Unfamiliar Words
Baptism
The service of baptism is a way to celebrate the entry of a person into the worldwide Christian church. The Uniting Church baptizes the children of parents who declare their own faith in Christ and solemnly promise to provide a Christian home and teaching to enable the child to find his or her own personal faith. Older people may be baptized based on their own expression of faith in Christ.
A fuller explanation can be found by clicking here.
Christening
The term Christening is commonly used in the Orthodox (Eastern) section of the Christian church to refer to the baptism of a person.
Confirmation
Confirmation is a special order of worship through which a person baptized as an infant or at an earlier time may bear witness to their own personal faith in Christ. The litany includes affirmations of faith and pledges to share responsiblity in the life of the church.
Congregation
A congregation is a gathering of Christians who share a common allegiance to Jesus Christ and make a commitment to work together to demonstrate in the community the love and will of God.
Congregational church
This denomination, along with Methodists and Presbyterians, formed the Uniting Church in Australia. The Congregational church differed from the other two in that each local congregation was considered independent, although cooperating in the wider church. In other matters, the Congregational was very like the Presbyterian Church.
Member of the church
A Church member is a person who has deliberately asked to be recorded as a full participant in the life of the church, based upon their baptism and their commitment in church life in any tradition of the wider church.
People in the Trinity congregation come from many backgrounds. Those who wish to retain membership elsewhere may be accepted as Members In Association at Trinity.
Methodist Church
The Methodist Church is a worldwide Christian denomination that arose from the preaching ministry of John Wesley in England in the 18th century. Wesley was an Anglican priest and Methodist churches followed an Anglican form of worship.
Presbytery
In the Uniting Church, a presbytery is a group of congregations in a designated region along with other ministries, agencies and institutions of the Uniting Church. Each Presbytery has its own council made of a balance of ordained and lay members who meet 4 to 6 times per year. It is led by a chairperson elected annually.
This word Presbytery is from the Greek New Testament, where presbuteros means ‘an elder’, that is a minister or a bishop.
A presbytery in the Uniting Church has authority for oversight of the regional churches and ministries, like that of a bishop.
Presbyterian Church
The Presbyterian Church is a worldwide Christian denomination that arose from the preaching ministry of John Knox in Scotland in the 16th century. Knox was a reformer from within the Catholic Church. The Presbyterian Church developed a distinctive pattern of worship in parallel with similar Reformed churches in Europe. The Communion, or Eucharist, was honoured by reducing observances to a 3 monthly pattern.
The Presbyterian Church in Australia was among the three denominations that formed the Uniting Church in Australia in 1977. A sizable minority of congregations chose not to join and so formed the continuing Presbyterian Church which has a number of congregations around Melbourne.
Synod
The local Synod is made up of all the presbyteries in Victoria and Tasmania. It has offices in the Melbourne CBD with several departments, of which the largest is the Commission for Mission. The Synod has an annual meeting to elect its officers, control finances and plan programs. It is led by a moderator, either lay or ordained, appointed for a three year term.
Trinity
The name Trinity refers to the Christian understanding of God as
Father, Son (i.e. Jesus Christ) and Holy Spirit. An alternative wording sometimes used is God as Creator, Saviour and Sustainer
Worship
Worship is a word that describes human response to God. A worship service is a time for Christians to gather to sing and learn and pray in order to honour God and encourage each other. Worship also refers to an individual’s response to God in a life style of faith and self-giving.
