WelCom August 2021
Catholic Schools Day is celebrated every year among the network of Catholic schools and their communities throughout Aotearoa New Zealand to showcase the special Catholic character of our schools.
This year, Catholic Schools Day is on Tuesday 29 September. It is another opportunity to celebrate the taonga of Catholic education for which our schools are kaitiaki.
The theme, Tūrangawaewae – A Place to Stand, has theological significance. It is within school and parish, and Catholic marae, that tamariki, rangatahi, and their whānau, strengthen their sense of what it means to be Catholic and belonging to parish. School and parish become Tūrangawaewae – A Place to Stand.
A poster that illustrates the 2021 theme, features the oldest, continually-used Catholic church in Aotearoa New Zealand – St Mary’s Church, Ōtaki. In the Archdiocese, St Mary’s Church and the parish school of St Peter Chanel stand alongside the Catholic marae, Te Marae O Hine, overlooked by the sacred hill of Pukekaraka.
Tūrangawaewae is understanding we have places where we feel connected and inspired. It is a place of security and foundation through our Baptism that we become part of the faithful, te whānau whakapono, and where we find a place to stand, which is woven through our stories that connect us together to the land, to our tūrangawaewae.
Foundations and connections to faith are strengthened in our Catholic schools, which are an integral part of the wider Church. It is here children, their whānau, and teachers strengthen their sense of what it means to be Catholic and belonging to parish. School and parish become tūrangawaewae.
Source: New Zealand Catholic Education Office.