From Chris Clarke, CEOMānawa Maiea te Putanga o Matariki Mānawa Maiea te Ariki o te Rangi Mānawa Maiea te Mātahi o te Tau Matariki greetings to you all! "The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands”. I spent last week at Windsor Castle at a Commonwealth leader's event. In every room there were reminders of empire, colonization and tradition. It was quite overwhelming, but more overwhelming still was the response of participants to the concept of the Commonwealth. For some it is a source of great pride and opportunity. For others it is synonymous with colonization – reflected in a loss of land, culture and identity. We were challenged by one indigenous leader to name an example of where colonizer and colonized flourish together. No one spoke. Te Tiriti is an expression of that aspiration, but for many is evidenced in rising inequality, marginalization and a loss of mana. Yet is also reflected in a determination by Māori, and an increasing number of Tangata Tiriti, to reclaim what has been lost and to discover together a ‘commons-wealth’. Matariki’s dawn winter appearance points to the promise of a new season, an opportunity to reflect on what has been, might have been, and one day might become. One aspect of that new season is the way Māori and Tangata Tiriti are finding and adding new meaning to Matariki’s appearance. Matariki speaks to me of the ‘commons-wealth’ a grace offered to us all, a new season we are all invited to join, if we care to notice and if we care to respond. ‘Fragile’ and ‘ethereal’ are strange words to describe a relatively youthful 100 million plus star cluster, outshone by its brighter cousins. Those words, however, aptly describe the attempts many of us are making to see if it is just possible for colonized and colonizer to live together, for the ‘commons-wealth’ to be forged, to discover a new identify as people of Te Tiriti, and to flourish together … as the architect of the stars always intended. Chris Clarke Scholarships now openWe are delighted to announce that our Wilberforce Foundation leadership scholarships are now open. We are committed to equipping Christian leaders to lead confidently, faithfully and graciously in uncertain times. The Wilberforce Foundation scholarship Committee grants scholarships to students who show leadership potential in the Christian sphere. Scholarships for the October round are now open. Scholarships are granted for a 12-month period. Email Melanie to be sent further information: melanie@wilberforce.org.nz He Māhuri TōtaraHe Māhuri Tōtara is a Christian environmental leadership development course. The course explores the unique environmental challenges and opportunities of our world and the
biblical imperative to care for creation in the context of Aotearoa New Zealand. There are two upcoming courses: He Māhuri Tōtara for youth pastors and youth leaders is happening for the first time in 2024. He Māhuri Tōtara for youth will be based at Te Ahi Kaa in Ōtautahi. This course is supported by the Wilberforce Foundation, and facilitated by our team member James Beck. Tāmihana Book Launch This month in celebration of Matariki the Wilberforce Foundation is proud to share about the release of a new book written by Wilberforce staff member Jade Hohaia - Te Uri Karaka. The book is called TĀMIHANA: A legacy of Servant Leadership in Aotearoa. She was commissioned by the Tāmihana family (descendants of the great Christian leader Wiremu Tāmihana of Ngāti Hauā). The book focuses on servant leadership from an indigenous perspective and shares about the faithful service of the Kingmakers (Ngā Tumuaki o te
Kiingitanga). The book was released at Rukumoana marae on the 25th of June along with a waiata called ‘Te Tumuaki’ written by Rākai Whauwhau. Last week, we bid farewell to a member of our Wilberforce Team, Lisa Silipa. Lisa Silipa has been appointed as the Executive Director of Just Speak - the youth powered advocacy movement championing reform of the criminal justice system. She is the longest serving member of the Wilberforce team and will be greatly missed. A trained lawyer and social worker, Lisa’s passion has always been for social justice including working for Prison Fellowship, Genesis Foundation and the Auckland City Mission. We want to acknowledge Lisa’s contribution to the Wilberforce Community. Since returning from maternity leave she has been leading our work developing and implementing our leadership strategy. This has included sublime 'match making' skills connecting mentees and mentors on our mentoring programmes and in her one-on-one catchups with many in the Community. Her most significant contribution, however, has been herself - her compassion, humility and sense of justice - an embodiment of Micah 6:8. We will all miss her, but are delighted for her and strongly sense the rightness of this next step in her life. Lisa says:
Arohanui mai, Lisa! In this section of our newsletter, we invite a leader within our network or team to share what they've been reading and/or listening to lately.This month one of our Wilberforce Foundation team members, James Beck, is sharing some of his current favourites. First, let's introduce you to James. Kia ora tatou, I am James Beck. I am a pastor at The River Ōpāwaho in Ōtautahi Christchurch, a part of A Rocha's Eco Church team, producer and host of Ngā Here - The Many connections - a podcast about Christians caring for creation and I oversee the environment strategy at Wilberforce. I am passionate about helping Christians and the Church to engage with our ecological challenges, and to explore the biblical mandate to care for creation as an essential expression of Christian discipleship. So a lot of the books that I have been reading are in that space - but they are all helpful! A Burning in My Bones by Winn Collier The Challenge of Jesus by N.T. Wright Feral by George Monbiot The Hidden Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben The Ministry for the Future by Kim Stanley Robinson Life After Doom by Brian McLaren
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