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I was deeply disappointed and profoundly upset by my experience with this church, particularly in my interactions with pastor Rob and his wife Chrissy.
What I experienced was, in my view, completely inconsistent with the Christian principles this church professes to uphold. Christianity is supposed to be about love, kindness, compassion, acceptance, grace and treating every person with dignity. Sadly, that is not what I experienced.
I was judged on my appearance, my loving and kind heart was questioned, and I was spoken to in a way that I found cruel, hurtful and completely unacceptable. I found the experience absolutely appalling.
What makes this particularly disappointing is the enormous gap between what is preached and what is practised. It is easy to speak about Christian values from the pulpit, but those values mean very little if they are not demonstrated through the way people are treated.
To me, Christianity cannot simply be lip service. If love, compassion, acceptance and kindness are genuinely at the heart of a church, they should be evident in every interaction — especially when dealing with someone who is vulnerable or simply seeking to be welcomed and treated with respect.
Church leadership carries a responsibility to lead by example. Judging someone’s appearance, questioning the sincerity of their heart, and using words that cause unnecessary hurt is not the experience I would expect from people representing an Anglican Christian church.
I left this experience feeling deeply hurt, judged and profoundly disappointed. I hope the pastor and his wife genuinely reflect on their actions and consider whether the way they treat people reflects the Christian principles they preach.
Christianity should be lived, not simply spoken about.
