Sub-merge – a mission formation year

Who’s it for? It is for those who want to go deeper to in living, loving and learning with Christ in a hurting world and prepare for a deeper and more meaningful life.

What’s Sub-merge all about? A year-long, live-in, Christian community mission formation course that aims to:

  • Provide an intense community mission experience that can infect you with the passions, ideas and actions of Jesus
  • Build foundations so your life can mean something in a world facing poverty and injustice
  • Give a lived experience of UNOH’s ethos through community living, serving the poor, and mentoring
  • Help discern if serving with UNOH in a long-term, full-time vocation you want to pursue
  • Is a fresh start of a lifetime of commitment to the poor and marginalized.

Sub-merge. What it is made up of. The year starts in Bangkok. All sub-merge students go to Thailand for 2 weeks together. They experience practical work with UNOH Bangkok as well as do some formal class work. After the fortnight, they go their separate ways to where they will spend the rest of the year (Bangkok, Melbourne, or Sydney) joining the UNOH community there. They continue both formal studies and lots of practical work.

In July there is a discernment retreat time, which helps students determine how they will do the 2nd half of the year, and beyond.

The units that are covered: The units that make up the course are: (1) Radical Discipleship (Practical 1: in a 3rd world setting); (2) Theology and Practice of Community Living (3) Love and Justice; (4) Engaging the Bible among the poor; and (5) Christian Community Work­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­­. (6) Practical Work 2: the all year long, practical work with mentoring.

Australians Sub-merge students will be enrolled in either a Bachelors Program, or a Graduate Diploma Program with Tabor Victoria. The full year with Sub-merge, will contribute 6 units towards a Bachelors or 4 units towards a Graduate Diploma. Fee Help is available for Australian citizens. Non-Australians can still do the Sub-merge year: contact Jim Reiher for details.

We prefer to take students who have already developed some kind of connection with one of the UNOH teams. So if you think that just maybe submerge might be for you some time, then begin the process by making yourself known to one or more of the teams, and begin to relate to them in an on-going way. Do Missio Dei with them; or Mission Exposure. Or make a time that suits them and you, to come and live with them for a few days. If you live close enough: join into some regular activity as a volunteer or visitor. But begin the connections now.

Please ring or email, and ask any questions or make any comments: Jim Reiher. UNOH Training coordinator.  jim@unoh.org; 0425-752358 or UNOH: 03-97017114.

Applications for Sub-merge 2013 are now open.  Acceptance into the program is subject to interview. Recommended prerequisites include: an existing connection with the UNOH team you wish to do the year with; Missio Dei; and Mission Exposure in the neighbourhood you are interested in.