The Anglican Prayer Book: A Prayer Book for Australia, gives us the following prayer to use in the lead-up to the Federal (or any other) Election: Lord of every time and place, God beyond our dreaming, we pray for wisdom as we prepare to vote in the Federal election.Give us a Parliament committed to the priorities of your kingdom, so that peace, compassion, truth and justice may prevail among us, and make us a blessing to all peoples, through Jesus Christ our Lord.  Amen. Last Sunday’s Gospel reading, read in the mainstream Christian churches is from Luke’s Gospel and enjoins the early Christian community of Luke’s time to ““Fear not, little flock, do not be afraid, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom.”  This is the usual English translation, but the original is rather different.  “Do not fear, little flock, because your Father was well pleased to give to you the kingdom.” In other words,  we have already been given the kingdom.  This is the pearl of great price which the fragile little flock already possesses.   The reign and rule or kingdom of God is for us present reality, even if it is still to come in all its glorious fullness.  Christians live simultaneously in two worlds.  In us, the world as it is, the old world of injustice and disease and violence, meets God’s new world of dignity and freedom and health.  But Christians know the power of the old world is already broken, destroyed, swallowed up in love.  We are set free to live right here and now in fresh obedience to God, to live with the grain of reality rather than against it.   How do we do this?  Paradoxically, by taking seriously the upside down values of the gospel, and putting them to the test.  Which means we do it by turning the other cheek, going the extra mile, living generously in a greedy society, forgiving those who still live by the law of each for themselves. In other words, we understand that the reign or kingdom of God is not about single issue politics. One of my congregation prayed recently that, the morning after the election we might wake up to a better, fairer, more generous, more compassionate Australia, and some years ago the Roman Catholic bishops of Australia issued a document called Common Wealth for the Common Good which argued that in politics we must look at what party is delivering the fairest and most equitable outcomes for the most people in our society. 

May God’s kingdom come on earth as it is in heaven.

 

Born into an Anglican family in suburban Box Hill, Tony comes from a background of several generations of teachers.  Having trained as a primary teacher he spent  37 years in the State Education Department - 20 years or so as Principal. 

In the intervening years he was involved in the church as Director of Music and Organist (at St John's Croydon) and in various parish and Diocesan leadership roles, including a stint as a member of General Synod. 

On leaving the Education Department he was appointed as an Associate Chaplain and later as acting Chaplain at Yarra Valley Grammar School at Ringwood and then as Middle School Chaplain at Brighton Grammar School.  He was ordained Priest in November 2004 and combined school chaplaincy with being Associate Priest at St John the Divine, Croydon-his home parish, before accepting an appointment to the Parish of Woodend.  He has been with the Parish of Kyneton since 2009. 

Married to Robyn in 2000 they have between them three adult children from previous marriages - Jenny, Christopher and Stephen.  They also boast a grandson Tate.

Appointed to the Parish in February 2009 as Rector, Tony was subsequently appointed Archdeacon of the Goldfields by Bishop Andrew Curnow in July.