This year instead of our Leadership Camp pilgrimage to St Arnaud, the diocese took the show on the road with our Emmaus leadership days. Nelson/Waimea and Māwhera had already had their gatherings, and last weekend we finished Emmaus for 2026 by meeting in Marlborough.
Coming from as far afield as Kaikōura, Picton, and the Awatere, around 40 leaders gathered at Nativity Church on Saturday for a day of encouragement, workshops, prayer, food, and connecting with other Anglicans across the region.
“Emmaus was my first leadership event as a newly-minted member of the Nelson Anglican team.” says Nigel Irwin, the recently appointed minister of St Christopher’s Redwoodtown. “Not only was I personally encouraged by the content, range and quality of the workshops, but I was grateful to see members of my parish so encouraged and inspired by the event too. We enjoyed the opportunity to share with our brothers and sisters from around the Marlborough region.”
The team at Nativity church did a superb job of hosting the event, with vicar Glen Ashworth leading our time of worship together.
“I was delighted to find that in addition to perspectives and resources relevant to my vestry role, there was plenty to feed me personally,.” says Alex Smith, vicar’s warden at Nativity. "The sessions I attended were thoughtful, well presented and engaging, offering practical and high quality resources. The diocese team showed up as encouraging, friendly partners. It was a pleasure to host you all.”
For Brian Paton, the Bishops Warden of Wairau parish, two quotes stuck with him from his Emmaus experience; ‘Dwell on the past and lose one eye, forget the past and you lose both eyes’, and ‘God values the advancing years, they are his gift’.
“So what does an old retired chap get from those two things?” asks Brian. “I need to use my advanced experience that God has given me now to bring about change which has the past as a firm foundation and his inspiration to flourish in our present reality. As the disciples' eyes were opened, so too were mine at our Emmaus day.”
Clint Ussher, from The Well Church in Christchurch, once again was the keynote speaker for the Saturday event – as well as offering a time of encouragement for our clergy on the Friday afternoon.
“I was greatly encouraged to hear stories of God at work in really different contexts to my own,” reflects Clint on his time at Emmaus.
“Clint was an inspired choice,” says Nigel. “His experience and perspectives were highly valuable and insightful, and his down-to-earth manner made him accessible and warmly engaging.”
Over the course of our three Emmaus events, more than 200 lay leaders attended and took part. For a region of our size that really is something to celebrate – showing our parishes have a strong culture of committed everyday leaders who are passionate about Jesus, and a longing to see our local churches flourish. The events also highlighted the unity and shared vision we have as a diocese, but also the distinctive flavours that make each of our regions unique.
The steadfast passion of the Coast.
The missional zeal of Waimea.
The gritty persistence of Marlborough.
The creative innovation of Nelson.
A huge thanks from Bishop Steve and his team for supporting Emmaus this year. We appreciate all that you do, and the events were a blessing.
Check out other articles in the
series below.
More articles in the
series are to come.
We have invited these writers to share their experiences, ideas and opinions in the hope that these will provoke thought, challenge you to go deeper and inspire you to put your faith into action. These articles should not be taken as the official view of the Nelson Diocese on any particular matter.
This year instead of our Leadership Camp pilgrimage to St Arnaud, the diocese took the show on the road with our Emmaus leadership days. Nelson/Waimea and Māwhera had already had their gatherings, and last weekend we finished Emmaus for 2026 by meeting in Marlborough.
Coming from as far afield as Kaikōura, Picton, and the Awatere, around 40 leaders gathered at Nativity Church on Saturday for a day of encouragement, workshops, prayer, food, and connecting with other Anglicans across the region.
“Emmaus was my first leadership event as a newly-minted member of the Nelson Anglican team.” says Nigel Irwin, the recently appointed minister of St Christopher’s Redwoodtown. “Not only was I personally encouraged by the content, range and quality of the workshops, but I was grateful to see members of my parish so encouraged and inspired by the event too. We enjoyed the opportunity to share with our brothers and sisters from around the Marlborough region.”
The team at Nativity church did a superb job of hosting the event, with vicar Glen Ashworth leading our time of worship together.
“I was delighted to find that in addition to perspectives and resources relevant to my vestry role, there was plenty to feed me personally,.” says Alex Smith, vicar’s warden at Nativity. "The sessions I attended were thoughtful, well presented and engaging, offering practical and high quality resources. The diocese team showed up as encouraging, friendly partners. It was a pleasure to host you all.”
For Brian Paton, the Bishops Warden of Wairau parish, two quotes stuck with him from his Emmaus experience; ‘Dwell on the past and lose one eye, forget the past and you lose both eyes’, and ‘God values the advancing years, they are his gift’.
“So what does an old retired chap get from those two things?” asks Brian. “I need to use my advanced experience that God has given me now to bring about change which has the past as a firm foundation and his inspiration to flourish in our present reality. As the disciples' eyes were opened, so too were mine at our Emmaus day.”
Clint Ussher, from The Well Church in Christchurch, once again was the keynote speaker for the Saturday event – as well as offering a time of encouragement for our clergy on the Friday afternoon.
“I was greatly encouraged to hear stories of God at work in really different contexts to my own,” reflects Clint on his time at Emmaus.
“Clint was an inspired choice,” says Nigel. “His experience and perspectives were highly valuable and insightful, and his down-to-earth manner made him accessible and warmly engaging.”
Over the course of our three Emmaus events, more than 200 lay leaders attended and took part. For a region of our size that really is something to celebrate – showing our parishes have a strong culture of committed everyday leaders who are passionate about Jesus, and a longing to see our local churches flourish. The events also highlighted the unity and shared vision we have as a diocese, but also the distinctive flavours that make each of our regions unique.
The steadfast passion of the Coast.
The missional zeal of Waimea.
The gritty persistence of Marlborough.
The creative innovation of Nelson.
A huge thanks from Bishop Steve and his team for supporting Emmaus this year. We appreciate all that you do, and the events were a blessing.
Check out other articles in the
series below.
More articles in the
series are to come.
