As churches around Australia joined Alpha’s Mission 25 focus from May to July, around 150 people converged at Templestowe Baptist Church (TBC) to participate in the course, drawing together the diverse ages and languages of the church. Alpha is a series of interactive sessions that explore life, faith and meaning.

TBC’s regular services cater for those who speak English, Cantonese and Mandarin, with an additional service focusing on youth and young adults. “We had several key motivations in running the Alpha course,” said members of Templestowe Baptist’s Alpha team. “We wanted to do outreach together as a whole church, to unite our congregations through a shared event, and to encourage members to invite their friends and family to explore faith. Many new believers, who are either friends of members or recent visitors, are naturally curious and seeking answers.”

“Alpha has been part of TBC for many years. However, this year marked the first time it was run collectively across all our congregations. Previously, each congregation ran Alpha independently.”

So over seven weeks, this diverse group welcomed each other, provided translation, and took turns in preparing shared meals – all wonderful ways of communicating the gospel in both word and action.

“It was heartening to hear how much people appreciated the time of connection – many met others for the first time, despite attending the same church. Approximately 70% of the participants were from within the church, with the remaining 20–30% being new or from outside our church community.”

While exploring deep life questions together in Alpha, many of the small groups built strong relationships and are keen to continue meeting. “Our hope is that these groups will transition into ongoing Life Groups where they can grow together in faith and community. We’ve also recently completed a three-part Discipleship Training series designed to help people explore, live out, and grow in their identity in Christ. We intentionally walk alongside newcomers, invite them into our services, and gradually connect them into various ministries—many visit, find belonging, and stay.”

This year, Alpha’s Mission 25 challenged churches to give many Australians the opportunity to be transformed by the good news of Jesus through prayer, invitation, and running Alpha in Term 2.  As a result, Alpha has now surpassed one million Australian participants since it launched in this country with Baptists the number one denomination running Alpha programs across the country in 2025. Victorian Baptist churches doubled the number of Alpha programs run from 2024 to 2025.