Emmanuel College is pleased to announce that Rev. Alex Pittaway has been appointed as chaplain. Alex is affiliated with the Uniting Church and his appointment to Emmanuel was facilitated by the Queensland Synod. Council Chairman Stephen Howell said, “We welcome Alex to Emmanuel. He has started working with the students and will be a valuable contribution to the life of the College.”
Alex returned to Australia from the United States last year, after gaining his Master’s degree in Divinity/Ministry from the Christian Theological Seminary, graduating in 2018 with Honours. Alex also serves as pastor at the Metropolitan Community Church in New Farm, Brisbane.
“I’m so excited to begin my work at Emmanuel College. For the past three years I was part of a community in the United States, which was in some ways similar to Emmanuel, as I studied to become a pastor. In the US, I went to a church where Dr Martin Luther King had preached to a packed house. Dr King was a leader in civil rights, fighting for full equality for African Americans. He talked about creating the beloved community in his speeches and in his fight for civil rights.
I believe that God’s love has no borders. In addition to being a chaplain, I pastor a church in Brisbane that is mostly made up of the LGBTIQ community. As a pastor, every day I help people who have been rejected or hurt by their experience of faith. As Emmanuel College’s chaplain, I hope to be an affirming and non-judgemental Christian presence on campus. I believe strongly in sharing the inclusive, empowering Gospel of Jesus Christ, whose arms are open wide to all — gay or straight, black or white, able bodied or differently abled.
The word “Emmanuel” is Hebrew and means “God with us”. I’ve been pondering the ways in which we can see that God is with us at Emmanuel, in light of the college’s Christian ethos. As I get to know students and staff, my hope is our college can truly live up to its name — Emmanuel, God with us — and we can all find ways of creating a beloved community, united by the way we care for and love each other. We care for each other when we help a fresher find their feet, when we listen to someone we disagree with and understand their point of view, when we help someone who’s feeling the pressure of exams, tutorials, deadlines and academic calendars. Most importantly we create the beloved community by including and welcoming all — regardless of race, gender, ability status or sexual orientation. We want a beloved community whose arms are open wide.”
