14 - Christian churches in Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific, 1914–1970

Summary

Overview: practical Christianity

The stars of the Southern Cross define the night sky across the vast and varied region of Australasia and the Pacific. Legend and science concur that this constellation was last seen above the northern horizon near Jerusalem at the time of the crucifixion of Jesus. When European explorers rediscovered the four points in the southern sky in the sixteenth century, they recognised a banner of faith; but they also saw, and perhaps more clearly, an accurate astronomical clock by which to take new scientific measurements. A practical, rational, spirit has always rested alongside the readings of Christian faith in this region. By the end of the twentieth century, even though the Southern Cross was a popular civic and church emblem, any claims of Christendom translated south were clearly out of place. For the settler societies of Australia and New Zealand, church and state had always had separate and frequently competing cultures. And even in those Pacific Island groups where the missionary message had merged strongly with local authority, denominational variety pointed away from established churches towards ecumenical goals.

The practical demands of church life have dominated expressions of Christianity through the region, overshadowing any emphasis on intellectual exploration or prayerful contemplation for its own sake. Although mystics and visionaries have played a role in most traditions, it has generally been a hidden one, accidental to the life of the institution.