‘Churches do more than religious traditions’: Rev Dr Dean Eland defends ‘lazy’ Adelaide nickname

Many locals might roll their eyes at Adelaide’s historic nickname but one church stalwart says there’s plenty to be proud of if you know what it really means. Vote in the poll.

Rev Dr Dean Eland, a retired Uniting Church minister of 60 years, is proud of Adelaide's label 'the City of Churches'. Pictured at Pilgrim Church, in Flinders Street. Picture: Dean Martin

While some Adelaideans may cringe when interstate travellers refer to the “City of Churches”, Rev Dr Dean Eland says the term should be embraced.

On Saturday The Advertiser published a column which described commentators who use Adelaide’s “City of Churches” nickname as “lazy”.

“Our state capital has been renowned for more than a decade for the spectacular Adelaide Oval redevelopment,” it read.

“It is the return of footy to the Oval from 2014 after a $535m redevelopment that has changed the narrative about Adelaide.”

But Dr Eland, a retired minister of 60 years and the president of the Uniting Church SA Historical Society, took exception to the suggestion and remained proud of the “City of Churches” nickname.

“Banish City of Churches tag as Adelaide grows up … implies that the public presence of churches in Adelaide is an embarrassment, dated and irrelevant to new residents and tourists,” Dr Eland, 86, said.

Rev Dr Dean Eland says “churches do more than religious traditions”. Picture: Dean Martin

“Perhaps they just assume that a church is only open on a Sunday morning or that we don’t do anything except sing hymns.”

At his Pilgrim Church on Flinders St, every Sunday dozens of people experiencing disadvantage and homelessness attend for a meal.

“There’s lots of things happening in those buildings and it’s not just for members,” Dr Eland said.

“Churches do more than religious traditions, they’re also an important part of providing hospitality.

“We’ve got a bit of a problem at the moment because our hall has a capacity of 80 or 90 but 100 people turn up.”

Churches were part of the state’s history of social reform, which Dr Eland said distinguished South Australia from other parts of the country settled by convicts.

“They represented social reform … for example people made sure women got the vote early,” he said.

“The numerical description was certainly true … and in Flinders St there were about five churches of different traditions.

“These were the people who wanted to reflect their cultural traditions when they came and lived here.”

In 1894, South Australia became the first state in Australia, and the second place in the world after New Zealand, to legislate the right to vote for women.

About three decades later in 1927, the state ordained Winifried Kiek as the first woman in Australia in the Christian ministry.

Dr Eland believes Adelaide should continue to be known as the “City of Churches”, among other names.

“The ‘City of Churches’ is one way amongst others … but they play an important part,” he said.

It’s popularly believed by historians that Adelaide acquired the City of Churches nickname not only due to an abundance of places of worship, but due to the religious diversity unique to the freely-settled colony in the early years of European settlement in Australia.

Among the early Catholic and Lutheran settlers, there were also a host of other Christian denominations living alongside Jewish and Muslim settlers.

Originally published as ‘Churches do more than religious traditions’: Rev Dr Dean Eland defends ‘lazy’ Adelaide nickname