In Australia, religious communities were one part of society expressly impacted by the ‘lockdown’ directives introduced to stem the spread of the virus. On 29 March all places of religious worship were effectively closed by the restrictions that limited non-essential indoor gatherings to two people. In Victoria, lockdown came again on 9th of July, with border closures. Here, we look to faith community experiences in time of lockdown. On this page, we look to the experience of the members of the Christian community at St Andrew’s Uniting Church, Gardiner, Melbourne, Australia.
On a usual week the church hosts various activities. There are two services on a Sunday (in English and Bahasya Indonesia concurrently), as well as Sunday school for the children and teenagers. Fellowship groups run for young adults and international students during the week and there are ‘life groups’ for families and bible studies for the senior members. The church is staffed by a full-time pastor and part-time youth worker and supported by a casual administrator and caretaker. Many church members also volunteer their time to support community outreach programs during the week, supporting vulnerable members of the broader local community.
Since the COVID-19 restrictions were introduced, many of these activities have had to be cancelled or postponed. The church offers a pre-recorded service each week (alternate weeks English/Indonesian with alternate subtitles), as well as Zoom fellowship and bible study meetings. The pastor also records regular messages for the congregation to provide spiritual support to the community. People are making an effort to continue to connect online and via social media. For Teddy, one of the church members, the lockdown has moved his family to start their own devotional studies at home as a family.
There have been many new challenges for the church brought on by the restrictions. Church revenue initially dropped by 80 percent after the regular services stopped. Some elderly members were not very technologically savvy so the church needed to organise instruction on how to install and use Zoom and support for those who were having difficulties. Social media, while providing an easy way to maintain connection, has also added to the fear and misinformation surrounding the virus. Many members of the community are finding the uncertainty of the situation difficult because they cannot make plans for the foreseeable future to travel or see family members. Many people are lonely and some have faced job losses.
However, the church also sees the lockdown as an opportunity to reach out and show love to the broader community. They have started a grocery program, offering grocery delivery for those who are housebound or find it difficult to do by themselves, and they are providing hampers of essential items to those who need them. So far 50 hampers have been distributed, funded entirely by congregational donations. The church is also looking at offering a parenting program via Zoom to support families in the congregation and to reach the wider community.
One unexpected outcome is St Andrew’s has found that Indonesians overseas are tuning into their services online, as far away as Qatar and even in Indonesia itself. Many smaller Indonesian churches around the world do not even have a pastor, let alone the capacity to provide online content. These churches are benefiting from the work of St Andrew’s.
…the church also sees the lockdown as an opportunity to reach out and show love to the broader community.
