As students and staff of Te Takawai get semester two under way, they first took the opportunity to reflect and celebrate the end of the first semester of the rebranded Diploma of Christian Studies.
The collaboration between Hoani Tapu St Johns Theological College and the Te Takawai network (the Hui Amorangi of Te Tairāwhiti, Te Manawa o Te Wheke, Te Waipounamu, and Te Upoko o Te Ika) now sees the diploma taught from the perspective of integrating a Māori worldview with theology.
It is delivered across five locations, St Johns in Tāmaki Makaurau, Rotorua, Palmerston North, Christchurch and Gisborne.
Hoani Tapu Manukura, Rev. Dr Hirini Kaa instigated Te Takawai with a vision of blending mātauranga Mihinare with mātauranga Māori while reinforcing the existing knowledge resources in the Hui Amorangi with the expertise at St Johns Theological College.
Early indications show the delivery model is resonating with students, with more than 80 enrolments initially – a 400% increase compared to 2024 enrolments, and bringing the diploma back in line with pre-Covid numbers. The retention rate of students sits above 75%.
“We used to deliver primarily in Tikanga Pākehā, we’re now delivering in Hui Amorangi, and looking particularly to integrate Mātauranga Mihinare, Mātauranga Māori and Moana knowledges with Theology that’s been established, to see those intersections open up new ways of doing Theology and to serve the Church and its people,” says Dr Andrew Picard, Academic Director of Hoani Tapu St John’s College.
The intention of the Te Takawai network is to find a grounding for the Church’s roots in Aotearoa New Zealand, that intersects the 200 years of Anglican history and whakapapa with the classical theological educational framework.
“It is accessing the fullness of our whakapapa which is thousands of years of being Māori in this whenua, in this moana and everything that our whakapapa is,” says Michael Tamihere, Tumuaki of Te Rau Theological College in Gisborne.
Students, faculty and key stakeholders gathered in Rotorua this week to reflect on the first 6 months and to strengthen the programme ahead of its second semester.
Speaking to the hui via video-link, Archbishop Don Tamihere, paid tribute to the ease with which the different parties have come together to deliver the model.
“The ability to move into a modern space and still be one family brings about another layer of blessing that we should, as a three-Tikanga Church, be able to move between with complete comfort and without any hesitation,” he said.
The programme covers subjects including Te Whakapono (the Church’s Story), Ihoatua (Doing Theology), Tikanga Karakia (Leading Liturgy), and Te Hāhi Mihinare (understanding what being Anglican means), with a focus on its identity as the ‘Church of the Treaty.’
“We have an incredibly unique place in the world, and part of that is indigeneity. So, Mātauranga Māori has created a unique expression of Anglicanism that deserves to be honoured and explored, that’s unique.
“The context of the Pacific Ocean is incredibly unique, and it’s got this beautiful sort of multiplicity to it, and we don’t have to be afraid of diversity,” says ArchbishopTamihere.
Dr Picard says Te Takawai opens up huge possibilities for students, and Theology in Aotearoa itself.
“Māori know how to operate in the Pākehā world, but Pākehā frequently don’t know how to operate in the Māori world. Often, when Pākehā think about connecting with Māori, it’s to say, let’s meet on the bridge. What Te Takawai does is say, no, let’s go across the bridge into te ao Māori, and base our theological education there.”
“It’s an opportunity to engage in knowledge that’s often not taught and not known, and those knowledges are held by the Hui Amorangi, and they’re expressed and understood within that space. So Tikanga Pākehā students are really enjoying the opportunity to learn things that wouldn’t be in other curriculums,” added Dr Picard.
To learn more about Te Takawai, visit St John’s College website.