Hannah Felsbourg
26 November 2024
Each Saturday, a dedicated group of Christians gather in Melbourne’s CBD to share the message of Jesus in a bustling, multicultural public square.
The outreach team has been present for over a decade, engaging with people from different faiths and cultural backgrounds.
The team aims to have meaningful conversations and challenge misconceptions about their faith in a complex ideological landscape.
St Mark’s Spotswood parishioner and Melbourne School of Theology lecturer Bernie Power said the group wanted people to know that Jesus’s love was available to all.
The outreach often took place alongside groups including Muslims, Hare Krishnas, and socialists, creating what Dr Power described as a smorgasbord of ideas.
He said he saw this diversity of beliefs in Melbourne’s public spaces as an opportunity for Christians to have a voice, rather than withdrawing from society.
He referenced the Benedict Option, a call for Christians to retreat from secular spaces. Dr Power disagreed with this approach.
“If people don’t see us there and they see everybody else there, they say, ‘Well, Christians have got nothing to say’,” he said.
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Dr Power believed that a public Christian presence was vital for people to know the transformation power of the gospel.
The outreach team distribute literature, engage in conversations, and use visual aids, including a quiz board that prompts discussion about what the Koran says about Jesus.
While they engage with everyone from Buddhists to atheists, the group also has a particular focus on Islam, which is prominent presence in the space of public discussion.
Dr Power said that while most people passed by, and some were hostile, many stopped to engage in meaningful spiritual conversations.
He said the outreach started 11 years ago when he and a friend decided to provide a Christian presence in the public square.
Since then, the outreach attracted 15 to 20 volunteers each week, drawing in people from various denominations and backgrounds who shared a commitment to evangelism.
Over the years, the team has seen around 25 people make commitments to Christ through their outreach, and countless other have engaged in meaningful conversations.
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Regular outreach team member Bella Duerkop said her heart broke seeing people walk by with an underlying sadness and hopelessness.
She believed the outreach was a way of expressing to them that there was hope and light.
Miss Duerkop shared a story of an older man who approached the table, burdened by intense negative experiences in a Christian environment.
After hearing the gospel explained in a new way, he said he understood it for the first time. They prayed together and she shared some Christian resources with him.
She said for her, prayer had become a greater focus of the outreach, with many people responding positively when asked if they would like prayer.
Miss Duerkop expressed hope for the future, praying for spiritual gifts such as prophecy and healing to further demonstrate the power of the gospel.
The team has outreach tables at the State Library, the corner of Bourke and Swanston St, and Flinders St between 11am to 4pm on Saturdays.
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