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The aim of this study was to explore the role of the Church in rural areas with specific reference to the South West region of Queensland and focusing on the provision of social welfare services. The region of Queensland, described by the Australian Bureau of Statistics as the South West, lies to the west of Brisbane, commencing at Yuleba, and stretches to the South Australian border. The region was populated by between ten and fifteen indigenous nations prior to European settlement. Since the 1840s the South West has seen the development of primary industries and the formation of rural communities. A grounded theory research approach was used in this study, which drew upon data collected through a series of programs conducted by the community support agency Lifeline. These data sets included individual stories of extreme hardship, connected chains of evidence and group responses. They provided an overview of the issues facing residents of the South West, including those issues pertinent to the role of Christian denominations throughout the region. The significant issues which emerged from the study related to the concerns of rural residents over their personal health, their self image, the state of their interpersonal relationships, the viability of their enterprises, the loss of community facilities, and the decreasing rural population. With specific reference to the Church, respondents indicated that harsh conditions had challenged their faith, reduced their ability to be involved in church-based activities and added to their concerns over the reduction of resident clergy and Church facilities in rural areas. Respondents in the study presented a widespread sense of powerlessness in regard to decisions made regarding funding for their local communities and management decisions made by Church authorities without any local consultation. The conclusions from this study indicate that the Church does have an ongoing role in rural communities provided that the Christian denominations recognise and respond to the concerns of the rural residents in regard to denominational structures, rural theology and the principles underlying the provision of rural social services. The study recommends that the Christian denominations put into practice the statements which have been made by denominational leaders in regard to the formation of an ecumenical training program for clergy and lay leaders who may work in rural areas. An urgent need is revealed for a new approach to gender issues so that the role of women in rural industry, producer organizations, government committees and Church management can be examined as broadly as possible. The study also indicated the need for further research into the future of Australia's rural communities and the ways in which they may differ as communities from the urban areas of Australia.

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