Jim Barr

Jim was born in Newcastle, New South Wales and brought up in the Mayfield Baptist Church. He studied at university for a time before joining the House of the Gentle Bunyip from 1975 to 1983 where he and Jane were involved in youth work and community development activities. Jim studied sociology at La Trobe University and at the Melbourne College of Divinity for a degree in theology and graduated in 1988. He was ordained to the Christian ministry by the Baptist Union of Victoria in 1987 and ministered in the Chadstone and Syndal Baptist Churches, and the Rosanna Baptist Church.

Jim and Jane moved to the Collins Street Baptist Church where Jim was appointed the Director of Urban Mission from 1991 to 1994. He established the Urban Mission Unit, recruited the first group of mission interns and implemented the SEEDS training program. This time was followed by his appointment as the Pastor at Collins Street Baptist Church from 1994 to 2000. During this time Jim was responsible for the pastoral and liturgical leadership of the Church community as well as taking a keen interest in the world around the Collins Street church.

Jim and Jane formed a consulting company in 2000 to undertake organisational consulting with a range of corporate and community clients. In 2001, Jim was appointed to become a Pastoral Associate at the Melbourne City Mission where he was responsible for client focussed pastoral care, liaison with churches and faith communities and working with the corporate partners of the City Mission.

He has been involved in several community organisations and was a part-time Director of the Zadok Institute for Christianity and Society. The Zadok Institute is an independent Christian organisation whose mission is to promote informed theological reflection, especially by lay people, on contemporary issues in Australian society, and to bring Christian perspectives into public debate.

Jim was a member of the Executive Council, Baptist Union of Victoria from 1990 to 1995 and Chair of the Interim Board of Whitley College from 2001 to 2004.

He has completed several research projects in demographics and social research and in organisational studies. Jim has written articles and given conference presentations as well as corporate training presentations over the past ten years.

Jim holds a BA (Hons), B Theol (Hons), M AppSc and Grad Diploma in Organisation Change and Development.

Jane Barr

Jane Barr was born in Sydney and moved to Melbourne to join the House of the Gentle Bunyip where she and Jim met.

Jane has a theology degree from the Melbourne College of Divinity and is presently studying part-time for a graduate diploma in theology. She has developed a career as a manager in the fields of welfare and allied health care and spent 12 years working for Melbourne City Mission. Jane is taking some time out from the work force and is pursuing her interest in ceramics. Jane has been a huge support for Jim in his pastoral leadership roles.

Jane and Jim have two adult children: Isley and James. Jane’s father Bill Spark has lived with the family for the past ten years and will be coming to Canberra with them.