The power and the passion
Lloyd Ashton
| 15 Jul 2010
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The Rev Dr Andrew McGowan, who is the warden of Trinity College in Melbourne, and who will lead this year's Theological Hui.
What part does power have to play in the church?
What ought to be its role?
And how does the world understand and use power?
Those are the themes of Mana Atua, Mana Tangata, this year’s theological hui, which will be held at St John’s College from Monday August 30 to Wednesday September 1.
The Rev Dr Andrew McGowan, who is the warden of Trinity College at the University of Melbourne, and a scholar of early Christianity, will lead the hui in examining three standout early church characters – Perpetua, Constantine and Augustine of Hippo – whose stories each throw a spotlight on the ways power was understood and used back then.
Dr McGowan describes Perpetua as an “exemplary dissident.” She was born in 181 – and martyred in Carthage in 203 for her refusal to renounce her faith during the persecutions of Septimus Severus, the then emperor.
Dr McGowan will reflect on her short life and dramatic contribution in his first address, and then lead what’s being called “an engaged dialogue” on Perpetua and power.
In later sessions he’ll focus on the emperor Constantine (272 – 337), whose conversion in 312 reshaped early Christianity and led to the birth of the institutional church; and then on Augustine of Hippo (354 -430), the bishop and theologian who was the catalyst for the development of the church’s social, moral and political direction.
The hui will grapple with how the church’s use of power affects its gospel witness now, by asking three key questions:
- How do Perpetua, Constantine and August of Hippo illuminate our understandings of subversive, institutional and political power?
- How does the church experience and use power creatively in our times?
- How might we use power more wisely to develop transformative ministries in our communities, in the nation, and in the world?
Those “engaged dialogue” sessions won’t be the only way the hui will come at its subject, either.
There'll also three sessions set aside for the hui to divide into caucus – and this time, the caucusing will by gender, by age and by house, rather than by tikanga.
Registrations for the hui are being taken now, are essential, and will close on August 13. For more details, and to download a registration form, go to: http://www.stjohnscollege.ac.nz/?sid=71
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