New Associate General Secretary Appointed

The Assembly is delighted to announce Rev Lindsay Cullen has been appointed by the Assembly Standing Committee to the role of Associate General Secretary.

Lindsay is a highly respected, collaborative and creative leader in the Uniting Church. Currently serving as National Consultant with the Assembly Resourcing Unit, Lindsay has played a key role in coordinating national projects, task groups and committees, providing support to ecumenical dialogues, interfaith networks and working with the Assembly Circles of Interest.

In welcoming his appointment, Assembly General Secretary Colleen Geyer said Lindsay brings a deep commitment to the Uniting Church and a future-focused vision for discerning what it means to be church today.

“Lindsay is a collaborative leader with the ability to bring people on the journey with him. He is a clear communicator, researcher and educator. His contribution will be significant as we continue to discern the calling of the Spirit in what it means to be disciples of Christ today,” Colleen said.

Lindsay has previously held leadership roles in the NSW/ACT Synod and Mid-North Coast Presbytery in NSW. These roles respectively focused on adult education with the ELM Centre and leadership of the newly formed Uniting Mission and Education Resourcing Team, and pastorally supporting and resourcing ministers and lay-led congregations within the Presbytery.

Lindsay served as a member of the Assembly Standing Committee for three years and brings much experience with Synod and Presbytery Committees. He currently serves on the MLC Council and is a regular presenter for Mission Shaped Ministry training in the NSW/ACT Synod.

Lindsay said a key focus and interest of his ministry has been exploring new ways of being church.

“One of the things I love about the Uniting Church is our commitment to grow and evolve. At our best, we are ‘pilgrims on a journey’, we are not locked into set ways and we are always open to the leading of the Spirit as to what is the next step on the way,” said Lindsay.

“When I look at the future of Church, I am not worried or concerned that the church is not as big or powerful as it might have been, but I look at the teachings of Jesus who talked about being salt or light in the world. Our challenge is how do we, perhaps as smaller, impactful groups of people, have the capacity to change culture and to engage with the things that are happening around us and to bring a sense of care and love to the marginalised, so that we can have an outsized impact, because we are salt, and a little bit of salt goes a long way.”

Lindsay said he was excited to continue working with the Assembly as a council of the Church which offers a national view of our identity across the country.  

“One of the things I love and that excites me about the Assembly is casting a vision of who we are and who we could be as a Church in a multicultural country, that engages with all generations and that is seriously committed to thinking about what it means for those of us who are Second Peoples to live and follow the way of Jesus in a country where First Peoples suffer great injustice.”

“I love engaging with people in ways that encourage a bigger horizon and a sense of what we might be.”

Originally ordained by the Baptist Union of NSW, Lindsay has been a Minister of the Word in the Uniting Church since 2003, serving in rural, regional and urban contexts. Lindsay spent five years living in London while he was studying Philosophical Theology and his particular area of academic interest is the intersection of Science and Theology.

Lindsay will support the General Secretary in the leadership of the Assembly and will lead the Assembly Resourcing Unit in its work resourcing national areas of ministry. He begins in early December.