Karen Beilharz: Welcome to Moore in the Word, a podcast of Moore Theological College in Sydney, Australia
that seeks to glorify God through biblically sound, thought-provoking and challenging talks and interviews.
In this episode, Peter Jensen, former Archbishop of Sydney, interviews Lloyd
Bennett, former pastor and chaplain and graduate of Moore Theological College.
Peter interviews Lloyd about his call to Christ, his call to ministry, his
time at Moore, and how God worked through him and his ministry post-College.
We hope you find the episode helpful.
Peter Jensen: It's my great pleasure today to speak to my friend, the Reverend Lloyd Bennett.
We've known each other for many, many years one way or another, and uh, Lloyd is a, uh, graduate of Moore College and has had an interesting and.
Different ministry one way another over these many years, and I'm glad to report that he continues
still in ministry doing what he can to promote the kingdom of God and the Lord Jesus Christ.
Lloyd, gotta ask you some questions about yourself.
Yeah.
And if you can tell us because.
You were one of the, I believe, one of the youngest people ever to come to Moore College.
How did that happen?
Tell us about that.
Lloyd Bennett: Well, it was quite a story because I went to Lane Cove Sunday School.
Yes.
At a place called Roland Lamb Memorial Church.
Right now, Roland Lamb was the name of a fellow who was killed in the, uh.
Ah, when he was in, in the war, and his father, Frank D. Lamb, who lived at b
Peter Jensen: mm-hmm.
Lloyd Bennett: Wanted to have a church in his name.
Peter Jensen: Ah,
Lloyd Bennett: The diocese wouldn't allow it though.
He was gonna pay for the whole lot.
Peter Jensen: Mm-hmm.
Lloyd Bennett: But when he insisted, they changed their mind.
And now it's one of two churches that were named after a person, the other being the John Francis Cash.
Memorial Chapel at Moore College.
At Moore
Peter Jensen: College.
Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: So I went to Sunday school there.
It was there when I was in the fellowship at 14.
Mm-hmm.
That I gave my life to the Lord Jesus.
Yeah.
As my saviour and friend.
And, uh, then I was very, very, I. Keen and enthusiastic for the gospel.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: And trust.
I still am.
Peter Jensen: Yes, I think you are.
Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: So I, I was keen to do everything I could.
I started teaching Sunday school.
I got linked up with the youth group and soon became leader of that.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: But the reason I tell this story is because Frank De Villiers Lamb came to
that Sunday school and they had a special prize called the Roland, a memorial prize.
Mm-hmm.
Which I happened to win in, uh, 1956.
So Frank De Villiers Lamb invited me then to come out to his place and meet with him and, uh, his wife
Peter Jensen: in Woollahra
Lloyd Bennett: Woollahra.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
Lloyd Bennett: So I went out there and had lunch with them.
Peter Jensen: Mm-hmm.
Lloyd Bennett: And he was a very prim, proper Englishman.
Peter Jensen: Mm-hmm.
Lloyd Bennett: And, uh, we played Scrabble and he always won because being a Prime Englishman, he had a vocabulary bigger than the Oxford Dictionary.
He showed me round Woollahra and Darling Point.
Peter Jensen: Yes, yes.
Lloyd Bennett: But, um, I noticed his garden or his lawn needed a bit of mowing, so I offered to mow the lawn.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
Which
Lloyd Bennett: he accepted.
And I did that.
Then I got invited back regularly and I would mow his lawn.
Then in 1956, CMS had a missionary convention at the Town Hall when Lawrence Love.
Right.
Was the guest speaker.
Peter Jensen: Yes, yes.
Lloyd Bennett: And I went to that together with Isabel, my girlfriend at that time.
Peter Jensen: Yes, yes.
That's an important name.
Lloyd Bennett: It's a very important Isabel.
So we
Peter Jensen: notice Isabel, yes,
Lloyd Bennett: yes.
57 years we were married.
Yes.
And at this convention he preached on commitment to Christ and called to ministry or missionary service.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
Lloyd Bennett: And at one point he said, and if God is speaking to you and you feel that you
are called to missionary service and you're willing to make that dedication, stand up now.
No beating about the bush.
Right.
So I stood, Isabel stood and many others stood.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
Lloyd Bennett: And that was when I made a commitment.
I believe that God called me into the ministry.
Peter Jensen: And you were just 16 years old?
Lloyd Bennett: I was 16, that's right.
Peter Jensen: And then three years later.
Lloyd Bennett: Yes.
Well, I was very keen,
Peter Jensen: yes, very
Lloyd Bennett: keen for the gospel.
So I managed to get on Beach Mission team and go on beach missions with Dr. John Neo leading it.
Peter Jensen: Yes,
Lloyd Bennett: I taught Sunday school.
I ran the fellowship and I knew that I couldn't go into College.
I even read the 1662 Prayer Book to find out what the rules were, and it said in
the introduction to services for ordination, you can't be deacon until you are
23. 23. Or priest until 24.
Yeah.
Peter Jensen: So
Lloyd Bennett: I thought, good, I'll go into College, God-willing, in 1961.
Peter Jensen: Alright.
Lloyd Bennett: But I didn't want to miss out.
Yeah.
So in February I rang Dr.
Knox.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Who was recently become the Principal at that stage.
Lloyd Bennett: He, he'd only been there that one year.
Peter Jensen: Yes, that's right.
To that point.
Yeah.
Lloyd Bennett: And said that I'd like to come in and I'd like to apply for College for next year.
Yeah.
And he said.
Yes.
Well, when can you come and see me?
Well, I was working at Sydney Water Board.
Yeah.
Till five o'clock.
I said, I can come in any afternoon after five o'clock.
Oh.
He said, how would tomorrow be for you?
I said, oh, well, that'll be okay.
Thank you.
Yes, yes.
So I went in to see him and he interviewed him and asked me various questions.
And then he put a question to me and said to me, Lloyd, why did you come in this year?
Peter Jensen: Goodness
Lloyd Bennett: me.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: And I said to him, well, I. Why not?
Two reasons.
One, I'm too young.
Yes.
Because it was a three-year course then.
Yes.
And I won't be old enough to be ordained, so I need another year.
And secondly, I won't have enough money because I actually had a job at the Sydney
Water Board and uh, I was working as a helio doing photographic work like this.
Mm. Mm-hmm.
And I needed the money to get through College.
Yeah.
And then he said to me, well, let's not worry about that.
We won't worry about age at the moment.
But as far as finance, that's not a problem either.
And I said, what do you mean?
And he said, well, you know Frank De Villiers Lamb, who you've known.
Mm-hmm.
I said, yes.
You told him in 1956 that you were called into ministry?
Yes.
Well, he's put some money in an account here in
your name every year.
But we were told not to tell you.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: Unless you came in.
And if you didn't come in by a certain time, it would go to consolidated funds.
Peter Jensen: Are you still thanking God?
Lloyd Bennett: Well, he said to me, I think
Peter Jensen: that's extra.
Isn't that wonderful?
Lloyd Bennett: It is wonderful.
Yes.
But then he said, I need you to an answer quickly because I've got a meeting of the College committee.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
But
Lloyd Bennett: I've worked it out.
He obviously knew me.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: He said with the diocesan subsidy.
With the money that Frank De Villiers Lamb has left you, and with the money you'll get as a catechist for one and a half days work.
Peter Jensen: Indeed,
Lloyd Bennett: you'll have enough to come into College broke and leave College broke, but no debt.
He said, so what do you think?
So I said, well, I'm excited, but I want to pray about it.
I'll let you know.
So I went home and he said, well, you need to know tomorrow because I've meeting with the College committee and College starts in another week.
Yeah.
So I went home.
I prayed about it with Isabella and it just sent me so much, clearly the Lord's leading, though I couldn't understand it all.
So I rang him up and said, yes.
Oh, come.
So he said, okay, come before the committee.
So I went before this committee, arch Deacons, wearing spats and collars.
It was quite interesting.
Peter Jensen: Of course, yes, in those days.
And they let you in.
So you arrive at College now.
I'm gonna ask you step back a little and think about those years at College.
Three years, three
Lloyd Bennett: years,
Peter Jensen: years, three years at College.
What are the three things that you remember best about your time?
I presume, like me, you would regard the College years as being formative.
So what are the three things that you really remember best about being at the College and the impact it had on you?
Lloyd Bennett: Oh, well, I suppose the main thing is that I was delighted with the biblical teaching that I had.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: And the doctrinal teaching.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: I was very keen for that.
And catechists at my church reminded me that this is why you go to College to learn from the Bible.
So that was exciting.
Second thing is being very much the junior member, I was really impressed by the way that people of all ages welcome me as.
I was an equal and I've worked with them and that was encouraging.
And then there were the variety of activities that the College had.
I'd been taking children's missions associated with them, and I was delighted to share in
College missions where we could put into practice the ministry that we were being trained for.
I was really pleased with that.
Then of course it was great to work in a parish.
I went to Guilford, first of all for two years and then, uh, I was actually a catechist for the youth department.
Peter Jensen: Right,
Lloyd Bennett: right.
Which was very unusual.
Peter Jensen: Yes, yes.
Lloyd Bennett: And I worked with the youth department for the year.
So it was these opportunities for ministry and to.
Correlate them to what I was being taught from the Scriptures and the fellowship we shared.
Peter Jensen: So the three things that you particularly remember, let me just go back, are
the teaching, the biblical theological teaching, which is obviously profoundly important.
The fellowship, the way in which people looked after you and you entered into a fellowship.
Living here, presumably in the single quarters?
Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: In the old wing.
Peter Jensen: And then thirdly, the opportunities that you had as you were studying for ministry.
In other words, you didn't just go away somewhere and study without ministry.
No, no.
The College was set up in such a way as you continued your ministry.
I think Dr. Knox would've been keen to have you there because you were already in ministry.
This is what he taught me about people coming to College.
You're looking for people who are already in ministry, not people who say, oh, I think
I'd like to become a minister, but people already in ministry, and you were that already.
And then what delighted you was to continue in ministry.
Have I summarized it well?
That's right.
Lloyd Bennett: Yes.
I'd been leading a beach mission.
I was a counselor at the Billy Graham Crusade.
Yes.
Yeah.
Which was immediately before our year, which Yes.
Made 1960 a bump a year,
Peter Jensen: bumper year.
That's right.
People poured in, didn't they?
Yes.
Some of whom had been converted at the crusade, but came that year.
Peter Jensen: That's right.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
Yeah.
Remarkable.
And of the teachers who stands out as the teachers that you really benefited from most?
Lloyd Bennett: Well, there was nothing like the staff you have this year.
There was, uh, you mean they were
Peter Jensen: smaller in number?
Smaller in number, yes, yes, yes.
Go on.
Lloyd Bennett: There was Dr. Broughton Knox Yes.
Who taught doctrine.
Yes.
There was Bishop Marcus Loane.
Yes.
See who came in and he taught New Testament.
Peter Jensen: Yep.
Lloyd Bennett: Then we had Bruce Smith.
And Bill Lawton, and that was the staff.
Peter Jensen: Okay.
Lloyd Bennett: John Reed came in to, uh, give lectures on a book.
Ken Shelley taught us things like how to speak from the pulpit and speech training and all that.
Oh, he did too?
Yes.
I remember that.
At St. Stephens Church
Peter Jensen: and Donald Robinson.
Lloyd Bennett: And Donald Robinson taught New Testament.
Also, he taught New Testament
Peter Jensen: and the beginnings of the biblical theology, which has become so important.
Lloyd Bennett: Yes, yes.
Biblical theology wasn't a subject.
When I was interesting was going through.
Okay.
Develop it developed was Old Testament, new Testament.
I think the material was covered.
Peter Jensen: Ah, no doubt.
It was in
Lloyd Bennett: In what they did.
Yes, yes, yes, yes.
Peter Jensen: It developed in that period.
It did.
Which is really important.
Were they teaching you to be expository preachers?
In the church I grew up in and in many, many of our churches, as you would know, the preachers would preach on
a particular text, but in the sixties they developed this expository preaching a paragraph chapter or something.
Is that what was also going on at the time?
Do you remember?
Lloyd Bennett: Yes.
And that's the sort of thing I was looking for and expected because the catechists who came to our church taught expository sermons.
Peter Jensen: Right.
Lloyd Bennett: And I was drill that this is the way you preach.
Peter Jensen: Okay.
Now let me explain your language for the listeners, because catechists, which I understand very well is the old word for student ministers.
Lloyd Bennett: Yes.
Peter Jensen: So there's your run up to College and living in.
Do you think living in was important?
Lloyd Bennett: I think it was, it was the first time that I'd been away from home.
Yeah.
For any length of time.
Yep.
But it was interesting just to meet with the other fellows and you'd be meeting people all the time during the day.
Yeah.
Anytime a day I could find someone I could play table tennis with.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: Which was one of the vice, of course.
Peter Jensen: Well, sport was pretty important.
I thought,
Lloyd Bennett: yes,
Peter Jensen: the cricket and the rugby and this sort of thing because it brought people together and sport does that.
Yeah, I've got vivid memories of playing the games with the guys.
Graham Cole once said to me, and I love this, you are learning at the College.
I'm just seeing if you agree with it.
The learning at the College is first of all, in lectures.
Second of all by personal study, but third by coffee.
In other words, community chat.
That'd be right.
That's your experience too.
And they all
Lloyd Bennett: important because we would get together and talk about our experiences in our parishes.
Peter Jensen: I want to move beyond that now to ask you about what's happened subsequently, because here I, you've come in at a very young age.
You've had this three years of training, which was your tertiary education, wasn't it?
At that?
It was, yeah.
Once you hadn't been to Uni.
No.
In fact, most people in those days had not been to Uni.
That's right.
That was unusual.
So you come in and you graduate with the normal THL.
As we did in those days.
I was six years after you, so I have some memory of the same sort of thing.
So you did that and with cadre of guys that you knew.
Have you kept in touch?
Lloyd Bennett: Yes, we have.
Being the youngest, it's only
Peter Jensen: 60 years.
It's only 60 years,
Lloyd Bennett: but I've organized a reunion.
Being the youngest, it sort of falls to me to draw them all together now.
So we've had a 10 year anniversary of the year we started, which called our year.
Club 60.
Peter Jensen: Club 60
Lloyd Bennett: and last meeting we had was 2020.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
Lloyd Bennett: And 2010, 2000.
Every 10 years I've organized a reunion back here.
Peter Jensen: Wow.
And that's one of the great benefits of College.
Yes.
That you create a gang of friends that you can turn to
Lloyd Bennett: Yes.
Peter Jensen: At various times or will support you
Peter Jensen: as
Peter Jensen: you hope and so on.
So you, uh, married Isabel in what year?
Lloyd Bennett: 1963.
Peter Jensen: 63.
So you left College at that stage?
Lloyd Bennett: I left College.
And there were days when you had to get permission from the archbishop to be engaged?
Peter Jensen: Yes.
And
Lloyd Bennett: had to get permission to be married.
And Archbishop Gough was a very prim and proper.
Englishman.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: And I couldn't find anywhere in the Bible or in my Moore College
lecture notes that said you had to get permission from an archbishop to get married.
Peter Jensen: True.
Lloyd Bennett: Of course.
He's still the archbishop.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: So I wrote a very carefully worded letter in the terms of those times.
Peter Jensen: Mm.
Lloyd Bennett: Your grace.
Yeah, the most relevant archbishop of Sydney.
Your grace.
It gives me pleasure to inform you that I intend to announce my engagement on such and such a date and trust.
This has your goodwill showing you of my prayers for your leadership.
I remain your humble and obedient servant.
That was the stuff we had to.
Right then.
Peter Jensen: Oh, I'm so sorry
those days have passed.
Yes.
Go on.
Well, anyhow, I got a lovely bit effect
Lloyd Bennett: from Yes, Archbishop Gough.
It said, dear Lloyd, I'm delighted to hear of your coming engagement, and I'll give you my full permission.
Peter Jensen: Yes, of course.
But it's not an untypical interaction between an Englishman and an Aussie, if I may say So.
There's different stages and parts to your ministry, and I'm not for the history of the.
Rather the types of ministry you have been involved in.
So as I look, would it be wrong to say that you have a keen sense of the importance of parish ministry,
but also all the way through, you had a keen sense of the importance of ministry among the young people.
Would that be fair to say?
You may add to that, that that
Lloyd Bennett: would be fair to say Yes.
Peter Jensen: You were a curate it.
In one parish or two?
No one parish in two parishes.
The youth work two parishes.
But then you were the rector or the chief minister of two other parishes, which are they?
Tell me where you minister.
Okay.
Lloyd Bennett: Well, when I finished College, I was too young to be ordained.
Yes.
But I'd been catechist at the youth department.
Peter Jensen: Right.
So
Lloyd Bennett: they continued with me on full-time staff.
Right.
That was it.
Then in 1964, Archdeacon Graham Delbridge came to me and said, Lloyd, we found your parish: Seven Hills.
And I said, great.
And I rang Isabel's up and said, we're going to Seven Hills.
All the rigmarole.
Meeting with people and asking questions wasn't an issue then?
Peter Jensen: No.
If
Lloyd Bennett: the archdeacon said, you went.
Peter Jensen: Yeah,
Lloyd Bennett: so we went and enjoyed it.
So I was curate at Seven Hills.
Ah, with Peter Watson.
Peter Jensen: Ah, right.
Okay.
Who, who, who was in charge?
Lalor Park.
Lloyd Bennett: Seven Hills and Lalor Park was the name of the parish.
Oh, I see.
Because I remember Peter at Lalor Park.
Peter lived at Seven Hills.
I lived at Lalor Park.
Ah, right,
Peter Jensen: okay.
Lloyd Bennett: They had five schools in the parish.
Yeah.
And my first ministry was really youth work.
I taught,
Peter Jensen: yeah.
Lloyd Bennett: 20 periods of SRE.
Yeah.
Scripture a week.
Monday was my day off.
Tuesday to Friday, five periods up to lunchtime, three periods, morning tea, two periods, then home for lunch.
It was quite a ministry amongst kids.
Peter Jensen: I would like to pause there and say to those listening, particularly in ministry, we were men in those days, we really worked hard.
Well, at least Lloyd did.
I can't say I should.
No,
Lloyd Bennett: everybody did.
Everybody did.
Peter Jensen: And does still, of course.
Yes.
20 hours a week of Scripture—20 periods a week.
20 periods a week.
Yes, yes, yes.
That's remarkable.
That's right.
And in course you find out years later the impact
you've had on different people and this sort of thing.
Yes.
Didn't know at the time.
Okay, so that was Lalor Park.
Well, well,
Lloyd Bennett: the current Bishop of North Sydney was a kid in the Sunday school there.
What do you know?
And reminds me of it.
Peter Jensen: What do you know?
Of course.
Isn't that great?
That's a wonderful thing.
Lloyd Bennett: Yes.
Peter Jensen: So that was Lalor Park.
You moved on.
I'm thinking about parish ministry of the,
Lloyd Bennett: okay.
I went to CMS.
Then I went to Bondi Beach Parish.
Oh yes.
Now Archbishop Loane called me and said, look, I'd like to send you here.
There's a North Bondi Parish.
Indeed.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
I'd
Lloyd Bennett: like you to build a church there and I'll point you as curate under Gordon Robinson.
Oh.
And then we'll form a provisional district, and yes, you'll be the first curate in charge.
And I thought, okay.
Again, the archbishop spoke, so I went,
Peter Jensen: of course.
So St. Andrews, North Bondi is, it was called, it was actually
Lloyd Bennett: called St.
Barnabas North Bondi.
Oh, was
Peter Jensen: it?
Lloyd Bennett: But there was also a St. Barnabas Mill Hill.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
There was Bondi Junction.
Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: And I thought, this is crazy.
So then I renamed it St. Andrews so it wouldn't be confused and worked there.
Peter Jensen: So you did church planting in short?
Lloyd Bennett: Yes.
Yes.
They had that what we would
Peter Jensen: call church planting today.
Isn't that great?
Lloyd Bennett: Well, they had a church there and what it was was a two-storey building.
Ah.
And upstairs was the residence.
Yep.
And downstairs was the church.
Yes.
Yeah.
And that's what I moved into.
Right.
And then there was the backyard and they needed a church.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: And parking and land at Bondi is very strict.
Indeed.
So my concept was that we have a two-storey building, which is a church downstairs.
And then a hall upstairs, but with the windows running through.
So it just.
Looks like a magnificent church.
Yes.
Yeah, that concept was built
Peter Jensen: right?
Lloyd Bennett: Parking was a problem 'cause council needed so many parking spaces.
So I went to them cap and hand, and I said, look, we have our service at eight o'clock in the
morning and there's thousands of parking spaces at Bondi Beach, and we'll be finished by nine.
Would you accept that?
And much my surprise, they did
Peter Jensen: very good.
Lloyd Bennett: So we didn't need any parking space.
And that was it.
But sadly, there was an error in accounting, which confused both the bank, the diocese, finance department, and the parish.
Peter Jensen: Mm-hmm.
Lloyd Bennett: And after the building was proceeding to the first progress payment, it was decided that they couldn't continue.
So if I resigned, then they didn't have to pay me.
Right.
They could finish the building.
Right.
So I resigned and went and saw Archbishop Loane.
And that's when he appointed me to my next parish.
He said, look, I'd like to offer you.
Rector of the Parish of Mulgoa.
Peter Jensen: Oh yes.
At Mulgoa.
I noticed you were out there.
We
Lloyd Bennett: five churches.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Including
Lloyd Bennett: Badgerys Creek War
Peter Jensen: Warragamba.
I see.
And
Lloyd Bennett: Warragamba Dam.
Which is interesting 'cause when I worked with the water board, I often went to Warragamba.
Peter Jensen: Right.
Lloyd Bennett: So I knew the dam and the people there.
Right.
Peter Jensen: And then what was the next one?
Lloyd Bennett: Then I went to Avalon, Palm Beach Parish.
Peter Jensen: And you've never really left the Northern Beaches one way or another.
Lloyd Bennett: No.
No.
That's interesting.
Peter Jensen: Now tell me, you've had a long experience at this.
We haven't gotta the youth work side yet, but we've had a long experience here.
What have you learned about parish ministry?
Say you're talking to a young man like me, for example.
I'm younger than you by three years, but you're talking to ministry these days.
What have you learned about ministry?
And the essence of ministry in those times.
Lloyd Bennett: I think the most important thing is that there are other people have God in the place that you go to, to minister to.
Peter Jensen: Mm-hmm.
Lloyd Bennett: And that we must consider those people in any decisions we make.
And what's of concern to me is that there is, so many seem to go to a new parish saying, well.
Here am I, God's answer to your prayers.
And things weren't doing so well, but now they're gonna be different.
Mm-hmm.
And fail to recognize the difficulties or even the work that the previous minister's done.
And, uh, I think it's important to take the people with you.
Mm-hmm.
And so whenever I wanted to make a decision, I would talk with church warden from parish council with the congregations and only move.
Comfortable and felt it was happy, and sometimes they would say no to ideas.
Others they would say, please, let's run with it.
Peter Jensen: That's very
Lloyd Bennett: interesting, but, but you must go with the people.
I found that parishes are extraordinarily flexible that no matter what ministry comes in and turns the place upside
and down, they're still continuing along and still put the money in the plate to support the ministry of the gospel.
Peter Jensen: Right, right.
Now, do you think, looking back.
Thank you for that insight.
I'm hoping we all hear it, but do you think that the College experience prepared you?
In what way did it prepare you?
I mean, you prepared by a lot of things, a lot of experiences, but what did College contribute to that parish ministry
Lloyd Bennett: College prepared me because one,
I was a trainee minister and they trained me in the areas we should be trained in.
Not just theology, but practice.
Peter Jensen: Mm.
Lloyd Bennett: And that practice was not only theoretical.
Saying this is pastor, which Bishop Loane took, mm-hmm.
Taught us how to take weddings and funerals and so on.
Yes.
Very important.
Peter Jensen: But
Lloyd Bennett: how do you do it on the ground with people?
Yeah.
I gained experience in that by being a trainee minister.
A parish with a rector Wakeley Wade, who was always keen to help.
So when I first arrived in the parish on Fridays, I would go to the rectory and then he would tell
me what's happened during the week there and the decisions he's made, and what do I think of that?
Peter Jensen: And
Lloyd Bennett: we would discuss it or we would pose a situation to say, what would you do?
And then I'd give him a very clear, decisive answer.
And he'd say, well, have you thought of this?
And have you thought of that?
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: Yes.
And you thought of something else.
Peter Jensen: You learned a great deal from him.
Lloyd Bennett: I did.
Peter Jensen: The preaching ministry.
Did it feed into your preaching ministry satisfactorily?
Is that
Lloyd Bennett: when I was in my own parish?
Yes.
I always chose series. With the multi-church parishes, both at Warragamba,
see I used to take five services a Sunday.
Peter Jensen: Mm. I know.
At each
Lloyd Bennett: church.
And then I decided to have one church at Mulgoa.
The historic church.
Yes.
In the evening.
Yeah.
And then at Warragamba the other side of the river at 9:30.
Yeah.
And then the other service is once a month.
So that meant two sermons a Sunday, because a lot of people, not a lot, but enough.
Oh, came twice.
Came twice.
Yes, indeed.
Peter Jensen: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
So I do an Old Testament in the
Lloyd Bennett: morning.
And
Peter Jensen: so you were relying on your College studies at that point?
Oh, indeed, indeed.
Very much, yeah.
Yes.
Now you've had an extraordinary interest in children's ministry, in teenage ministry and in schools.
Because you've had connections with, I mean, I know you've had connections with CMS League of Youth and all sorts of other things as
well, and the Scripture teaching or the SRE teaching you mentioned, but you've also been connected to two schools and as principal.
Tell us about how that happened, and is that true to your ordination vows?
Why are you working in a school?
What's going on there?
I think it is, but I'm just interested.
Yes, yes, yes.
Well,
Lloyd Bennett: I'm convinced, as I may, well, as a child, I used to read prolifically.
Yeah.
And I love to read the English schoolboy books.
Yes, and that gave me a taste.
And when I was converted, I thought, well, you know, I'd like to be in a school like that.
So I sought opportunities and waited upon the Lord for it to see if God would confirm that call.
So the opportunity came when I was at Avalon, Rod West approached me and asked me if I'd be interested in going to.
Trinity as Chaplain.
Peter Jensen: Oh yes.
Lloyd Bennett: So that was interesting.
Another parish had also approached me.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: And the Archbishop said, okay, well I'm not gonna give you two offers.
You've gotta make up your mind.
Peter Jensen: Right.
Lloyd Bennett: Are you gonna go parish or are you gonna go to schools?
Yes.
So that I've received firm offer from the Headmaster of Trinity Grammar School.
Yes.
With contract and everything else
Peter Jensen: right
Lloyd Bennett: before the other.
So I assumed that well.
This is the next step to take.
Yeah.
So that's when I moved into Trinity Grammar School.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
But how did you get into leading schools?
I mean, chaplaincy at Trinity very important.
And Rod West, one of our great servants.
But what about this business of the two schools?
We, I think you were the principal three.
Three.
I beg your pardon.
Yeah,
Lloyd Bennett: there's one being left out of the ebook.
First of all, at Trinity, I was able to follow up what you said in teaching because
in the final two years I had enough coming to Scripture, we had six classes.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
Lloyd Bennett: And I had Christian staff teaching, so I asked those that would like to do PTC to do it.
Ah.
And I introduced PTC in year 11 and year, remember, I remember.
Yes.
And I had 65 students.
Wonderful.
And, and I taught that, and it's really exciting to see people in ministry who did that course and found it helpful.
Indeed.
In their ministry.
Peter Jensen: Indeed.
Yeah.
Lloyd Bennett: Who have actually adopted that now at other schools.
Right.
For example, as Tony George at Kings.
Peter Jensen: Yeah, Moore College and so into the schools as well.
Into the, into the schools.
That's wonderful.
Lloyd Bennett: And I was quite prepared to stay at Trinity here.
I was chaplain of school, uh, and I could carry out my ministry there.
Mm-hmm.
It was good because they have house services galore and so I'm meeting with people who normally wouldn't necessarily come to church.
They come under the sound of the gospel and so I had through that and the boarding house, that ministry.
When I was asked if I would go to Peninsula Grammar School or it was Peninsula Anglican Boys School.
Mm-hmm.
It didn't exist, but there was the Council for the Promotion of Sydney Anglican Church schools.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: Had St. Luke's Girl School.
Peter Jensen: Yes.
Lloyd Bennett: They had St. Luke's Primary School and Loquat Valley at Bayview, a primary school, and they wanted to have a boys high school.
Peter Jensen: Mm-hmm.
Lloyd Bennett: And so I was approached actually by, they told me they were going to advertise it.
Peter Jensen: Mm-hmm.
Lloyd Bennett: And then a couple of the heads of schools approached me and said, why don't you apply for it?
And I thought, well, they're very much the question, how can I maintain a biblical ministry while I'm headmaster?
And the answer is easy.
Just keep doing what I'm doing.
Love people, love the Lord.
Preach the gospel and teach the Bible.
Peter Jensen: Now.
Okay, so you've had a lot of experience in this area, but let me ask you another question.
What have you noticed has changed in Australian society, but particularly amongst young people?
Of many years of ministry and.
We haven't even got to your chaplaincy work amongst skiers.
Mm. But we may have to leave that, but I'm, I want to ask this deeper question.
What changes?
Lloyd Bennett: Well, I think society's changed too, and that people have moved away from a Christian background.
When I was a child, everybody was sent to Sunday.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
Lloyd Bennett: Parents didn't go, but they, their kids.
What's happened now is that there's not that.
There's been a shift in society away from the gospel, away from the centrality of Jesus to their own secular life.
So our preaching now and proclaiming is got to reach people in, not in a different
way, but in the same way we're still proclaiming the same Lord Jesus Christ.
We're still proclaiming him as the sole saviour Christ alone, Bible alone.
And that's a position we can't shift from.
Society doesn't want it.
Peter Jensen: No.
Lloyd Bennett: And they therefore reflect in their kids.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
And it does, doesn't it?
Mm-hmm.
And breakdown of marriage, other things like this, that's accessibility of drugs.
Technological, yes.
Lloyd Bennett: Yes.
Peter Jensen: So last question, is Moore College unnecessary?
How important is the College?
Lloyd Bennett: Oh, it's essential.
I mean, there needs to be thorough, grounded training by, well.
But the qualification is those who love the Lord Jesus as their saviour, and are concerned and
experienced in ministry and want to preach the gospel that they've been taught in a clear, decisive way.
So there is no confusion of what the gospel is.
Peter Jensen: I couldn't put it better myself.
I think that's pretty good.
Lloyd, we are very, very grateful for you coming and sharing with us today.
There's so much else.
I know there's so much else you can tell us about, but what you've told us is
really significant, and I think you've given us a sort of a beginning and an end.
You've talked to us about your experience of College and coming to College and the fact that
in you, the person he wanted at College.
And also that remarkable story of the gentleman who set aside money for you to come and didn't tell you.
I had no idea.
Peter Jensen: Yeah.
Peter Jensen: So we've seen that and then you've hit the nail on the head.
I think with the remarks you've made about the necessity of the College, the
ongoing necessity of College in this entirely different world we are living in.
Thank you very much indeed.
And may God bless you and keep you.
And I know from personal friends that you have not stopped your ministry.
Lloyd Bennett: Oh, I served in the Army for 33 years.
Oh, I've forgotten about the Army.
Yes.
And And the ski ministry for
Peter Jensen: Yes.
25
Lloyd Bennett: years now.
Peter Jensen: 25 years.
Yeah.
You've got a lot more.
But time does not.
Time doesn't allow.
But thank you very much indeed.
Lloyd Bennett: And thank you very much for your leadership.
Okay.
God Bless.
Karen Beilharz: Thank you for listening to Moore in the Word, a podcast of Moore Theological College.
Our vision as a College is to see God glorified by men and women living for
and proclaiming Jesus Christ, growing healthy churches and reaching the lost.
This interview is just one of many from the College's, 100 Ministry Stories project.
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