My Retirement Minute

The Uniting Church in Australia Qld Synod -- 38th Synod in Session, May 2025

The following text is my official retirement minute from the 38th Synod in Session of The Uniting Church in Australia Queensland Synod in May 2025. Thank you Rev. Dr Elizabeth Nolan for seeking a fulsome story.

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Rev. Dr Anita Monro was baptised as an infant in the Methodist Church by her grandfather, Rev. Samuel George Monro. In 1973, at an Easter Junior Christian Endeavour camp, she experienced a deep sense of the abiding parental love of God and made her commitment to follow Jesus. She was confirmed as a member of the Uniting Church in March 1978 at Wavell Heights Uniting Church.

At a YAF rally in December 1978 where candidates for ordained ministry spoke, Anita experienced a profound sense of call to ordained ministry; and from that point worked towards that goal. Mentoring by Rev. Dr Elizabeth Nolan during Anita’s teenage and early adult years introduced her to worlds of biblical and theological scholarship that nurtured Anita’s faith.

After completing high school, she took a year off study and worked for the Uniting Church Foundation & Investment Board of the Qld Synod. She then completed a Bachelor of Arts at The University of Queensland, majoring in Religious Studies, Sociology and English Communications. During the final year of her undergraduate degree, she candidated through the Presbytery of North Brisbane, entering Trinity Theological College in 1986 to undertake a Bachelor of Theology with a double major in Scripture through Brisbane College of Theology (BCT). She met her husband-to-be, Russell Morris, at Trinity.

In 1988, Anita completed her student placement year at West Toowoomba Parish, Presbytery of The Downs, supervised by Rev. Paul Moore. With Rev. Dr Paul Walton, she was ordained on 10 December 1988 in a joint service of the Presbyteries of North Brisbane and The Downs at St Stephen’s Uniting Church in Toowoomba. Anita’s exit placement was for 12 months to Home Hill Parish in the Presbytery of North Queensland while Home Hill and Ayr were moving to become the Burdekin Parish at the end of that year. Cyclone Aivu devastated the small town at Easter that year and the remainder of the year was spent re-building from the disaster.

On 25 November 1989, Anita and Russell were married at Clayfield Uniting Church on the site of the Wooloowin Methodist Church where her parents had been married 28 years previously. Russell and Anita entered a joint placement in Maryborough Parish from 1990 to 1992. In Maryborough, they served with colleagues from both the Anglican and Roman Catholic churches who had all studied together at BCT. While at Maryborough, Anita completed an Honours degree in Religious Studies by distance education through Deakin University.

From 1993 to 1996, Anita took study leave to undertake her PhD through the Griffith University School of Theology, the postgraduate research arm of BCT. During that period, Russell was minister in placement at Stanthorpe Parish in the Presbytery of The Downs.

Her PhD studies were undertaken in philosophical theology under the supervision of Drs Elaine Wainwright RSM and Francie Oppel. Her thesis entitled “Subjecting Ambiguity: Towards a Feminist Poststructuralist Theological Methodology” included chapters addressing biblical interpretation, theological imagery for God, and Christian community development strategy. While on study leave, Anita convened the Program Committee of the ‘Women Clothed with the Sun,’ the 3rd National Gathering of Women in The Uniting Church in Australia. Anita designed and coordinated the innovative program strategy which was subsequently included in her thesis. A significant, ground-breaking piece of her thesis also was presented to the Uniting Church’s Assembly Task Group on Sexuality.

Towards the end of her study leave, Anita began editing and writing study materials for Coolamon College and undertook some supply ministry for Warwick Parish. When Russell was asked to become the General Secretary of Queensland Churches Together, Anita was offered a part-time placement with Coolamon College as Educational Developer. Over the next 5 years, Anita filled a range of roles with Coolamon, including Dean of Postgraduate Studies involving the setting up of the Coolamon postgraduate program within Sydney College of Divinity (SCD). She became Acting Principal in 2002 and negotiated the transfer of Coolamon College from BCT and SCD to Adelaide College of Divinity. In 1999, Anita had provided supply ministry for Geebung Congregation in the Presbytery of Moreton Rivers; and for 2001, she served half-time as Director of Gospel & Gender, another agency of the UCA Assembly.

From 2003 to 2008, Anita was Lecturer in Liturgy and Theology at United Theological College in Sydney and Charles Sturt University School of Theology. In 2009, she was called to be minister of Armidale Congregation in the Presbytery of New England North West in the Synod of NSW & ACT.

In 2013, Anita returned to the Qld Synod to become Principal of Grace College at The University of Queensland for ten years. During Anita’s tenure as Principal, she reformed the College’s suite of policies, including mission and values statements, risk management and strategic development plans. Anita prepared beautiful inclusive liturgies for weekly Community Dinners at Grace as well as for all special College events such as the Welcome and Valedictory services for students. She initiated and hosted monthly ecumenical Women’s Theology seminars for churches in Brisbane area and in 2015 and 2016, five-day residential Women’s Theology Conferences which attracted international and interstate speakers and workshop leaders. Anglican, Catholic and Lutheran women pursuing ministry studies particularly appreciated her mentoring and leadership in feminist theology.

During this placement, despite some serious health issues, Anita undertook a Graduate Certificate in Business (Philanthropic and Not-for-Profit Studies) through Queensland University of Technology and became a Graduate member of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Anita successfully managed the Covid pandemic period for the College 2020-21, keeping the College open for interstate and international students especially, and providing emergency hospitality for other UQ students from other colleges to enable those colleges to continue to function. From 2021 to 2022, she facilitated a smooth transition from the college housing women only to being gender-inclusive, an innovation particularly appreciated by the UQ Senate. The ‘re-brand’ and renovations allowed Grace College to become financially secure with a full complement of students again from 2023.

Anita moved into semi-retirement in 2023, undertaking some teaching in Religious Studies at the University of Queensland and Theology at St Francis Theological College (Anglican) as part of the University of Divinity. From late 2023 until December 2024, she also provided Supply ministry for her local congregation, Blackall Range, in the Presbytery of Mary Burnett.

Anita was a member of the Assembly’s Liturgy Commission from 1994-1997 and the National Working Group on Worship from 2002-2010. She participated in the development of Uniting in Worship 2 with a particular focus on advocating for the inclusion of lament and diverse imagery for God. Anita was a member of the Uniting Church delegation for the joint UCA-Anglican dialogue (1998-2001) which produced “For the Sake of the Gospel” addressing potential stages towards unity across the denominations. In 2012, she was nominated for President of the UCA Assembly.

She served on a range of other ecclesial and organisational committees including the establishment of the Dostana Board for fostering the relationship between the Uniting Church’s Qld Synod and the Diocese of Amritsar in the Church of North India. In 2022, she represented Dostana at the Diocesan Synod and spoke at their annual Youth Conference.

Over the course of her scholarly career, Anita provided keynote addresses in various scholarly contexts including the 3rd Beverly Bellinger Memorial Lecture for the Synod of Victoria in 2001, and the 2009 Sydney conference of the international association, Societas Liturgica.

Anita’s publications include a monograph from her doctoral thesis; 2 co-edited collections on Public Theology and worship in Australia; more than 20 scholarly articles across the disciplines of biblical interpretation, systematic theology, practical theology and feminist methodology; and numerous educational and liturgical resources.

Rev Dr Anita Monro has lived and modelled an educated, informed and practical faith for a complex and diverse contemporary world. As a creative innovator, her scholarly work and leadership has not always been welcomed or appreciated by some leaders of the church and yet she has remained committed to the God of overwhelming Grace and Love, fully revealed in the incarnate Christ, and made present continually by the power of the Holy Spirit. We give thanks to God for the faithful, diverse and creative ministry of Anita and wish her well in retirement.