Ep52. A Changing Church, Charissa Suli

Liam sat down with Rev Charissa Suli, a National Consultant with the Uniting Church in Australia's Assembly Resourcing Unit. They discuss resourcing the church for increasingly changing times, working with and in churches that are becoming increasingly multicultural, how the UCA has lived up to its 1985 declaration "we are a multicultural church. We also talk about her work with youth and young adults in the church, what she has learnt in those encounters, and how churches might think about 'growing young.' Finally we talk about church during COVID-19 and what she hopes might stick around once we are allowed to gather again. Hint: a key to all three of these discussions is relationships.

About Rev Charissa Suli, by Rev Charissa Suli:

"I have a soft spot for mentoring and nurturing intergenerational relationships particularly with migrant 2nd and 3rd gen young people.  My passion for bridging the gap between 1st and 2nd generations came to birth attending a Uniting Church Cross Cultural gathering event in 2008 hosted by the Board of Mission.  An event I didn’t want to attend but went along to support my fellow friends turned into being the most life-giving and transforming experience of my life as I began to engage in intergenerational and cross cultural ministry.  It was from this event that I returned home to explore my call to ministry.  In 2009 I took on the role of Cross Cultural consultant and my primary role was to work with people of the pacific and other ethnic backgrounds to grow the mission of the Uniting Church of Australia in NSW and ACT Synod and develop strategies to assist congregations and the wider UCA be in mission and ministry with 1.5 and 2nd Gen young people.  Part of my role was to encourage positive integration between cultural, spiritual and psychological aspects of young people’s identity and promote positive interactions and communication between pacific generations to enhance the lives of individuals, families and communities. In 2014 I graduated from the United Theological College and was ordained as a Minister of the Word in the Uniting Church and took on my first congregational placement at Dapto Uniting church in the Illawarra presbytery.  In June 2017 I concluded my role as mentor and chair of the 2nd Generation team for the Tongan National Conference after 10 years of bridging the gap between 1st and 2nd Generations and nurturing the faith of the young people of the conference.  Currently I am in my third year working as one of the National Consultant’s for the National Assembly office in the Assembly Resourcing Unit.  I continue to be passionate about growing next gen leadership in our church and continue to explore and learn about how multiple generations can experience and express their identities in a positive and fruitful way that helps them grow in their faith in this rapidly changing world.  When I’m not in the forefront of ministry I am a wife and a mother of four beautiful children and my hobbies are singing and long walks along the beach."