The century-old St Colomba Centre at 40 Vermont St, with its high ceilings and timber floors, once a Marist Brothers primary school full of rich history is now the academic home for seminarians and those looking for Catholic tertiary qualifications in New Zealand.

The Catholic Theological College - Te Kupenga is New Zealand's sole tertiary provider of Catholic theological, ministry and religious education qualifications.

It offers programmes of study towards a

• Bachelor of Divinity
• Graduate Diploma in Theology
• Diploma in Christian Studies
• Graduate Certificate in Christian Leadership and Catholic Culture
• Certificate in Personal Interest.

The Catholic Theological College - Te Kupenga also offers a Safeguarding course for those working in Catholic organisations.

The Friday 13th celebrations which included Mass and a procession marked the move from the former Good Shepherd College on Ponsonby Road.

"It has been a long journey and we are most grateful for all the support and direction of the NZ bishops and the Te Kupenga Governance Board," says College Dean Dr John Evangelista.

Among those present were the Bishop of Auckland, Steve Lowe, Archbishop Paul Martin, Bishop Michael Gielen, Bishop-emeritus Patrick Dunn and Catholic Theological College - Te Kupenga faculty and staff.

The Bishop of Auckland, Steve Lowe, blessed the new campus.

Those who work at the College are very positive about the change from the old premises.

"Everyone is looking forward to welcoming back the students at the new campus," says Assistant Dean Fr Merv Duffy SM.

The Catholic Theological College had outgrown its old site.

The College serves a Catholic community of more than 470,000 including 237 Catholic schools educating 70,000 New Zealand children.

Its core task is to provide students with the knowledge, understanding and skills necessary for ministry in the New Zealand Catholic Church and to teach Religious Education in New Zealand Catholic schools.

The College's predecessors - Good Shepherd College and The Catholic Institute - left Catholic Theological College - Te Kupenga a legacy of resources including the century-old Marist Fathers' Colin library for for ministry and leadership formation.

Source

• CTC (supplied)
• Te Kupenga
  

The book, "Rorty, Religion and Metaphysics" was launched on August 5, at the Catholic Theological College on Ponsonby Road, Auckland. Read more in NZCatholic

On January 1, The Catholic Institute and Good Shepherd College will merge to become Te Kupenga - Catholic Leadership Institute.

The name has been chosen by the country's bishops after careful thought and consultation with staff and students.

The merged organisation will have three operating units - Catholic Theological College, National Centre for Religious Studies and the Nathaniel Centre for Catholic Bioethics.

Te Kupenga means "the net" or "the fishing net" and harks to the first four disciples of Jesus - Andrew, Peter, James and John.

They were called from their boats and nets to become fishers for Jesus' kingdom with the same care, dedication and skill they brought to their fishing.

"Come, follow me," Jesus said, "and I will send you out to fish for people." (Matthew 4:18-19).

Bishop Pat says the name resonates strongly with Pope Francis' call to the Church to revive its missionary spirit and purpose.

"Te Kupenga will put out into the deep and cast our net wide," said Bishop Pat.

The bishops intend the name to also reflect a contemporary reference to networking, online learning,and linking with others collegially.

They expect Te Kupenga to play a vital role in training, educating and forming Catholic seminarians and lay leaders.

Existing staff, courses and students will carry on from the two existing organisations into the new year.

A new board appoints management and decides the paths taking Te Kupenga forwards.

The Institute will provide a number of degree, certificate and diploma courses.

Source

• Supplied David McLoughlin Communications Adviser, NZ Catholic Bishops
  Te Huinga o nga Pihopa Katorika o Aotearoa
• ctc.ac.nz
• Image: 123rf.com

The Society of Mary has agreed to relinquish co-ownership and governance of Good Shepherd College (GSC).

In a letter to the staff of the merging institutions, establishment board chair Sir Brian Roche said the Provincial Council of the Society of Mary informed the New Zealand bishops that "the society would prefer to withdraw from its current commitments to co-ownership and governance of Good Shepherd College, but retain its commitment to teaching".

The society also confirmed that it supports the bishops' plan to merge GSC with The Catholic Institute (TCI).

The bishops remain fully committed to forming seminarians in New Zealand, with face-to-face delivery of the theology degree and Ratio Studiorum requirements as a vital element of their formation," Sir Brian wrote.

"They [bishops] are also committed to a qualified workforce in New Zealand's Catholic schools, to assure the quality of both Catholic special character and religious education."

GSC acting principal Fr Merv Duffy gave an assurance that the needs of the new students will be met even with the merger.

"NZQA has been very clear that all students embarking on an award must have a pathway to completion. So, the interests of the students will be carefully looked after," he told NZ Catholic.

Duffy noted there is a good intake of new students this semester, with 20 out of 59 studying at GSC for the first time.

He also said that more than half of the students (30 of 59) are studying by distance rather than on-campus.

Seminarian numbers are down with only three new diocesan seminarians studying at the college and no current seminarians from the Society of Mary studying there.

Source

• nzcatholic
• Image: gsc.ac.nz

He will join the team on 1 October taking on the roles of Lecturer in Theology and as a Research Fellow with The Nathaniel Centre - the New Zealand Catholic Bioethics Centre.

Zachariah has held several senior academic positions at BBI The Australian Institute of Theological Education, as well as an adjunct/conjoint lectureships with The University of Wollongong, The University of Newcastle and The University of Tasmania in Australia.

TCI Director, Gerald Scanlan, said: "We're delighted to have Zachariah joining our team and welcome his wealth of experience and diverse skill set to the team."

Zachariah has a particular interest and expertise in the areas of disability theology; practical-pastoral theology; ecclesiology and ethnography; and theological education.

He is currently co-chairing the Living Fully Network and undertaking the role of vice president of the Association of Practical Theology in Oceania.

Zachariah is a director on the Board of St Lucy's School (a Catholic primary school which caters for children living with disabilities) and the Delany Foundation (the not-for-profit charity of the Patrician Brothers).

He has published a number of articles and papers on theology, spirituality and disability.

Late last year, the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference (NZCBC) announced the creation of an Establishment Board to work towards creating a new structure for the delivery of Catholic tertiary level teaching, learning, research and advocacy.

The Board is working alongside Good Shepherd College and The Catholic Institute to assess how this new structure would work and the pathway for its creation.

Source

• Supplied: Amanda Gregan NZCBC Communications Advisor

They appointed Sir Brian Roche to be the chair. He is a former senior partner of PWC New Zealand and has been chief executive of the New Zealand Post Group.

The Board members have a wide range of skills and competencies

• Bishop Charles Drennan (NZCBC)
• Fr Brian Cummings from the Society of Mary
• Kate Kearins of AUT
• John Gallaher from Forsyth Barr
• Tony Murphy, a member of the NZCBC Finance Committee
• Maureen Kerr, an educationalist from Christchurch
• Loraine Elliott, a Maori health specialist from Auckland
• Jeremy Morley, a tertiary education management specialist
• Dame Therese Walsh, a governance specialist

Roche said he thinks Catholic Tertiary education essential for the Church - and of enormous benefit to New Zealand as a whole.

With such a diverse and experienced team, he is confident the Board will successfully revitalise New Zealand's Catholic tertiary education through transparent and robust processes.

They will have a look at the way the new structure would work and plan a pathway for its creation.

To this end they will:

• Assess current educational services
• Direct and set strategy for a work plan
• Ensure effective governance
• Direct the establishment of an organisational structure
• Analyse the financial implications

During initial meetings, they talked about the need to re-examine the vision for Catholic tertiary education.

They are also addressing some of the complexities involved in making changes.

The board will be assisted by the staff of the Catholic Institute (TCI) and Good Shepherd College (GSC).

Roche said he was delighted to have members of the TCI Council and GSC Senate to assist the board's understanding of existing tertiary education being provided by the Church.

Gerald Scanlan from TCI will provide project support to the Board.

Roche said Scanlan will help to ensure a smooth transition because he brings a strong mix of skills and management expertise in working with the Board.

Scanlan will collaborate with Fr Merv Duffy of GSC.

The Board will make sure the needs of students are foremost.

And it will keep NZQA informed about the transition process.

In the course of the transition, the TCI Council and GSC Senate will remain in place to provide oversight of their own institutions during the time of transition.

Source

• Supplied: Amanda Gregan
  NZCBC Communications Advisor
• www.nzcatholic.org.nz
• Image: gsc.ac.nz

All three were ordained as diocesan priests for the Christchurch diocese, where they have been working as deacons.

Supporters witnessing their priestly promises of obedience and service of the church and its evangelising work included family from New Zealand and overseas, fellow students - among whom about six are from Vietnam - and many seminary staff.

The ordination represents the international flavour of the Church, says Fr Paul Shanahan.

Huynh (called Anthony) is from Vietnam, Graeme's family is from New Zealand and although Alister is also a New Zealander, his parents are from the Philippines.

Shanahan says he, along with 40 to 50 priests concelebrated the ordination. They included Merv Duffy, who is the acting principal of Good Shepherd College and Brendan Ward, who is the rector of Holy Cross Seminary.

The emeritus bishop of Christchurch, Basil Meeking, was the ordaining prelate and Anthony's uncle, who is a Bishop in Vietnam, presided in attendance as a concelebrant.

The MC for the ordination, Fr Chris Friel, arranged the celebration with "a beautifully done liturgy," Shanahan says.

This acknowledged the new priests' diversity. There were two choirs - one of which was Vietnamese - and the second reading was read in Vietnamese. Translations were included in the service sheet.

"There was a wonderful spirit of faith and support at the ordination," Shanahan says.

"It brought back memories of my own ordination day in Christchurch's basilica (now earthquake damaged). There were eight of us ordained that day.

"It was a very uplifting occasion and many of the [now elderly] clergy were encouraged to see 'reinforcements coming'," he added.

The ordinations were streamed live on YouTube.

Source

• Juliet Palmer
• Image: Peter Flemming

Duffy is appointed for a brief period while a review of the structure of the College is undertaken. During this review the College will continue to operate as usual.

Currently a lecturer in systematic theology and dean of studies at Good Shepherd College, Duffy holds a license and doctorate in systematic theology from the Pontifical Gregorian University.

From Christchurch, Duffy joined the Society of Mary and was ordained in 1985.

While studying for priesthood he also completed a degree in Mathematics at Victoria University of Wellington.

After ordination he taught Mathematics, Computing and Religious Education at secondary level, and was one of the group of teachers involved in the writing of textbooks for the 'Understanding Faith' religious education syllabus.

A member of the expert panels for the writing of Unit Standards and Assessment materials for Religious Education, for three years Duffy was employed by the Qualifications Authority as the National Moderator for Religious Education.

Gratitude for Msgr Brendan Daly's leadership

The trust board expressed its gratitude to the outgoing principal Msgr Brendan Daly, for his outstanding contribution in leading the development and growth of the College.

"Msgr Daly's foundational work at the College began when he joined in 2001 as a lecturer in canon law and as principal from 2002.

"Msgr Daly is a priest of the Christchurch diocese and a respected canon lawyer, and the college has benefited greatly from his astute leadership and depth of expertise. Msgr Daly will continue to lecture at the College."

Good Shepherd College -Te Hepara Pai was established by the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference and by the New Zealand Province of the Society of Mary in 2001.

The College exists to provide theological education in the Roman Catholic tradition and has a special focus on the formation of candidates for ordained priesthood in the Catholic Church.

It is open to all students who wish to study theology in the Roman Catholic tradition and welcomes students of all faiths, including those who have no specific religious affiliation.

Source

• Supplied
• gsc.ac.nz
• gsc.ac.nz
• Image: Supplied

Rocío, a Peruvian married to a New Zealander, holds a doctorate in Systematic Theology with a specialisation in Christology from the Gregorian University.

She lectured in Spiritual Theology for five years at the Giovanni Paolo II seminary in Salerno, Italy. She served for four years on the Pontifical Council for the Laity. Her section of the Pontifical Council focused on the advancement of women in different parts of the world.

Since her time in Rome she has lectured at the Universidad Popular Autónoma del Estado de Puebla in Puebla, Mexico. There she was also responsible for the social project "Emprende y Crece" (Learn and grow).

The core of this project was the promotion of women through education, while it also offered specific entrepreneurship training based on human values.

She is also a specialist in issues related to reciprocity between men and women. Dr. Figueroa has published and communicated through books and conferences about theology, anthropology and women's studies.

Since coming to New Zealand Rocio joined the Theology Faculty of the University of Otago as a part-time Research Assistant. She has been working on a project investigating the immediate and longer-term impact on victims of sexual abuse from a theological perspective.

Source

• Supplied
• otago.ac.nz

Error: CathNews acknowledges an error in initially posting an incorrect image with this story and apologises to Rocío Figueroa for any offence. A correct image is now in place.

In an address given at the Good Shepherd College graduation in Ponsonby on June 5, Lady Mary Barker said that, as a body, the Church has generally been suspicious of new thought and ideas.

It has also been suspicious of allowing people to think for themselves, especially lay people, she said. Continue reading

But although there might be seven different ethnicities represented, most of them are young, aged in their twenties. Continue reading

Deacon Samuel Maetara, 33, is from Malaita Province in the Southern region of the Solomon Islands. He says that he feels called to serve the poor, rejected and marginalized and believes that he is called to do that as a Marist priest.

He began his formation at Marist College, Bomana, Papua New Guinea in 2005.
 In 2007 he went to Fiji for his noviciate year before returning to Bomana in 2008 to continue his studies.

In 2009 Samuel transferred to Marist Seminary Auckland and continued studies at Good Shepherd College. In 2011 he worked at Chanel College, a high school in Samoa, and this year returned to continue his formation at Marist Seminary and complete his studies at Good Shepherd College. During the year he made his lifelong commitment to Marist life by taking Final Vows.

Tom Rarakani, Samuel's oldest brother, traveled from the Solomon Islands to represent his family at the Samuel's ordination.

Tom has a background in teaching. At one stage he had a senior role in the ministry of education for the Solomon Islands and currently he is a fulltime student at the University of the South Pacific (Honiara Campus), where he is doing a doctorate in Business Studies. He is married with children and hopes to complete his studies next year.

Source

• Marist Seminary Auckland
• Image: Marist Seminary Auckland