In the lead up to our 70th anniversary in 2027, we are asking alumni (former students, faculty and staff) to share their reflections on their time at St Mark’s.
If you would like to share your story with us, please submit it here.
“Grateful thanks go to our God who guides us and to St Marks for the opportunity of academic study with staff who follow Jesus.”
I was 44 and starting my first university degree (Bachelor of Theology) with fear and anticipation. It was a time when, as an external student, we received the brick of reading material in the mail and posted our assignments to the lecturers. I negotiated on-line forums, the intricacies of writing academic essays and rejoiced when I received a ‘Pass” grade!
The most joyful time at St Marks was studying the Diploma of Anglican Orders. During this time, I made the trip up from Narooma every Friday to meet with others who felt God’s call to ordination. It was a time of learning, collegiality and hearing one another’s stories. The lecturers shared their experiences of parish ministry which both challenged and encouraged us. Some were easy to sidetrack, and the anecdotes of parish life made us laugh and cry. We started to gain an understanding of what being a parish priest could look like. Looking back on this time I realise the importance of the shared experiences and the impact of the lecturers telling personal stories.
My time at St Marks was a wonderful experience supported by the staff who challenged us, taught us how to use the library, and encouraged us, not only on our academic journey but also on our spiritual journey. The people and the place of St Marks have helped to shape who I have become as a wife, mother, grandmother and priest.
Grateful thanks go to our God who guides us and to St Marks for the opportunity of academic study with staff who follow Jesus.
Blessings and prayers for many more years of love and service to the academic and wider community.
“I believe that St Mark’s has a vital role to play not only in theological education, ministry training, and formation, but also speaking into the public realm in this very strategic location and at this very challenging time.”
Studying at St Mark’s has been a wonderful journey of Biblical and spiritual growth and formation.
Completing the Bachelor of Theology at the end of 2025, I was thrilled to have completed my degree after studying part time for 6 years but sad that the journey had come to an end because it had been so richly rewarding.
There were many highlights, but a few stand out:
The St Mark’s community is something special to be a part of. Faculty are passionate, dedicated and patient, going above and beyond to help their students to flourish. I also met and developed friendships with lots of other students as we learned and grew together.
Going forward, I believe that St Mark’s has a vital role to play not only in theological education, ministry training, and formation, but also speaking into the public realm in this very strategic location and at this very challenging time.
I thank God for my time at St Mark’s. It has helped to form me, and I continue to apply what I’ve learnt in every aspect of my life including family, ministry, church, and work life. It has also provided me with the tools to continue my theological and spiritual journey for the rest of my life.
“I have been held, nurtured and encouraged as the work that I have been doing has grown and developed the dedicated students I have had the privilege to teach.”
I began my teaching connection with St Marks in 2003 when the then Director, Dr Stephen Pickard invited my colleague Helen Miller and myself to initiate the Certificate IV Counselling Skills in a Christian Context course. So began a winding path of over 20 years developing and delivering a range of courses in the pastoral counselling and pastoral supervision areas at various levels, from Certificate IV through to Masters level programs.
Very early on, when running weekend intensive courses for the VET program in counselling, I discovered the labyrinth in the grounds of the Canberra campus. Walking the labyrinth each time I returned to teach intensives has been a joy but also symbolic of my teaching journey at St Marks over those years.
A labyrinth is an ancient pattern over 4000 years old that is composed of one path, spiralling to the centre of the pattern, and out again; a path which the user follows and cannot get lost, as can happen in a maze. As the path twists and turns, it moves the walker closer and farther from the centre, the place where labyrinth users talk of being the place of receiving: receiving wisdom in prayer or meditation concerning that which we have held as we have walked the labyrinth.
So has been my journey at St Marks: a journey with many twists and turns, feeling further or closer to the centre of the heart of St Marks depending on the season – for example through COVID there was no physical connection with the Canberra campus, but attending teaching or studying intensives have always been times of rich connection with all that St Marks has to offer – a deep Christian foundation, warm, dedicated, expert staff, wonderful library, and a beautiful campus all supported by the comprehensive structures of a large university.
The turns of the labyrinth offer us the chance to look at our own lives from a new perspective and nurtures the capacity to develop a spiritual practices that seek to integrate mind, body and spirit. So has been my time at St Marks: I have been held, nurtured and encouraged as the work that I have been doing has grown and developed the dedicated students I have had the privilege to teach.
“A fresh and new world of learning opened up enabling pastoral ministry in a deeper, richer ways through strengthened competencies and renewed confidence.”
It is 30 years since I commenced postgraduate studies at Saint Mark’s…I am grateful that I did.
One day, I was confronted by a very complex pastoral issue. I needed more skills, so I began a Graduate Diploma in Pastoral Counselling. A fresh and new world of learning opened up enabling pastoral ministry in a deeper, richer ways through strengthened competencies and renewed confidence.
It was so good that I followed up with a Master’s Degree in Ministry to expand my understanding of leadership and management in a changing church, within a post – modern world.
Three things stand out for me from that four year period:
These things, amongst others, have become integrated into working tools for day to day ministry.
At the beginning of my “retirement”, I undertook studies through Saint Mark’s National Theological Centre in Pastoral/ Professional supervision. I still work as a supervisor.
One way or another, ongoing professional development continues to provide foundations which enrich my pastoral practice.
“I found permission to explore and think, a generous orthodoxy that was unafraid of rigorous examination.”
St Mark’s and I are tracking side by side when it comes to vintage—the library was founded in my first year! And I have been associated with St Mark’s for just over half of my life, beginning as a student in 1990. Our young family had not long moved to Canberra, fleeing the high cost of housing in Sydney. I was working as a historian with the Australian Heritage Commission, but I had long wanted to study theology. With St Mark’s just up the road from where I lived and worked, and evening classes on offer, this suddenly became possible—this was pre-internet and pre-distance education.
Juggling two children and a full-time job I managed just one subject a semester—but I’d return home after the classes on a high. A whole world of scholarship and thought opened before me. Such a contrast to most of my church experience, where so much had been hidden from sight, the purview of (male) clergy only. What a revolution! Where I had thought myself about to fall from the edges of belief and the church, I found instead permission to explore and think, a generous orthodoxy that was unafraid of rigorous examination. I signed up for every evening class taught by the wonderful Graeme Garrett—sealing my future as a theologian rather than a biblical scholar. I began to drop into morning prayer before work. I preached my first sermon in the chapel. I began to explore the possibility of ordained ministry.
What strikes me now as I look back on these early days at St Mark’s is how its core charism has been faithfully maintained. I returned in 2008 for three years of full-time doctoral study—bliss—and later had the privilege of joining the teaching faculty. One of the happy things I achieved as Deputy Director was to secure a grant from CSU to refurnish the library—the library that was established in the first year of my life! Happy 70th St Mark’s.
“St. Mark’s is more than a place to study for me; it is a family where I can share my stories, get encouragement, and be part of something.”
I moved to Australia in winter 2022 to pursue a master’s degree in Theology. I still remember the warm welcome Jeanette and Andrew gave me when I first visited St. Mark’s.
After the semester began, I had the chance to meet Michael, Amy, Jacqueline, and other lecturers. Since St. Mark’s is such a small campus, everybody knows each other.
I spent a lot of time working on my assignments in the library, so the librarian, Lauren, was the closest to me when I was there. Going to small gatherings, such as barbecues, movie nights, game nights, or book discussions, is one of my favorite things about St. Mark’s. These occasions work as ways for me to relieve tension after going through hectic days during the semester, but also work as ways for me to build connections with other people.
As an international student who lived far away from family and friends, I often felt disconnected, but moments like these reminded me of a sense of community that I had back home.
St. Mark’s is more than a place to study for me; it is a family where I can share my stories, get encouragement, and be part of something. Being from a different nationality and culture, I always felt welcome and treated as a family member by people at St. Mark’s. The farewell the staff gave me before I returned to Indonesia has always been the best memory for me.
Happy 70th Anniversary to St. Mark’s; may God bless this Institution, and may it keep producing church leaders and theologians who work for the glory of God.
“I always knew something was ‘not quite right’. Theological study helps to articulate the intuitive.”
There have been many things that have stayed with me from my time of study at St Mark’s. A treasured time. All I can do here is highlight some ‘big picture’ areas: thinking theologically; the hermeneutical quest; Palestinian Christian theology; Christian Meditation; and a new understanding of sin and atonement. (And not to forget the Greek). I have carried all this forward in many ways; not structurally as I carry out no formal ecclesiastical role but daily in myriad ways.
I am the President of the Palestine Israel Ecumenical Network (PIEN) and bring new understandings from all these areas into this role. Everything fits.
“I always knew something was not quite right.” Theological study helps to articulate the intuitive.
The Diploma and then Master of Theology gave me the qualification to then have confidence in applying theology in private and public spaces.
“I continue to see afresh how through these relationships and conversations God was deeply forming me.”
What has stayed with me since entering St Mark’s as a student—and I hope to replicate now as a Faculty member—is the generous accessibility of lecturers for intellectual, theological, and gospel conversation.
I never took this for granted at the time. Even still, as time has passed, I continue to see afresh how through these relationships and conversations God was deeply forming me.
“Studying at St Mark’s is like drinking from a well brimming with living water. And I am the woman at the well, running to meet Jesus, time and time again.”
Studying at St Mark’s is like drinking from a well brimming with living water. And I am the woman at the well, running to meet Jesus, time and time again.
When I started my Bachelor of Theology part-time, three years ago, I had no idea how it would work. A busy, working mother, living in a different state, with my only desire “to understand the Bible better”. Little did I know that my life would be irrevocably changed.
I wonder whether all those years in church lulled me asleep as gradually my eyes were opened. I discovered the joys (and pains!) of an exegesis, I have learnt new terms like “hypostatic union” and “cruciformity”, I read classic texts (who ever heard of Athanasius?), and for the first time ever, I understood what “the word became flesh” really means.
Further to my surprise were the lecturers – incredibly knowledgeable, and simultaneously, warm and approachable. Even though I join online, I feel part of the St Marks community, and I am proud to engage in a course that is theologically sound, intellectually stimulating, and personally fulfilling.
Fast-forward to today, and I find myself on the ordination pathway – grateful to be suitably equipped and prepared for this next big step. Drinking from this well has broadened my knowledge, deepened my faith, and, I am happy to say, developed a delightfully unquenchable thirst – the more I grasp, the more I long to comprehend.
“What’s always struck me about St Mark’s is how welcome I’ve felt. Never once have I felt out of place or wondered “what am I doing here?”.”
I first walked through the doors at St Mark’s twenty years ago. Bishop Tom Frame, who was Director at the time, was farewelling people at an event when he turned to me and asked, “How may I help you?” That simple question became the beginning of a friendship that’s shaped my life—countless walks around the lake discussing theology and AFL, and later, seven years working alongside Tom where our conversations continued over lunch breaks.
What’s always struck me about St Mark’s is how welcome I’ve felt. Never once have I felt out of place or wondered “what am I doing here?”. Instead, I’ve found unexpected connections and genuine friendships—people like Michael Gladwin, one of those people in life you’re glad you met. St Mark’s has been rich in offering these kinds of relationships, fruitful and fulfilling, where you can truly lean on each other.
I’ve always loved the history of religion, and finally studying my MA in Theological Studies has given me the chance to explore that passion properly. What pleasantly surprised me was discovering how approachable the faculty are. These are academics with such high standing in their respective fields, yet they are always willing to sit down and chat. Now I’m on the formation pathway, serving at both St Edmund’s in Gunning and All Saints in Ainslie. My formation group brings together senior military leaders, Baptists, Methodists—it’s refreshing to learn alongside such diverse people.
Twenty years since I first walked through those doors, I can say with certainty: koinonia—true community—is alive and well at St Mark’s. It’s given me not just theological knowledge, but friendships and formation that continue to shape how I serve.
“St Mark’s has shown me the importance of engaging Scripture through different lenses, and how rewarding it is to sit with uncomfortable realities.”
I came to St Mark’s with a passion for languages, and dove straight into studying Greek. As I worked through that first unit, something shifted. It became clear that God was calling me into a period of discernment, and studying theology was the first step.
A reading group at St Mark’s played a huge role in encouraging me to enrol in theological education. It showed me how discussions don’t have to have hierarchy or barriers. Instead, they can be a space where people are completely comfortable saying, “I don’t understand,” in the presence of others who want to see you grow. This environment nourished me in a faith that is curious and questioning.
Now halfway through a Bachelor of Theology, St Mark’s has shown me the importance of engaging Scripture through different lenses, and how rewarding it is to sit with uncomfortable realities. No area of study has been separate from service—from pastoral conversations, to preaching, and preparing Bible studies at my church, everything emerges from and seems to find its way back to loving real people.
The teaching staff of St Mark’s are wonderful models of maintaining genuine care and attention to God in theological pursuits. They are genuinely invested in you, your life, and your studies. Worshipping together in chapel, across ages, genders and denominations, adds a depth of relationship that helps me be confident contributing in class.
If you’re wondering whether theological study is for you, I’d say start small. Step into a film night, join us in chapel or in a reading group. Experience the community first. St Mark’s wants to help and encourage you at every stage of your theological journey.
“After all these years, St Mark’s has given me the space to explore what I’d always wanted to learn.”
I’d been fascinated by the New Testament, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and ancient languages since high school, but life took me down a different path of study. That interest never really left me, though. Years later, a work colleague mentioned the possibility of studying New Testament Greek at St Mark’s. When I looked into it, I discovered they had an excellent library—and that was my entry point. I became a Friend of St Mark’s long before I became a student.
After I retired, I studied Arabic at the Australian National University, but there was something about St Mark’s that kept drawing me back. It’s less corporate than other places, not overwhelmingly large, and there’s a wonderful collegiate atmosphere. I started attending a weekly reading group in New Testament Greek, and audited Introduction to Biblical Languages with Jeannette Matthews. After this I signed up for a Bachelor of Theology concentrating initially on languages, then moving further afield into subjects where I could use the languages.
After all these years, St Mark’s has given me the space to explore what I’d always wanted to learn.
“Studying professional supervision has deepened my faith in unexpected ways. It’s enabled me to look at how God is at work in the lives of those I supervise, and to reflect on how God is at work in my own life, too.”
When a friend—an Anglican priest—mentioned the Graduate Certificate in Professional Supervision at St Mark’s, I was intrigued. Right there on the phone, I Googled the course and clicked apply. Within minutes, I received a call back from St Mark’s–the beginning of something far richer than I’d imagined.
There were regular online sessions plus face-to-face, and from the very first session, I was struck by the collegiality and sense of common purpose. We were learning how to help others—together. I’ve done a lifetime of learning, but this was the first time I truly felt I belonged.
Geoff Broughton valued who each of us was and the experiences and expertise we brought. At no time did I feel uncomfortable for not being Anglican. Our differences were celebrated, and I quickly realised I wasn’t the outsider I’d feared I might be. The people I met were outstanding—authentic, high-calibre individuals, some of whom are now friends. What surprised me most was my own transformation. I came in feeling a bit apprehensive, wondering if I’d have anything valuable to contribute. But this was more than just a course. It reshaped who I believed I was and showed me what I was capable of, far more than I’d anticipated.
Studying professional supervision has deepened my faith in unexpected ways. It’s enabled me to look at how God is at work in the lives of those I supervise, and to reflect on how God is at work in my own life, too. Now, as I support clergy in their ministry, I carry with me not just the skills I learnt, but the rich gift of that experience. Professional supervision is a worthwhile way of supporting people who are at the coalface of serving others, and St Mark’s truly prepared me for it.
“I feel richer for the time spent around St Mark’s and feel still very much a part of the community, even if I’m not physically present.”
I have a great affinity for St Mark’s and the community after working and studying around the community for about 6 years.
Initially I worked as St Mark’s communications officer in 2014 and continued to work while I completed a Graduate Diploma of Theology at St Marks in 2015 and 2016.
Near the end of 2016 to 2019 I worked at the Australian Centre for Christianity and Culture “across the road” under Bishop Stephen Pickard.
Working and studying around St Mark’s had a significant impact on my growth as a person. I didn’t grow up in a liturgical tradition so I embraced the new practice of morning prayer at St Mark’s and the reading of scripture aloud.
Studying church history, theology and koine Greek deepened my understanding of my faith. I think St Mark’s is special because of the community it has fostered throughout simple practices such as Wednesday morning tea and events.
The lecturers, teachers and staff were (and still are) all committed to the process of learning both intellectually and through relationships. I feel richer for the time spent around St Mark’s and feel still very much a part of the community, even if I’m not physically present.
Ten years later I find myself in a different season of transition in life and retraining to be a high school teacher in the remote town of Broken Hill in far west NSW.
With family responsibilities, I don’t see how I will be able to attend the 70th celebration but I am there in spirit with the community thanking God for sustaining St Mark’s the last 70 years.
“Studying theology has been such a gift. It’s given me the capacity to look long and in detail at my faith, and it has truly come alive for me.”
When I retired from my role in education at a university, I promised myself two things: I would take up again learning the cello (given up when I left high school) and exploring theology. My administrative assistant in my last position at uni, Louise, had been studying a Bachelor of Theology at St Mark’s, and her enthusiasm was contagious. With an academic background in education behind me, I felt it was finally time to learn the foundation of my faith.
I started at St Mark’s in 2018, just putting one toe in the water. The faculty encouraged me to keep going, one step at a time. That gentle encouragement led me from a Graduate Diploma to a Masters, and now I’m enjoying all the learning that goes with doing a PhD.
Studying theology has been such a gift. It’s given me the capacity to look long and in detail at my faith, and it has truly come alive for me. Things feel less fragmented now—I appreciate what’s there and how the whole story fits together in ways I never understood before.
What sticks with me most is the faculty. They’re always supportive, always interested, and there for everybody. I’ve noticed how they relate to each other—they genuinely value one another, and that creates such a special environment. I looked forward to every class, with each different gift of expertise and pedagogy from each of my teachers. Every assignment came back with encouragement and practical advice to help me improve my theological understanding and my writing.
Retirement gave me the time and freedom to look into something different, and studying at St Mark’s has been an enormous privilege. It’s given me the confidence, knowledge, and resources to serve in ways I never imagined possible.
“St Mark’s instilled in me a lifelong journey of seeking to understand the faith and to ask the big questions about how to heal and transform a fractured world.”
One of my fondest memories was in the residential for the “Old Testament History and Narrative” course. We were made to ‘act out’ the story of Moses going up and down the mountain to receive the tablets – it totally changed my understanding of the text. Also some students were called upon to “draw what they heard” as someone read out Genesis 1. Again, the narrative shone out in a whole new way. There was a real takeaway that to really understand Scripture, costumes and textas could be just as valuable as commentaries!
Overall, though, St Mark’s instilled in me a lifelong journey of seeking to understand the faith and to ask the big questions about how to heal and transform a fractured world.
“The curiosity and conversation sparked in the lecture room and student kitchen flows on and on across my personal and professional life.”
What remains with me two years after completing my study is a desire to keep looking deeper, and to keep pulling that thread to learn, to unveil, the living God.
The curiosity and conversation sparked in the lecture room and student kitchen flows on and on across my personal and professional life – from the new boss who spotted my degree on my resume and wants to know more, to the friends who walk with me in the world, opening up and sharing their own journeys and questions on Christ’s life with us.
In a season where the comfort and immersion of being on campus is beyond reach, the way that St Marks cultivated my faith and curiosity breathes on beyond formal learning constructs. And I have faith, that when God calls the time, St Marks will be there again.
“Friendships and enduring collegial pastoral loyalties have marked the path since graduation. Relationship established or nurtured at St Mark’s continue to be valued.”
Thinking of 1990 seems like yesterday. As a Diocesan Candidate, my family and I were accommodated in a ‘student house’ on Limestone Avenue, Ainslie which was a shared residence with the Diocesan Media Officer, Rob Warren-Smith.
At the time of my enrolment, St Mark’s prided itself on being ‘broad-church’, embracing the various expressions of theology across the diocese. That richness prepared me for the wide range of contexts I have ministered in for over thirty years.
St Mark’s was in a state of flux, transitioning from the Australian College of Theology to the Sydney College of Divinity (a short-lived experiment). The transition was endured and lead by many wonderful academic and administrative staff – Robert and Susan-Mary Wythercombe, Graeme Garrett, Laurie Murchison – all were working to provide an excellent education while simultaneously building a new accreditation organism that would be fit for a generation. The moving face of academic requirement often made student life feel ‘experimental’ to say the least.
Friendships and enduring collegial pastoral loyalties have marked the path since graduation. Relationship established or nurtured at St Mark’s continue to be valued. Kevin Stone, Tom Frame, Anne and Keith McCollum, Sarah McNeil, Ray Hallgath, Jan and Chris Littlejohns, to name a few. There are others who have been faithful servants in the harvest and some who have found high office in the church.
My vocation followed a path in parish ministry, Military Chaplaincy, and rural and regional ministry, all reaching to different countries and cultures. Each ministry culture is different to others, while not every experience at St Mark’s was wonderful, I am ever grateful for the broad grounding I received.
In the final assessment, it is not how well we do, but how willing we are to let God guide us in our vacation. “No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.” (Romans 8:37)
“There is something about being with a group of people who love the Lord and have come together to learn or refine their craft in ministry.”
Over the last decade, I’ve been both student and teacher at St Mark’s, the thing that always comes to mind when people ask me about being there are the heartfelt and deep conversations.
There is something about being with a group of people who love the Lord and have come together to learn or refine their craft in ministry. It promotes thoughtful, vulnerable, and collegial conversations about difficult topics and situations, but in a safe and respectful way.
I always left campus feeling heard and supported, or, as a teacher, encouraged by those entering and engaging in ministry.
St Mark’s makes these conversations – and friendships that grow out of them – possible.
The faithful work of St Mark’s has, “according to the grace of God… like a wise master builder” (1 Corinthians 3:10), laid strong foundations for forming disciples, clergy, and lay leaders across our Diocese.
With skill, care, and deep commitment to the Gospel, St Mark’s continues to build up Christ’s Church, shaping hearts and minds for service, witness, and lifelong learning in the Anglican tradition.
“Chapel reminded us that our lives are lived under God, that God’s Spirit led us to St Mark’s in the first place and will guide us into our vocations as we are formed there.”
I was at St Marks from 1992 to 2014, first as a student (BTh, Masters (Hons) and PhD) and then as a lecturer in theology. During all of that time, it is the rhythm of the day that has stayed with me. The teaching day would begin with lectures at 9am and break for morning prayer at 10.30am, before morning tea and resumption of lectures at 11am. Building morning prayer into the life of the college was significant. Staff and students would meet together in the beautiful, simple chapel at the centre of St Mark’s and pray ‘with one heart and mind’.
Whatever we had been teaching and learning about God would be brought into our relationship with God. It was not our cleverness or wisdom that mattered most, but how our lives were being shaped by the wisdom and love of God. This was the right order of things. In a university setting, there is a lot of pressure on both students and staff to perform well, to meet certain standards, to work hard. And it is good to take our responsibilities seriously. But if we lose sight of the goal of the whole enterprise – to grow in the wisdom and knowledge of God, to be cultivated in the spiritual life – then something is wrong.
Chapel reminded us that our lives are lived under God, that God’s Spirit led us to St Mark’s in the first place and will guide us into our vocations as we are formed there. One simple line from the morning prayer service has stayed with me. It is a way of acknowledging in prayer that our time is a gift and we wait on God to know how best to use it:
‘The night has passed, and the day lies open before us…’
If you are a former student, faculty or staff member, we we would love to hear your reflections.
Express your interest to mentor a student, teach, contribute to publication, volunteer, etc.
