto the building phase. Turns out there’s an active online and in-person community of schoolies that have been an invaluable resource for them.

  • Facing the front
  • Facing the rear
  • Custom entry steps
  • Future bathroom facilities location
  • Chris’s workshop
  • Mascot/supervisor

The work of looking after the barnyard animals continues, except there isn’t really a barn, just coops and shelters and such. One goat died mysteriously since last year, and the cow is now in packages in one of the freezers. Still plenty of chooks, including some cute new little bantam hens, and some ducks. My little grandkids would have loved to see them and help feed them! I dedicate this next gallery to Evie, Skyler, Adrien and Zachary, with love.

After a few restful days with daily saunas – both a dry and a steam sauna available to counteract the cold of winter and promote healing and joy – wonderful meals, Monty Python laughter, and trips to town, it was time to say goodbye for now. Off to the Aussie part of this path!

  • On Christopher Robyn’s deck
  • Where will we meet up next?