At the NCCA
Safe as Churches? Conferences
- Safe as Churches? Consultation - March 2004
- Safe as Churches? Consultation II - September 2005
- Safe as Churches? Consultation III - March 2007
- Safe as Churches? Consultation IV - June 2009
An initiative of the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA), Safe as Churches? is a Consultations into Sexual Misconduct in the Church. There have been three Consultation since 2004.
It is becoming clearer to Australian Churches that we are faced with a growing challenge: providing safe church environments in which to carry out ministry programs. This challenge is reflected not only in claims and cases of sexual misconduct in our faith communities, but also in the lack of knowledge at a congregational level; as to how we are to discharge our duty of care, and about the dynamics of power in leadership relationships. In response to this challenge many Christian denominations have established strategies aimed at accountability and transparency in relationships and programs. Significant resources have been put into the establishment of professional standards groups / boards to handle complaints of abuse, and implementation of programs to train employees and volunteer leaders in best practice for creating safer churches. Another pro-active response, initiated by the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA), has been to hold inter-denominational consultations (conferences) under the banner of ‘Safe as Churches?’ .
The Consultations have been engaging the highly sensitive issues sexual abuse and misconduct that in the past have often been concealed or ignored. Something important has happened when we are ready to share our stories on this most painful of subjects, and to ask for help from the family of Churches.
Openness between Churches is an important step in allowing God to heal us and our communities and make us whole.
Safe as Churches? IV, was held in Adelaide, South Australia, from the 11th to the 13th of June 2009. For more information click here.
The first Safe as Churches? Consultation was held from the 4 - 6 March 2004. For more information click here.