Newsletter October 2025
Information from the Parish Council and the board of the Swedish Church Australia about what is happening with our property in Melbourne, Toorak House.
Dear congregation,
We are writing this to inform you about what is happening with our property in Melbourne, Toorak House.
The Church Board in Sweden has previously made a policy decision that they will no longer own properties abroad. Our church, Toorak House, is also included in this decision. At the next meeting of the Church Board Sweden in November, the matter will be raised concerning how the Church Board in Sweden will manage the properties they own abroad.
The Church Board’s Council for the Church of Sweden Abroad has previously recommended that the Church Board sell Toorak House in Melbourne. However, it is up to the Church Board in Sweden to make the decision, and they may go against the Council’s recommendation. This happened in Paris, where they decided not to sell their church building.
Both the parish council and the board of the Swedish Church Australia oppose a sale of Toorak House. We have expressed this to SKUT (Church of Sweden Abroad) and to the Church Board’s Council for the Church of Sweden Abroad in several written statements.
In our letters to SKUT, we emphasize that the highest wish of the Swedish Church Australia congregation is to remain in Toorak House. Should the Church Board in Sweden decide on a sale, the Church of Sweden in Australia demands that SKUT and the Church Board in Sweden guarantee financial assistance for the acquisition and establishment of new premises. These premises will be owned by the congregation. In our correspondence, we highlight our good financial standing as well as the wide range of religious and cultural activities taking place in the church—thanks to our unique building and gardens. A sale of Toorak House risks drastically reducing the number of members and visitors.
Bishop Emeritus Per Eckerdal, during 2024, has investigated some of the Church of Sweden’s holdings of properties and residences in its overseas congregations, with the aim that these could be transferred to local ownership by the respective congregations. This investigation forms the basis for the recommendation by the Church Board’s Council for the Church of Sweden Abroad to sell.
We have pointed out to SKUT and the Church Board in Sweden our unique history and the central role the building plays in our activities—not only for the Swedish congregation but also for the Norwegian and Danish congregations. Considering how complicated and costly a sale and subsequent acquisition of new premises—including clergy housing currently provided—would be, it is by no means certain that this would be the most suitable or cost-effective option. SKUT has so far not given us any concrete reasoning or reflection as to why our church, specifically, must be sold. We have questioned this and demanded more transparency and a deeper investigation.
We know that our congregation means a lot to all of us—perhaps especially because we are so far from Sweden. We are the overseas parish of the Church of Sweden that is open the most, and we have a very active and engaged congregation. This is something we want to safeguard. We want to continue being the warm, welcoming, spiritual place that so many of us value.
We hope that the Church Board in Sweden and SKUT will prioritize the best interests of the congregation, and not only financial gain, when making their decision. The parish council and the board of the Swedish Church Australia will keep the congregation updated and informed about the future of Toorak House.
With kind regards,
The Parish Council and the Board of the Swedish Church Australia