Church Relations and Support Manager

Manage the “Candidates Forums” program for the 2026 Victorian State Election, possibly with a particular focus on relationships with Pentecostal churches.....

• 3 days per week, negotiable
• Fixed term contract until 11 Dec 2026
• Flexible location in Victoria – Work from home and some travel.
• Ministry expense account and salary sacrifice available for religious practitioners as recognised by the ATO.

To apply, via the 'Apply to this Job' button below.

Background

Freedom for Faith is supporting churches across Australia to hold “candidate forums”. These are non-partisan events held before an election where the local church hosts the main candidates, allowing them to hear from the Christians in the electorate and address our concerns.

The over-arching purpose is to equip the Christians of Australia to effectively speak out on the issues that concern us and engage in this important part of our society in a Christ-like way.

Read more about the forums at: website

The program is well developed and tested in multiple elections, with resources and how-to guides for all steps of the process.

Primary Purposes

The Church Relations and Support Manager will manage the “Candidates Forums” program for the 2026 Victorian State Election, possibly with a particular focus on relationships with Pentecostal churches. The main aspect of this is building and maintaining relationships with the churches who are hosting the forum – particularly the ministry staff.

Specific political knowledge or experience is not required. Understanding of churches and ministry dynamics is essential.

Location

The location of work is working from home. Some travel might be required for face-to-face meetings with key ministry leaders.

Key Responsibilities

Recruiting churches to host

• Identify appropriate churches in each electorate to invite (working with denominational leaders and FFF staff)
• Phone and follow up churches, explaining program and answering questions
• Support churches through the decision-making process
• Maintain database of churches and levels of interest (using Salesforce, supported by FFF admin)

Supporting hosting churches

• Support hosting churches in planning events (support from Executive Director and existing how-to guides)
• Support with connecting and collaborating with other churches, promotion, etc

Supporting candidate invitations

• Maintain database of candidates (supported by FFF admin)
• Support churches in the process of inviting candidates
• Follow up candidates by phone on behalf of churches where necessary

Supporting Freedom for Faith operations

• Supporting churches in further Freedom for Faith initiatives
• Content writing for website, emails and how-to guides, etc
• Other tasks as required

Skills and Qualifications

This role is a ministry role, as the primary element is engaging with and supporting the local church in their ministry to their members.

Personal:

• Committed Christian with an active church life
• Commitment to prayer in advancing God’s kingdom
• Belief in the importance of religious freedom for everyone
• Understanding of Christian engagement in politics as a ministry of service

Necessary capabilities:

• Maintain relationships with up to 100 churches over a 12 month period
• Connect with churches by phone and email
• Update contact database, log emails and conversations, and maintain relationship details
• Explain and “sell” the program to churches and explain the value in both pragmatic and gospel terms

Preferred capabilities:

• Understanding of multiple ministry contexts including dynamics between denominations
• Understanding of the Victorian church context