Connections Archive

Brenton Stacey/Lyndelle Lawrence/Christel Price
Public relations officer/Public relations intern/Public relations intern

Attendance at worship services on Avondale College's Lake Macquarie campus is increasing as students respond positively to greater freedom of choice.

A policy compelling students to attend services on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday evenings and assemblies or forums on Wednesday mornings changed at the beginning of the academic year. So it seems did the attitudes of students. "You sense it with the guys," says men's residence director Pastor Mark McNeill. "They're turning up because they want to be here." Assistant women's residence director Mere Neale notes the appeal of choice to postmodernists. "It makes it easier for them to come," she says.

Chaplain Dr Wayne French initiated the change on behalf of the residence directors and the student services director after meeting with president Dr Ray Roennfeldt. He and the directors felt uneasy about fining students for non-attendance at worship--$75 for less than 75 per cent, with the money going to charity or to improving services for students. "It isn't biblical," says assistant men's residence director Shane Roberts. He wanted the students to worship as God intended-by choosing to. The change is about "treating the students as adults," says Wayne. "You can't coerce people into going to worship," says women's residence director Deirdre Hough. Mere likes the new policy because it "respects the rights of those who do attend worships and those who don't."

Students worship in small groups in their residences once a week, corporately as residences once a week and corporately as combined residences once a week. Student Associated Ministries coordinates the latter, but leader Daniela Brown does not attribute all the increase in numbers to the change in policy. "We've got more students involved, so other students then want to come to support their friends," she says. The same is true in the women's residences, where attendance at corporate worship on Mondays has increased from 80 to 120. "We've been more collaborative and intentional," says Mere.

Opinion among students appears to be in favour of the change, but the support is not as one-sided as expected. "It's a bit of a shame," says Ashleigh Mucha, who is completing a Bachelor of Education (early childhood). "Students come to Avondale partly for the Christian experience, and sometimes they need to be pushed into it to reap the benefits. But you can't put a price on coming to worship."

Bachelor of Science/Bachelor of Teaching student Tahlia D'Costa and Bachelor of Business student Lucas Robinson feel the same. "It goes against the idea of Christianity," says Tahlia, but adds Lucas, "the downside is the students who need to be there the most are probably missing out."

These students have other opportunities to worship, though: the Friday evening worship service, 7.28; the Saturday morning Bible studies, Regeneration and Young Adult Networks; and the week-long Festival of Faith each semester. "Worship in the residences is not the only barometer of the spiritual health of students on this campus," says Mark. "We're just one part of a broader strategy."