#9 Being Australian (15 minutes around Postcode 2000)

BEING AUSTRALIAN:

Sydneysiders belong to 'multiple, highly-motivated global tribes which exert influence, not control'. Like most Australians, they are passionate about being Aussie, without any substantial understanding of what constitutes the national identity (unlike many Americans). Sydneysiders don’t know Australian history; they only know some Australian stories. Traveling brings out some sort of essential Aussie-ness, and so young people travel often and regularly, with families often holidaying overseas.

This one is my favourite.

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Pic on Flickr audi_insperation.

#8 Morals (15 minutes around Postcode 2000)

MORALS:

Sydneysiders are generous, and younger generation of Sydneysiders are getting more passionate (or at least interested) in issues of justice. They want to serve and they appreciate service. However, there is no overarching moral vision of life, and most determine their own versions of right and wrong, and are quite defensive of their own beliefs and opinions.

Yes?

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Pic on Flickr by psd.

#7 Family (15 minutes around Postcode 2000)

FAMILY:

Sydneysiders are rarely interested in marriage until around 28. They regularly live together before marriage. And before then, they couldn’t imagine having a baby, but when they do they can’t imagine anything else. (Babies are burdens before marriage and accessories after marriage). As they get older, the men in particular are hurting, and they are sensitive to the possibility that they have not been close enough to their sons and daughters as they imagined they would.

That accessories bit is kind of harsh, but someone said it in our brainstorm session, and I'd be interested to know your thoughts.

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Pic of St Philip's on Flickr by Ian.Climacus.

#6 Relationships (15 minutes around Postcode 2000)

RELATIONSHIPS:

Sydneysiders pride themselves in community spirit, helping fellow Aussies when in need. They value time to socialise, and they like crowded summer events (e.g. Cricket, NYE, and Australia Day). They have numerous social connections but often few deep friends. They are often sexually active, with the assumption that something is not right if they are not.

No?

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Pic on Flickr by inail1972.

#5 Tastes (15 minutes around Postcode 2000)

TASTES:

Sydneysiders love to taste and experience. They like a superior beer and good food, preferring quality over quantity. They love good coffee (and are generally repulsed by the instant variety) and they eat out frequently. They use their eyes, rather than their minds.

No?

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Pic on Flickr by d_web.

#4 Lifestyle (15 minutes around Postcode 2000)

LIFESTYLE:

Sydneysiders choose pleasure over pain; beauty over ugliness; simple over complicated. They are comfortable and maybe even indulgent. They love the weekends over weekdays, knowing that Sydney is its own heaven. They have unusually good water skills, and they are into personal time, sport, sun, socialising, weather, concerts, movies, and the SMH. They care deeply *where* they live. They are green, but only when convenient.

Yes?

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Pic on Flickr by NSW Ocean Baths.

#3 Money and Career (15 minutes around Postcode 2000)

MONEY AND CAREER:

Sydneysiders are hard-working, straight-talking and even addicted to work. They invest in clothes, fashion, weekends, food and real estate. They identify themselves by their jobs, and this dictates their perceived importance or status in life. But they will often take less money to make life more enjoyable.

True or False?

Discuss.

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Pic on Flickr by Brianapa.

#2 Education (15 minutes around Postcode 2000)

EDUCATION:

Sydneysiders are highly educated and professional, although not given to self-reflection. They are not driven politically. They are happy to talk about important things briefly, but not deeply.

True or False?

Discuss.

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Pic on Flickr by Convexstyle.

#1 Religion (15 minutes around Postcode 2000)

RELIGION:

Sydneysiders are interested, tolerant and polite about ‘religion’, (having engaged with Scripture in Schools), but skeptical that any one version is the only true version, and rarely motivated to change. They hate confrontation, but are open to Jesus.

Discuss.

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Pic on Flickr by Assaf F.

'Sydneysiders' is code for the people we are trying to reach: People in or near Postcode (Zip) 2000. Again, I stress that this list does not capture everyone (not least of which is the incredible amount of Asian people in our area of Sydney). It is simply meant to ring true of many Sydneysiders. See the original post HERE. And all posts in the Series HERE.

15 minutes around Postcode 2000 (Redeemer's People Profiles)

I learned a *lot* spending a year with Redeemer's Church Planting Center. But one of the things that struck me was the following simple list: The Profile of a Professional Manhattanite.

The list is an attempt to humbly work out (through a process of dialogue, listening and researching) specific and thoughtful people profiles for a professional Manhattanite.

I quote:

From brainstorming with the core croup and in the evangelistic encounter, Tim Keller developed the following profile of the professional Manhattanite:

a) extremely bright-experts; highly proficient in their fields
b) years of counseling, self-analysis; tend to think in psychological terms
c) very sexually active
d) absorbed in their careers--many/most relationships in their job field
e) liberal social conscience
i) commitment-wary (phobic); very private individualistic
g) somewhat lonely; experience numerous transitions
h) highly secular, yet have tried 2 or 3 religions or spirituality-systems
i) deep mistrust of organized religion and especially evangelical Christianity

Our Evening Church Congregation Planning Team have begun to write our own profiles for those we are trying to reach. We don't pretend to represent everyone (as Redeemer's doesn't). The idea is that they pick up the majority of people living withing 15 minutes walk, drive or public transport from Postcode 2000.

I will blog them this week. Two a day. They are based on our collective intuition, as well as some research, but we are happy to have them put through the fires of Blogging, and in our friendships with those who are not Christian.

You can read them HERE.

We've grouped them:

1. RELIGION
2. EDUCATION
3. MONEY AND CAREER
4. LIFESTYLE
5. TASTES
6. RELATIONSHIPS
7. FAMILY
8. MORALS
9. BEING AUSTRALIAN
10. CHURCH

Keen?

I begin tomorrow.

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