School Chaplain

Introducing Fr Rhys . . . 

Father Rhys Roberts-Brown is joining St George’s Anglican Grammar School as our School Chaplain at the start of next term. The Dragon asked Fr Rhys about his journey, his passions and what makes him tick.

Welcome to St George’s, Fr Rhys. You look familiar . . . why is that?

"Well, it could be that some of the teachers and older students among you might have an exceptional memory and might remember me as a verger at the Cathedral, setting up for your services and working the sound desk.

More likely, you’ve seen and heard from me in the last couple of years, presiding and preaching at the occasional chapel service or showing some of the treasures and vestments housed and used at the cathedral for one of Mr McBride’s classes."

What attracted you to the role of School Chaplain at our vertical city school?

"There are many reasons, I could not possibly answer exhaustively! I’ll give a couple.

First, when the role came up, I was reminded of my positive experiences with the school in the past, with both staff and students. The community seems friendly and generous, and I enjoyed the school chapel services, which provide a consistent space to teach about the school’s roots in a tradition of faith and prayer, and of the role of learning in shaping human souls.

I am also concerned about the challenges facing young people in general. Political and social shifts in Australia and abroad, continued questioning about the future of the planet, the place and influence of new technologies and their designers and bankrollers: these are huge questions for anyone, let alone the young. I believe the Anglican tradition offers hope, wisdom, and stability worth sharing, but I also want to help students from all walks of life engage those questions thoughtfully.

Being in the city is also appealing, as it provides many opportunities and challenges that are not always available to school staff and students. In addition to the joys and trials of school life, there are a series of complex social issues that they may encounter daily. These, in turn, raise spiritual and moral questions that require wisdom to explore. Being the chaplain at a Christian school, which by its nature must take these questions seriously, presents me with an opportunity to contribute spiritually and materially."

Before ministry, you worked as a tradesman and had a small business. How has that experience shaped who you are today?

"I loved working as a painter. Physical labour was an extraordinary teacher. Working with my hands freed up my mind to think and to pray. It helped me to understand how inextricably connected souls, minds and bodies are. It made me want to live my life in the communal, Benedictine fashion, between work and prayer.

Further, I became interested in dignity in labour, and the ways that it is and is not recognised in our current culture. Why do we work? Beyond earning money, what is gained and what do we become? I think they’re important questions!"

Was there a particular moment or experience that led you to the church and now chaplaincy?

"Studying anthropology and ethnography, I was distressed at the relative lack of foundational meaning in my life, which seemed so present in many of the groups I read about and observed. People would just talk casually about the most amazing things, a world thick with spiritual reality. 

I wound up in the Anglican Church following the hunger for meaning that could make my world thick in that way. Between the faithfulness to God and the serious talk of costly love, the manifest love of Jesus and his presence among his people, the public reading and discussion of scripture, I was given true and nourishing food. The beauty of the cathedral and the liturgy, which I still sometimes find a bit overwhelming, contributed considerably.

The continued connection with the cathedral is one of the reasons I was drawn to chaplaincy at the school."

What do you think young people need most from a chaplain in today’s world?

"I don’t think there’s a single answer to that question.

One thing that comes to mind is the importance of thoughtful, genuinely human responses to life. Not every question has a simple or algorithmic answer. To be human is to live in a world soaked in purpose, truth, and goodness, but also danger, a world that asks us to take what we have learned and apply it anew each day.

I hope to be a chaplain who helps create space for that kind of active reflection."

What are you most looking forward to about joining St George’s next semester?

"Getting to know everyone! The ministry of a chaplain emerges from relationships, so getting to know people’s stories will help me to understand people’s needs and how I can respond."