Origins Of Church In Australia (Foundations): Holy Spirit

Protestantism started in the early 16th century due to a large number of people who rejected the teachings and practices of the Catholic Church. It was started by Martin Luther, a German Monk who did not agree with the Catholic Church. The permanent presence of Protestantism in Australia began with the arrival of the First Fleet of convict ships at Sydney in 1788. Many of the sailors and convicts were Protestant and brought their religion to the new world. It is unknown who started the religion exactly but it is believed that it was most likely the crew and convicts who started it. The first Protestant churches were built in the new prison colonies that were sprouting up all around Australia. Soon, Protestants started converting people to their religion and the number of followers grew in Australia.

The Mission of the Church

The mission of the Protestant Church is the spread the word of God and convert others to their religion all over the world to places that have never heard of Christ or that don’t have many Protestants. They used to and still sent out missionaries out to places that they once called “heathen lands”. They send their missionaries to places like the Americas, Africa, and islands in the Pacific. Their plan is that by sending out missionaries to places with people who haven’t heard of Jesus Christ, they will expand their number of followers.

The key beliefs of the Church

Just like many other Christian denominations, the protestants believe that there is only one God and that in God there are three divine persons who together form the Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. The protestants also believe that Jesus died for our sins and is the savior of humanity. Protestants believe that all that is necessary for salvation is faith in Jesus Christ and acceptance of his crucifixion as payment for our sins unlike and that after this is achieved a person is able to get into heaven, unlike Catholics who believe that a person has to confess his sins and many other things to get into heaven. Protestants, in general, believe that the Bible is the literal word of God. In other words, most believe that the events described in the Bible, including the ones in the Old Testament, happened just as it was written.

Unique features of worship

The Protestant church has many unique features of worships. Speaking in tongues; Protestant churches believe that speaking in tongues is still a gift from the Holy Spirit. However, other Protestant churches reject this idea, believing the gift of tongues was only for the time of the early Church. Singing; In most Protestant church services there is significant time given to the singing of songs and hymns. Singing helps to unite the congregation and gives the members of the church a common purpose/task. Preaching; preaching is the central part of most Protestant church services. As part of the service, the Bible will be read and then the minister or pastor will explain the passage and help the congregation to think about how to apply it to their lives. The importance of preaching can be seen in the length of time given to the sermon – around 30 minutes in many Protestant churches.

Some challenges facing this Church

The Protestant Church like many other churches faces challenges today. One of these challenges is trying to be appealing to today’s youth. There is a growing population of people in Australia who are choosing to follow no religion and many people are leaving the church. A big part of why people are leaving is because the church to many people is not appealing because it is seen as old and outdated. Also, too many people believe that the ideas, beliefs or practices of the church are unappealing or don’t make sense. The church has tried to seem more appealing to people and tried to adapt to today’s world, but so far their efforts haven’t made that much of an effect on their problems. The attendance of the church has also started to drop. Many people are choosing to convert to other religions or choose no religion. The church has also been accused of destroying the culture of the people from the places they send missionaries to.

How the Church spreads the Good News in Australia in a contemporary setting

The Protestant church has many charities and works of service. One of the most notable of these charities is the Salvation Army. The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organization. The organization reports a worldwide membership of over 1.7 million, consisting of soldiers, officers and adherents collectively known as Salvationists. Its founders sought to bring salvation to the poor, destitute, and hungry by meeting both their ‘physical and spiritual needs’. It is present all over Australia, running charity shops, operating shelters for the homeless, disaster relief and humanitarian aid all people in need. Many of the people that the charity help are young homeless people living on the street. One of the many things that the church are doing to appeal to today’s people and youth is that they hold many bible study groups where young people can learn about the bible and mix with others who are interested in the church. The church also conducts many youth services where young people can be active and contribute to the community while also learning about the bible.

What and how does the Church demonstrate the value of openness to the Holy Spirit in the modern world?

The Protestant Church has many beliefs about the Holy Spirit. One of these beliefs is that the Holy Spirit currently acts only through the influence of inspired scripture. Another is that the Holy Spirit draws people towards salvation, but does this in the same way any person moves another, by persuasion with words and ideas. They also believe that the Holy Spirit has a very direct role in the life of a Christian. The Pentecostal church, which is a church inside the protestant church, have significant differences to the rest of the protestant church when it comes to belief about things such as the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is given particular emphasis in Pentecostal churches. In those churches, he is seen as the giver of natural and supernatural gifts, such as tongues and prophecy, to modern-day Christians. They also believe that the Holy Spirit still gives out these gifts today. The Protestant Church demonstrates the values of the Holy Spirit by holding mass and ceremonies in their churches and share these values with others by teaching others about these values.

How this Church demonstrates the value of openness to the Holy Spirit in the modern world is done in many ways. The Church does this by doing things such as holding Sunday School lessons which teach young children about the Holy Spirit, Websites which people can look up to learn new information about the Holy Spirit and by having social media accounts or Facebook pages which are seen by many people and could have a lot of information as well.