The Pastor, the CEO and the Victorian Premier - with Neil Chambers, Stephanie Judd, Tim Grant and Pete Sorrenson

Four leading Victorian Christian leaders on the controversy that has erupted in Australian National Politics - around the chair of the Victorian based City on a Hill church movement Andrew Thorburn, over his appointment as CEO of the Essendon Football Club and then almost immediate resignation.

Our guests: Neil Chambers, Senior Pastor, Bundoora Presbyterian Church; Stephanie Judd, Ministry Director, City on a Hill, Melbourne; Pete Sorrenson, Victorian team leader, Australian Fellowship of Evangelical Students & Tim Grant, Pastor, Grace Christian Community Church.

Healing Australia's gambling disease - with Sandy Grant and Stu Cameron

Australia has the world’s worst rate of gambling losses per capita, being home to less than half a percent of the world’s population but with 20 percent of its pokies,

Stu Cameron and Sandy Grant are Sydney City’s two leading ministers and they are asking the government to take action in a ‘united approach’ to avoid attacks by the pubs and clubs lobby.

(Episode photo courtesy Sydney Anglican Media)

Deconstructing the Queen’s Funeral - with David Peterson, Rachel Ciano and Chris Braga

What can we learn about funerals today from the funeral of Queen Elizabeth, which was watched by around four billion people across the world yesterday.

What worked and didn’t work with the Queen’s funeral? Is there anything our guests would have done differently?

David Peterson is the former Principal of Oak Hill Theological College in London and is now lecturing as an adjunct faculty member at Sydney’s Moore Theological College.

Rachel Ciano lecturers in Christian History at Sydney Missionary and Bible College.

Chris Braga is Senior Pastor of Grace West Anglican Church at Glenmore Park in Sydney’s West.

The cracks widen in Brisbane in the Australian Anglican Church - with Peter Judge Mears

The new GAFCON Anglican Diocese of the Southern Cross has a second congregation.

The continued move of the Anglican Diocese of South East Queensland away from orthodox Anglican Theology has led to the resignation of another senior minister.

The Australian Anglican Church has been in a perilous position since the majority of the Australian house of bishops failed to affirm orthodox biblical teaching on marriage at the General Synod earlier this year.

At St John’s Wishardt in South Brisbane yesterday, Rector Peter Judge Mears, told the congregation he had given Archbishop Phillip Aspinal his resignation.

Sydney’s One Special Evangelist John Chapman - with Baden Stace

One man dominated gospel advocacy in the latter part of the twentieth century Sydney.

John Chapman was director of Evangelism for the Sydney Anglican Church, and played a significant role in shaping attitudes to preaching, evangelism and a series of controversies.

Baden Stace’s new work showcases the impact of John Chapman, but also gives a window into issues facing evangelicals in Sydney in the later part of the twentieth century, controversies about preaching, the place of evangelism in church life, social justice, and what role each of us plays in the evangelistic process.

Baden Stace is the senior minister of St Stephen’s Normanhurst.

False teaching revisionists caused the Australian Church schism - with Foley Beach, Glenn Davies, Richard Condie and Jennifer Hercott

Gafcon Australia Chair Richard Condie says the crisis in the Australian Church has been caused by revisionist Bishops who have rejected traditional Biblical and Anglican doctrine.

Gafcon has formed an Anglican lifeboat for faithful Christians, the ‘Diocese of the Southern Cross’ announced at the big GAFCON Australasia Conference, this week in Canberra.

Guests on this week’s The Pastor’s Heart:

  • Richard Condie, Bishop of Tasmania and Chair of Gafcon Australia

  • Glenn Davies, Bishop of the new Anglican Southern Cross Diocese and Former Archbishop of Sydney

  • Foley Beach, Primate of the Anglican Church in North America, and Chair of the Gafcon Primate’s Council

  • Jennifer Hercott, Member of Gafcon Australia Board and registrar of the Diocese of Central Queensland

Getting masculinity right - with Al Stewart

Masculinity is fundamentally about how men use their power. When it is done in a healthy way, masculinity will serve and bless those it touches.

There is widespread confusion about what it is to be a man.

Al Stewart says we should value masculinity, rightly understood. The truly masculine man makes people around him feel safe. Things are more stable because he’s around.

The trans culture wars vs lovingly pastoring gender incongruent church members - with Rob Smith

Sydney Missionary and Bible College Doctrine Lecturer Rob Smith submits his PhD this week on ‘Identity and Embodiment’ asking ‘How significant is our embodiment to our identity? How significant are our bodies to our gender identity?

There’s a new Matt Walsh Daily Wire Documentary ‘What is a woman?’ that is causing a stir across the world.

We ask Rob ‘What is a woman?’ and for his review of the new Matt Walsh documentary.

Plus how do we best care pastorally for the gender incongruent church member.

How do we deal with anxiety in the Christian life - with Paul Grimmond.

‘Do not be anxious about anything’ says the Apostle Paul. But Paul Grimmond says saying that to an anxious person is a bit like telling an icecream not to melt in summer.

How do we think biblically about anxiety while taking on board what else is happening with a person’s biology and environment?

How can we see anxiety as a gift? What does the interplay between mind and body look like? How does sin contribute to anxiety? What place for counseling? Self talk?

Paul Grimmond’s new book ‘When the noise won’t stop: A Christian guide to dealing with anxiety’.

The problem with ‘You be You’ - with Brian Rosner 

‘You be you.’ It’s the catch cry of a generation. But Brian Rosner says it’s also the new definition of sin.

Many people today believe that there’s only one place to look to find yourself and that’s inward.

Personal identity has become a ‘Do it yourself Project’.

This strategy of identity formation is sometimes called Expressive Individualism.

The view that you are who you feel yourself to be on the inside, and that acting in accordance with this identity is living authentically.


The Principal of Melbourne’s Ridley Theological College Brian Rosner has super helpful critique in his new book, ‘How to find yourself: Why looking inwards is not the answer.’

We need to get better at networking - with Archie Poulos

How can we work better together with people we don’t fully agree with and take advantage of that? We need both deep links and shallow links in ministry. How do we better communicate across theological sub tribes?

Archie Poulos is co-director of the Center for Ministry Development at Sydney’s Moore Theological College.