Rodney Dean Drayton (born 1941Dean Drayton

National Library of Australia The National Library of Australia (NLA), formerly the Commonwealth National Library and Commonwealth Parliament Library, is the largest reference library in Australia, responsible under the terms of the ''National Library Act 1960'' for "mainta ...

catalogue, accessed 26 January 2010) is a minister of the

Uniting Church in Australia The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) was founded on 22 June 1977, when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and almost all the churches of the Congregational Union ...

(UCA) and was President of the UCA Assembly from July 2003 to July 2006. He lectures on a part-time basis in

missiology Missiology is the academic study of the Christian mission history and methodology, which began to be developed as an academic discipline in the 19th century. History Missiology as an academic discipline appeared only in the 19th century. It was ...

Sydney Sydney ( ) is the capital city of the state of New South Wales, and the most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Located on Australia's east coast, the metropolis surrounds Sydney Harbour and extends about towards the Blue Mountain ...

's United Theological College (UTC).

Biography

Drayton was born in

Whyalla Whyalla was founded as "Hummocks Hill", and was known by that name until 1916. It is the fourth most populous city in the Australian state of South Australia after Adelaide, Mount Gambier and Gawler and along with Port Pirie and Port Augusta ...

South Australia South Australia (commonly abbreviated as SA) is a state in the southern central part of Australia. It covers some of the most arid parts of the country. With a total land area of , it is the fourth-largest of Australia's states and territories ...

in 1941. He spent his childhood growing up in the suburbs of Adelaide. He has received a BSc (Hons) from the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide (informally Adelaide University) is a public research university located in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. The university's main campus is located on N ...

, a BD from the

Melbourne College of Divinity The University of Divinity is an Australian collegiate university of specialisation in divinity. It is constituted by eleven theological colleges from eight denominations. The University of Divinity is the direct successor of the second oldest ...

and a PhD from the

Chicago Theological Seminary Founded in 1855, the Chicago Theological Seminary (CTS) is the oldest higher education institution in the City of Chicago and was established with two principal goals: first, to educate pastors who would minister to people living on the new weste ...

. A former

geophysicist Geophysics () is a subject of natural science concerned with the physical processes and physical properties of the Earth and its surrounding space environment, and the use of quantitative methods for their analysis. The term ''geophysics'' som ...

, Drayton was ordained as a minister in 1969 in

Kent Town, South Australia Kent Town is an inner suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. It is located in the City of Norwood Payneham & St Peters. History Kent Town was named for Dr. Benjamin Archer Kent (1808 – 25 November 1864), a medical practitioner of Walsall, Staf ...

. He served as a minister in three congregations, Westbourne Park and

Salisbury Salisbury ( ) is a cathedral city in Wiltshire, England with a population of 41,820, at the confluence of the rivers Avon, Nadder and Bourne. The city is approximately from Southampton and from Bath. Salisbury is in the southeast of Wil ...

in South Australia and DePue, Illinois in the United States while writing his doctoral thesis. He then worked as a consultant for

evangelism In Christianity, evangelism (or witnessing) is the act of preaching the gospel with the intention of sharing the message and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians who specialize in evangelism are often known as evangelists, whether they are i ...

for the

Synod of South Australia The Synod of South Australia (also known as Uniting Church SA and formerly Presbytery and Synod of South Australia from 2005 to 2019) is the entity of the Uniting Church in Australia covering most of the state of South Australia. It is one of six g ...

for five years followed by 16 years as the executive director of the Board of Mission in the

Synod of New South Wales The Synod of New South Wales and the ACT is a regional council of the Uniting Church in Australia having responsibility for the congregations and presbyteries in New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Terr ...

. He was the moderator of the New South Wales Synod (October 1995–October 1996) and had ''Pilgrim in the Cosmos'' published in 1996. During 1997, he spent time as a visiting professor in evangelism at the

Southern Methodist University , mottoeng = "The truth will make you free" , established = , type = Private research university , accreditation = SACS , academic_affiliations = , religious_affiliation = United Methodist Church , president = R. Gerald Turner , prov ...

Perkins School of Theology Perkins School of Theology is one of Southern Methodist University's three original schools and is located in Dallas, Texas. The theology school was renamed in 1945 to honor benefactors Joe J. and Lois Craddock Perkins of Wichita Falls, Texas. De ...

Dallas, Texas Dallas () is the third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 million people. It is the largest city in and seat of Dallas County w ...

. In 1999 he was appointed a

lecturer Lecturer is an List of academic ranks, academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. T ...

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the ...

(

and evangelism) at the United Theological College in Sydney, where he is a member of the adjunct faculty (2010). Drayton has been a member of the UCA Assembly's National Mission and Evangelism Committee from 1985 to 1998 and a member of the standing committee from 1985 until 2009. He has travelled widely in

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

practicing evangelism and mission, worked extensively with the

Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress The Uniting Church in Australia (UCA) was founded on 22 June 1977, when most congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, about two-thirds of the Presbyterian Church of Australia and almost all the churches of the Congregational Unio ...

and with the NSW Synod Pacific Island Council and Synod

Korea Korea ( ko, 한국, or , ) is a peninsular region in East Asia. Since 1945, it has been divided at or near the 38th parallel, with North Korea (Democratic People's Republic of Korea) comprising its northern half and South Korea (Republic o ...

n Advisory Council. Drayton was President of the Uniting Church in Australia from July 2003 to July 2006 at a time when there was controversy over the church's positionChurch opens arms to gays, others head for door
Kelly Burke, Religious Affairs Writer,

Sydney Morning Herald ''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper i ...

, 18 July 2003, accessed 26 January 2010 on male and female homosexual Christians, particularly

clergy Clergy are formal leaders within established religions. Their roles and functions vary in different religious traditions, but usually involve presiding over specific rituals and teaching their religion's doctrines and practices. Some of the ter ...

, and took a conciliatory leadership role. Drayton is the author of ''Pilgrim in the Cosmos'' (1996) and ''Which Gospel?'' (2005), as well as other studies and articles on mission, evangelism and the contemporary mission context.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Drayton, Dean 1941 births Living people Uniting Church in Australia ministers Uniting Church in Australia presidents University of Adelaide alumni Chicago Theological Seminary alumni