Ernabella: No Ordinary Mission

Ernabella Mission lies in the far north-west corner of South Australia. It was established in 1937 by the Presbyterian Church and right from the start it was different from other missions of its day. There was no pressure on the Anangu to give up their own beliefs or way of life. "We weren't even allowed to put clothes on them," recalls one former missionary. Instead they respected and learnt the local language and culture, and found parallels with Anangu stories and the Old and New Testament.