In 2019 as the then President of the Australasian Religious Press Association I had the privilege of presenting the Gutenberg Award to Dr Mark Tronson.
In honour of Mark’s recent passing, I have decided to include below my speech on this occasion as a tribute to Mark for my column this July 2022.
The Citation below was delivered at the Gala Conference Dinner on 7th September 2019 at the Novotel Cathedral Square Christchurch.
The Gutenberg Award 2019
I am pleased to announce Press Service International as the recipient of the 2019 Gutenberg.
Press Service International (PSI) is one of the ministries of Well-Being Australia (WBA) with a specialist role and focus on providing articles for the Christian press, particularly Christian Today Australia (CTA), as well other online publications. Originally established in 2005, PSI further developed following Dr Mark Tronson’s appointment as a columnist for CTA in 2008. CTA’s interest in having a daily sports column focus in 2010 led to a group of young writers being gathered by Dr Tronson and CTA and a contribution policy developed that has spread to other areas, including comment, culture, and science.
The agreement between Christian Today Australia and Press Service International allows articles published in Christian Today to be reproduced by any other publication provided acknowledgement is given to Christian Today. This provides a wealth of material for a much wider range of publications, as well providing opportunity and experience for younger writers, as well as senior writers. Under Mark Tronson’s oversight there is a team of editors and co-ordinators who bring the articles to publication and co-ordinate all the activities. Over 200 people have contributed articles through PSI, with more than 70 active writers in any year. Their own internal conferences and award events recognising excellence have been a cornerstone of the professional development of the ministry.
PSI articles aim to follow the motto of Christian Today motto from Matthew 5:37; "Simply let your 'Yes' be 'Yes', and your 'No', 'No'’: straight forward writing with integrity. Young writers have been recruited from a wide range of backgrounds and countries and provide a range of viewpoints about everyday life and the ethical and theological issues of the day, and a helpful voice within the Public Christianity arena in Australia and New Zealand.
Press Service International is a New Zealand and Australian ministry with its two arms and ministry teams and has enabled significant mentoring of young writers as columnists. PSI has also encouraged active involvement in professional organisations like ARPA, helping writers to attend conferences and to serve on the ARPA executive, enhancing ARPA’s development and future.
Mark, please come and accept the 2019 Gutenberg Award.
Peter Bentley
ARPA President 2018-2019
Peter Bentley is a Sydney (Australia) based writer and commentator on church, media and cultural issues. He is a former President of the Australasian Religious Press Association.
