Yass Valley Anglican Church has been hosting “Alpha” sessions, where they invite members of the public to ask anything they’d like to about God.
“It (Alpha) originated in the UK I think around 30 years ago and it’s since expanded internationally,” says Rector Philip Rademaker
“Really the idea behind it is to give people an opportunity to explore the really big questions of life and faith and meaning in a space where you can ask whatever you want, and say whatever you want.”
“It’s really designed for people who are interested in exploring spiritual questions and obviously it’s done from a Christian perspective. People can hear and explore what Christianity has to say about these topics,” he said.
Whilst the Church service is an essential component to Christianity, Philip believes these sessions take the Church back to focus on one of Jesus’ most important lessons for his followers.
“The approach to Alpha is really pretty simple. It recognises that we all have a story, and an approach to life, and we all have questions. In a sense the message of Jesus is one that’s rooted in history and a real historical person and so the facts about Jesus don’t really change but the way we do Church can change.”
“It’s recognising that at the heart of the Christian message is an invitation. Jesus came out to meet people where they were at. He went out to them and didn’t stay hidden off in an ivory tower. He went and mixed with all sorts of people and he offered a relationship with God to all comers.”
“Alpha is about capturing that and just trying to recognise in our particular setting what that looks like,” said Philip.
As for the environment he wants to create in his Church during the sessions, Philip hopes it can serve as a place where people can feel comfortable addressing their faith and beliefs.
“It’s a space where everyone is welcome and it’s really aimed at people who wouldn’t necessarily call themselves Churchgoers or even Christians of any sort.”
“An opportunity to explore faith in a pretty laid back environment with tasty food and good company hopefully,” he said.
According to the Rector, the sessions thus far have brought a varied group of backgrounds, stages of life and religious history. These differences are something he’d like to see develop even further as the sessions progress.
The sessions will run every Tuesday until the 31st of August, with another set of sessions in the pipeline for the latter part of the year.
For further information on the program, head to the Alpha Australia website or check out the Yass Valley Anglican Church Facebook page.
Max O’Driscoll
