Barry Chant


Barry Mostyn Chant is the author of Heart of Fire: The story of Australian Pentecostalism and founder and founding principal of Tabor College Australia. He was founding editor of Australia's New Day magazine, the first national magazine addressing Australian pentecostals, charismatics and evangelicals.
He married Vanessa in 1960 and has three children 12 grandchildren and two great grandchildren.

Career summary

Chant graduated from the University of Adelaide in 1960 with a Bachelor of Arts degree, with honours in English literature. He started his career in 1960 as a secondary school teacher at Murray Bridge High School in South Australia, where he taught until 1963.
Chant was ordained as a minister of the Christian Revival Crusade in 1962. He became pastor of the Port Adelaide CRC assembly from 1964 to 1975 and an associate pastor of the Adelaide Crusade Centre from 1975 to 1978.
Appointed dean of the Crusade Bible College in 1964, Chant continued this role until 1977 when he became principal of the college. In 1979 he led the redevelopment of the college into Tabor College, a multidenominational charismatic tertiary institution. He was president of the college until 2003. He also founded Tabor College Sydney in 1992, being its principal until 2002.
Chant was the founding editor of Australia's New Day magazine in 1980. It was the first national magazine addressing Australian pentecostals, charismatics and evangelicals. He remained president of the magazine until it ceased operations in 1997. He was also a Sunday night talkback radio host on 5DN in Adelaide, South Australia, from 1983 to 1986 and chairman of the United Charismatic Conventions in South Australia from 1980 to 1991.
In 2000, Chant received a PhD in history from Macquarie University, his thesis being "The spirit of Pentecost".
From 2003 to 2010, Chant was the senior pastor of the International Congregation at Wesley Mission, Sydney.
He is now semi-retired.

Other roles