Global church planting movement ‘Redeemer City to City’ has established a local branch in Australia which will launch the Australian Centre for Faith and Work later in the year.

Independent of any denomination, City to City Australia was incorporated in December. It’s headed up by CEO Andrew Katay (Anglican Minister from Sydney’s inner-west), CS Tang (a Presbyterian Minister also from the inner west) and Justin Moffatt (Anglican Minister based in Sydney’s CBD). A board of directors has also been appointed.

The Australian network will replicate the other global arms of City to City: recruiting, assessing, training, and coaching local leaders to plant new urban churches.

The City to City model of church planting aims to be rapid and sustainable. Katay says new churches which have been supported by the network will help fund other new churches once they reach viability, which will go onto support others.

He says the distinctives of City to City will be “doing the hard work of contextualising the proclamation of the gospel”, having a “grace dynamic of personal and community transformation”, and an “integrative ministry” approach which is designed to break down the public/private and faith/work divide.

As part of its presence in Australia, City to City will be launching the Centre for Faith and Work later in the year.

“It will offer the Gotham program,” says Katay, “an intensive one year church-based discipleship program centred on personal renewal, and the development of a Biblical vision for each participant’s vocation. The Centre will also invest in senior business and community leaders, through programs and conferences.”

City to City Australia is bringing out the global Director of New York-based Redeemer City to City, Tim Keller this month for a series of events for church planters and leaders, youth and women. Coming with him is his wife, Kathy Keller, as well as Katherine Leary Alsdorf, who founded the Center for Faith and Work in New York.

Katherine will be speaking at the City to City women’s event in Sydney as well as the Redeeming Work conference to be held in Melbourne in March, hosted by Ridley Melbourne.

2014 is looking like a big year for the development and promotion of a theology of faith and work, with the launch of the Australian Centre for Faith and Work, the ’Redeeming Work’ and City to City Australia conferences taking place in March and the Ridley Marketplace Institute offering units focusing on the theology of work for the first time.

Feature Image: Brisbane City Council, used with permission via Flickr under a CC License.