The Manning Uniting Church came into being as a permanent congregation after a three-year trial. It was formed by the coming together of Old Bar, Tinonee, Cundletown and Taree morning and evening congregations and the interim Manning Regional Uniting Church.

The new congregation included the following descriptive statement in its literature at the time of formation:

“We are a church that continues to ask the questions, ‘Who in God’s name are we?’ ‘Where is God taking us?’ and ‘How do we follow?’ A church that sees being changed, gifted, called equipped and sent as vital in every persons discipleship. And we will do all we can, in the name of Christ, to inspire, encourage and simple help people discover what this means for them.

“We have many ministries in the life of the Church: playgroups for the very young, Youth groups for primary and high schoolers, small groups and bible studies for ‘30-somethings’ and small groups and adult fellowships for the not so young. There is also a variety of ways to serve including helping out in the Red Dove Coffee Shop, assisting with meals on wheels, and a number of other voluntary options. We seek to cater for all ages in one way or another, especially in our worship in which we all come together to celebrate and then are given a number of different options that connect with different needs.”

Each Sunday at 9:00am, members of the congregation gather as one body all together, celebrating that they are called by God. Set within a multi-media and multi-sensory worship environment, they seek to hear/experience the Word for each Sunday.

At 9.30am they then respond to the Word, first by sharing in a church community time: after passing the peace, over a cuppa they hear announcements, celebrate birthdays and share in pastoral prayers.

At 10.00am they then move into a time where three options are available each week:

• A reflective response time – a deeper look at the readings, sharing in the more traditional songs and hymns of the church;
• A Café church/conversational response – open and honest conversation and discussion occurs around the theme for the day (and/or current issues);
• A Kids Time, a time for kids to share in a creativity relational environment.

Mid week activities continue in each of the church buildings throughout the region.

The Revd Steve Coster has been the minister in placement at Taree since April, 2003, and now continues as the minister in placement for the new pattern of ministry of the new Regional Congregation. Click on his name to get contact details.

The Revd Tom Gordon, a retired minister, is working as a Minister-in-Association with the Manning Uniting Church.

Mr Steve Ison has taken on the role of Ministry Programs Facilitator. Steve’s role is to be an enabler and facilitator to our ministry areas including the Red Dove Coffee Shop, Taree Ministry Centre, and assisting the Minister with Youth Ministry.

Other officers and contact details within the Congregation are: