We are an evangelical Lutheran congregation with German roots.

A significant focus of our ministry program is to support an established German-speaking community in evangelical congregational life in the South-East of Melbourne. We aim to give Germans living in Melbourne (either temporarily or permanently) an opportunity to access German church traditions (including in the German language) and enabling Christianity to be a relevant aspect in their daily experiences.

Although Australia is predominantly an English-speaking nation, St. John’s lies within the Greater Dandenong precinct – one of the most diverse multicultural cities worldwide. It has more than two hundred different communities of language, faith, culture and heritage. It is a more common occurrence that Germans in our community live in mixed-marriages with partners whose mother-tongue is English. Their children grow up in the Australian context and generally prefer to form English-speaking relationships and connections. Experience shows that third-generation German immigrants are considered to be well assimilated to such an extent, that German has become more of a foreign language to them and no longer a “language of the heart”. 

In recognition of the shift in significance of the German language in its community, St. John’s offers a wide range of ministry programs in both languages, occasionally simultaneously in bi-lingual services, to enable all family members and generations to access the evangelical Christian faith in a German Lutheran context. However, preserving and passing on significant German cultural traditions to future generations remains a vital aspect of our congregational life as well.

To find out more about our community, our events, our programs and our on-line presence, come and explore some of our spiritual offerings:

• Take a look at our regular Sunday online worship services
• Hear about our engagement in local issues on our regular podcasts
• Consult our online calendar of upcoming (post-COVID) events
• Read about us in our monthly church newsletter (Gemeindebrief)
• Follow our daily inspirational bible posts on Instagram
• Listen in to our daily short devotions (100 Sekunden Andacht)
• Check-out our Facebook page
• Give us a call

We’d be very pleased to welcome you to our Christian family, regardless of whether you speak German or English

OUR VISION

St. John’s is a Christ-centered compassionate community