Mission in Sydney - Australia

The Diocese of Sydney has a missionary group called St-Paul’s Coptic Missionary Group consisting of a good number of zealous youth who try to reach people in their communities for Christ. The group is presently working with the homeless people of Sydney.

Although Wednesday is the day of the week during which the youth encounter the homeless, the youth gather together every Tuesday night in a chapel for prayer and bible study in order to draw strength from the Lord and to stay in tune with His plan for the service. This meeting also allows them to discuss challenges and new ideas for the service, and to plan the logistics of their Wednesday service.

On Wednesday night, the youth are divided into small groups -each group being under the care of a senior servant. The youth then travel to various locations in the city, where they set up food and clothing vans, providing free meals and clothing to the homeless. This provides an opportunity to speak to the homeless about the good news of Jesus Christ, to tell them that they have a Heavenly Father that loves them and to be a listening ear for them to unload their burdens and troubles. Many times they are simply touched by the fact that someone cares about them, and actually wants to listen to their story. These gestures of love are much more effective in conveying God’s love than any preaching can be.

On special occasions such as Christmas and Easter, the homeless are invited to the Church for a celebration dinner with the youth, during which they are given presents from the bookshop, and a tour/explanation of the Church. It is always a memorable event for the homeless people, but even more for the youth who feel they have hosted Jesus Christ Himself.