Hannah Felsbourg
18 October 2024
Church members under 18 could soon serve on parish councils and participate in synod following a motion passed at the 2024 Melbourne Synod.
It tasked the Children’s and Youth Ministry Steering Committee with identifying necessary legislative changes and bringing a bill to the next session of synod for approval.
In the process, the committee will report to the Archbishop in Council to receive legal and procedural wisdom and determine who will bring the legislation forward.
Mover of the motion the Reverend Dr Graham Stanton said the change aimed to shift the basis of eligibility from age to confirmation.
He said this would align with child safety standards, which require youth participation in decisions affecting them, and reinforce the church’s commitment to youth inclusion.
“Confirmation is how we recognise a person as a full member of our church. Confirmed members are called to take their part in the life of the church,” Dr Stanton said.
“This motion is suggesting that ‘the life of the church’ should include our processes of decision-making.”
Read more: Melbourne Synod thanks Archbishop, potential future for child membership | Day 3
Dr Stanton quoted 16-year-old Benjamin from St Jude’s Carlton as an example of a young person invested in his church community who supported the motion.
“Giving young people a voice in the Church will give them a stake in the Church,” Benjamin said.
Jenny George said being given responsibilities and treated as a regular member after baptism as a 13-year-old helped her take church seriously and grow in her faith.
“There’s no magic age for being in Christ,” she said.
“What are we worried about? Gangs of 16-year-olds so serious about Jesus they wanna run the church? God give us that problem.”
Lawyer Leonie Bird said empowering young people was important, but legal protections for minors had to be considered, as parish councils made decisions that carried legal responsibility.
“Although these age limitations may seem like a deprivation of rights, they are also legal protections,” Mrs Bird said.
Read more: Parents hold the key to keeping young people in church
Dr Stanton acknowledged the legal concerns raised and said this was why the motion proposed a year to consider the changes.
“Yes, there may well be limitations on what those under 18 can and cannot be involved in or elected to,” Dr Stanton said.
“I would rather have them as specific exclusions within a general invitation to the processes of decision-making in our church for those who are confirmed.”
Lynne Carmichael, from the Upper Yarra, said legal responsibilities needed to be addressed, noting that individuals had to be 18 to assume accountability.
She said she would have had no issue if the motion focused on AGMs but opposed it because parish council and synod involved legal responsibilities.
Trinity College Theological School’s the Reverend Christopher Porter said youth participation in leadership was both possible and beneficial.
He said his experience on a board with youth positions showed they could navigate legal challenges.
Dr Stanton said young people were the present as well as the future of the church.
“I hope we will have the day when there are multiple gangs of 16-year-olds eager to take over the Church,” he said.
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