Information Sheet for New Centre Bounce Teams Sports Chaplaincy Australia would like to invite you to champion our vision to see a chaplain serving in every sports club in Australia! We want to invite you to start a Centre Bounce Team. In the AFL the centre bounce team (4 players) get the ball rolling in the right direction and then the rest of the team get involved. A CBT is a small circle of people who have full permission to get the ball rolling in the right direction by helping the SCA vision to grow chaplaincy to sports. This might be in a region, a sport, a league or through an agency, denomination or church. The CBT,  Are Christian people  Don’t need to be captains  Have reach in their sports community  Have no authority except permission to  Have reach in their church networks  Enjoy a bit of hard work & contact  Partner with the SCA network  Usually 2-4 people in size  Have freedom & permission to grow grow chaplaincy Who is Sports Chaplaincy Australia (SCA)? SCA is a non-denominational umbrella network of sports chaplains serving sports in Australia. We are a network not an agency. We want movements of chaplains to start everywhere. We work through the local church. There are 4 things we do well. We help identify sports that need chaplains. We train. We appoint/credential the best people to serve as chaplains. We resource and guide chaplains. We have chaplains in most elite sports and teams in the AFL, NRL, Cricket, Motor sports, and Institutes including the AIS. Over 250 and growing rapidly. We have over 3000 opportunities for chaplains! See more about SCA on our website – www.sportschaplaincy.com.au. Our vision is to see a chaplain serving in every sports community in Australia. Our mission is to bring grace and mercy to sport in Australia by Identifying, Training, Appointing and Guiding chaplains in sport. We call it ITAG. Ok so what does a Centre Bounce Teams do? The CBT will help the vision by Identifying and Appointing… 1. Identify clubs that want chaplains 2. Identify potential Chaplains 3. Help with Appointing chaplains  Then the rest of the SCA team can get involved, e.g. training What is a Sports Chaplain? In simple terms a sports chaplain is a pastoral carer. We are not counsellors, even though we sometime may give counsel. We encourage referral. We are highly dependent on relationships and formality is usually a very low priority. Simply we turn up, enjoy a chat, get to know and care for people and pastor them in their community, not ours. All our sports chaplains are appointed through their local church and are made up of lay leaders as well as clergy. We don’t allow chaplains to wear religious garb. None of our chaplains are paid - all are volunteers. We never ask for funding from those we serve although some chaplains have donors who support them. We spend anywhere between 3 hours and 10 hours a week in the role, visiting training, matches (or races) and other social events. Of course different sports vary greatly but we have one golden rule – visibility equals credibility. We make time for our community. From the Sports Industry point of view our point of difference is we are Pastoral Carers. So who makes a Good Sports Chaplain? The Guiding Principles of Australian Sports Chaplains When selecting someone to be a chaplain, apart from ensuring they are Christ-loving, bible-based and ministry-competent Christian people consider honestly the following… 1. Their relationship with Christ & others is their ministry 2. They’re authentic people 3. They serve indiscriminately 4. They’re a servant leader 5. They’re always a guest 6. They don’t want a paid job 7. They don't go alone 8. They’re a catalyst for growth 9. 10. 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. They’re prepared to make time - visible They’re consistent They’re prayerful They build people They’re comfortable sharing about Jesus To them, privacy is king They’d treat the office of chaplain with respect SCA Credentials The Australian Sports Industry, like many industries, avoids working with individual religious parties. They rather stay away from any divisiveness or religious partisanship. As a result they avoid entering into dialogue with religious groups full-stop. Sports Chaplaincy Australia breaks down that barrier and presents a cohesive umbrella network that operates with commonality. The SCA Accreditation ensures,  Credibility  Integrity  Consistency  Responsibility (to the sport)  Stewardship of the role  Local church accountability So when it comes to growing chaplaincy ensure that your chaplains have applied for their SCA Sports Chaplaincy Credential. This can be found online at www.sportschaplaincy.com.au/application. Register Your Centre Bounce Team Today Register your Centre Bounce Team at www.sportschaplaincy.com.au/cbt and receive your CBT Pack. Thanks for taking the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ to your community! My Contact Details Are: