Editing Uniting Church in Australia (section)

==Organisation==
[[File:St-Michael's-at-Night.jpg|thumb|alt=Downtown church at night|[[St Michael's Uniting Church, Melbourne]] ''(pictured)'' was formerly the Congregational Union Australia Church.]]
[[File:Port Adelaide Uniting Church-2005.jpg|thumb|alt=Landscaped, Gothic-style church|[[Port Adelaide Uniting Church]]]]
[[File:Scots Uniting Church.jpg|thumb|alt=Another Gothic-style church|Scots Uniting Church in [[Albany, Western Australia]]]]
The UCA is a national, unincorporated association of councils, each of which has responsibility for functions in the church. The councils are [[Wiktionary:congregation|congregations]] (local), [[Presbytery (church polity)|presbyteries]] (regional), [[synod]]s (state) and an
assembly (national).<ref>{{cite web |title=Uniting Church in Australia Assembly |url=https://assembly.uca.org.au/ |access-date=18 January 2020 }}</ref> The membership of each council is established by the constitution. Each council includes Women and Men, [[Laity|lay]] and ordained. The offices of president of assembly, moderator of synod (who chair these councils) and other offices are open to all UCA members. The UCA is a non-[[episcopal polity|episcopal]] church, with no [[bishop]]s. Leadership and [[pastoral care|pastoral]] roles are nominally performed by [[Presbytery (church polity)|presbyteries]], but in reality by individuals.{{citation needed|date=February 2023}}

===Assembly===
The UCA assembly meets every three years, and is chaired by the president.<ref name=UCASubmission/> The 14th Assembly met in [[Perth]] from 12 to 18 July 2015. The 15th Assembly, hosted by the [[Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Victoria and Tasmania|Synod of Victoria and Tasmania]] in [[Box Hill, Victoria|Box Hill]], met in July 2018. Assembly business between meetings is conducted by the Assembly Standing Committee, which meets three times per year (usually in March, July and November). Membership is drawn from throughout Australia, with 18 members elected at each assembly.

===President===
[[File:Deidre Palmer UCA 2020-02-23.png|thumb|Deidre Palmer was UCA President from 2018 to 2021]]
The current president is Reverend [[Charissa Suli]] since she was installed as president in the meeting of the 17th Assembly on 11 July 2024. She replaced Reverend [[Sharon Hollis]], who had succeeded Dr [[Deidre Palmer]] at the start of the 16th Assembly in July 2021.<ref name="president">{{cite news |url=https://www.insights.uca.org.au/news/dr-deidre-palmer-gods-abundant-grace-shapes-and-reshapes-us |title=Dr Deidre Palmer: God's abundant grace shapes and reshapes us |newspaper=Insights Magazine |date=9 July 2018 |access-date=9 July 2018}}</ref> Palmer was the second woman in the role, following [[Jill Tabart]] (1994-1997).<ref name="p-e_2015">[http://assembly2015.uca.org.au/president-elect-announced/ President-Elect announced], Uniting Church in Australia, 16 July 2015</ref> Palmer was the moderator of the [[Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of South Australia|Presbytery and Synod of South Australia]] from November 2013 to November 2016.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://assembly2015.uca.org.au/president-elect-announced/ |title=President-Elect announced |date=16 July 2015 |access-date=18 July 2015 |publisher=Uniting Church in Australia}}</ref> Hollis was moderator of the [[Synod of Victoria and Tasmania]] at the time of her election in 2018 as the president-elect and became president at the beginning of the sixteenth assembly, which was to be held in Queensland in 2021.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://uniting.church/sharon-hollis-named-as-uca-president-elect/ |title=Sharon Hollis named as UCA President-elect |publisher=Uniting Church in Australia |access-date=12 July 2018 |date=12 July 2018}}</ref> As a result of the [[COVID-19 pandemic in Australia|COVID-19 pandemic]], the meeting was moved to a shorter, online form.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.eternitynews.com.au/australia/is-the-uca-ready-for-a-president-of-colour/ |title=Is the UCA ready for a President of colour? |newspaper=[[Eternity News]] |first=Matt |last=Pulford |date=15 July 2021 |access-date=16 July 2021}}</ref>

===Synods===
Synods are UCA councils which roughly correspond to state boundaries. Each synod meets about once per year, with a standing committee to represent it between sessions. Synod responsibilities include the promotion and encouragement of the church's mission, theological and ministerial education, and overseeing property matters.<ref name="2015-regulations">{{cite web |url=https://assembly.uca.org.au/images/resources/Regulations_Policies/2015_Regulations-updatedSeptember2016.pdf |pages=75–78 |title=The Uniting Church in Australia Regulations |access-date=7 November 2016 }}</ref> There are six synods:<ref>{{cite web|url=http://uca.org.au|title=Uniting Church in Australia Assembly - Home|website=uca.org.au}}</ref>
* [[Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of New South Wales and the ACT|Synod of New South Wales and the ACT]] (formerly the NSW Synod)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://nswact.uca.org.au/ |title=Uniting for the common good. |publisher=Synod of NSW and the ACT}}</ref>
* [[Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Queensland|Synod of Queensland]]<!--this seems to be the formal name, but [[Queensland Synod]] is also common--><ref>{{cite web |url=http://ucaqld.com.au/ |title=The Uniting Church in Australia Queensland Synod}}</ref>
* [[Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of South Australia|Synod of South Australia]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://sa.uca.org.au/ |title=Uniting Church SA - Uniting Church. Uniting People.}}</ref>
* [[Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Western Australia|Synod of Western Australia]]<ref>{{cite web |url=http://unitingchurchwa.org.au/ |title=Uniting Church in Australia, Western Australia}}</ref>
* [[Uniting Church in Australia, Synod of Victoria and Tasmania|Synod of Victoria and Tasmania]]<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.victas.uca.org.au/ |title= Uniting Church in Australia. Synod of Victoria and Tasmania}}</ref>
* The [[Northern Synod]], which includes the [[Northern Territory]], north-west Western Australia and northern South Australia.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ns.uca.org.au/ |title=Uniting Church in Australia Northern Synod}}</ref>

===Presbyteries===
Each synod generally consists of a number of presbyteries. Western Australia has a unitary presbytery-synod model. South Australia also had a single presbytery and synod for 15 years, until 2019. These large presbyteries enable groups of congregations to work together, based on geographic location or similar interests or characteristics. Selection of ministerial candidates and the placement of ministers are decided at the presbytery level.

===Congregations===
There are about 2,000 UCA congregations, with 243,000 members and adherents. Congregations range in size from a dozen to hundreds of members.<ref name=UCASubmission/> They are the local church, the setting for regular worship (generally on Sundays). Many churches also conduct [[Church service|worship services]] at other times, such as a monthly weekday service, a late-night service for day-shift workers, a "cafe church", or Friday- or Saturday-evening services.

A Meeting of the Congregation must be held at least twice each year. The meetings typically consider and approve the budget, local policy matters, property matters (ratified by the presbytery and synod) and the "call" (employment) of a new minister or other staff.

Congregations manage themselves through a council. All elders are members, as are ministers with pastoral responsibility for the congregation; there may also be other members. The council meets regularly, and is responsible for approving worship times and other matters.

[[File:NaroomaUnitingChurch.jpg|thumb|upright=1.1|alt=White clapboard church behind a white picket fence|[[Narooma, New South Wales|Narooma]] Uniting Church, a 1914 example of [[Australian non-residential architectural styles#Federation Carpenter Gothic|Federation Carpenter Gothic]] architecture]]
Some united congregations exist. The UCA has joined with other churches, such as the Baptist Union and the [[Churches of Christ in Australia|Churches of Christ]], in some locations. There are also cooperative arrangements where supplying ministry to congregations is impossible, particularly in remote areas. This includes arrangements with the [[Anglican Church of Australia|Anglican Church]], where ministry and (sometimes) property resources are shared.

Faith communities are less structured than congregations. They are groups of people who gather together for worship, witness or service and choose to be recognised by the presbytery. Local churches are sometimes also used by congregations of other denominations; for example, a [[Tonga]]n [[Seventh-day Adventist Church|Seventh-day Adventist]] congregation may make arrangements to meet in the building on a Saturday. The UCA is committed to inclusivity, and there are a number of multicultural ministry (MCM) arrangements in which [[Korea]]n, [[Tonga]]n and other groups form congregations of the church.

====Co-operating congregations====
Co-operating congregations, typically in rural areas, have several denominations worshiping as one congregation and rotate the denomination appointing its next minister. They are known as union churches in some places, with several denominations using the building at different times.

====Frontier Services====
A Frontier Services ministry is available to residents of the [[outback]], with ministers and pastors visiting families by air or [[four-wheel drive]] vehicles. Visits are normally arranged in advance so adjacent families can travel for significant events, such as [[baptism]]s. These "padres" are based in a major town or city, and the local synod is normally their organisational and funding body.