Our values

Our values Ō mātou mea nui

Evangelical in our identity

For I am not ashamed of the gospel, because it is the power of God that brings salvation to everyone who believes.

Carey is founded on the word of God and is shaped by a generous evangelicalism. We love Jesus and look to him. Our learning together is done within the liberating constraints of the lordship of Christ and the inspiration of the Bible.

“What I love about the spirit of evangelicalism that exists at Carey is that study is always seen and talked about as part of an active and vibrant faith. It’s never seeking to do its thing divorced from the life we live as followers of Jesus in the world,” says Pastoral Leadership graduate Andrew Clark-Howard. “Carey has deepened my discipleship to Christ. It’s been a space to allow Jesus to shape my life and order my thoughts after his gospel to better understand his word and his world.”

Holistic in our formation

Our goal is not just to communicate information, but to facilitate transformation. Our training emphasises formation of you as a whole person. It is designed to develop your knowledge, your skills, your character and spirituality.

Mum of four daughters, Nicola Mountfort, had no clear plan for what she would be doing when she filled in her enrolment form—she just felt God nudging her to get her head up to speed with her heart.

“The learning I’m doing has helped me in all aspects of my life. Everything just integrates so beautifully: biblical learning, theological learning, ministry training—it all somehow moulds together and makes me love Jesus even more.”

Integrative in our theology

When you study at Carey, you’ll learn to integrate the resources of the Christian faith with the realities of your context and the practices of ministry today.

Tony Versey, senior pastor at Northgate Baptist Church, has found study at Carey has revolutionised the way he understands pastoring. “It’s given me a fresh sense of who I am and what I’m about and added an even greater dimension to ministry life.”

After 25 years of being in ministry Tony felt a call back to study three years ago. “Study has not only been amazing for my preaching, giving me a greater depth of teaching, but it has also given me a confidence in how I conduct myself. The way I think and operate as a person, the way I teach and present myself as a pastor.”

Relational in our pedagogy

We prioritise relationship in our learning, and that’s been Sela Havili’s experience. Anglican Priest and solo mum to four children, Sela doesn’t see Carey as an institution but as her academic family.

“Support and relationship, that’s where I feel it the most. It’s family! Everyone is vying for all of us to keep moving forward. Carey is like an oasis in the city. The city moves forward but when you’re in the space of Carey everyone is moving at the same level and no one is falling behind.” Carey’s supportive learning environment gives students unparalleled access to lecturers. “It’s actually a genuine honest relationship between students and lecturers and everyone in that space. It is the best experience. My faith has grown so profoundly. It’s a beautiful place to be in and I love how Carey has been able to create a space that allows my brother and sisters from the Pasifika to feel at home.”

Intercultural in our community

Ko au te whenua, ko te whenua ko au. Ko Te Tiriti o Waitangi waharoa e kuhu ana ngā mātā waka i te whenua. Tēna ko Ihu Karaiti e karanga ana atu. I am the land, and the land is me. The Treaty of Waitangi is the gate that gathers all waka to this land. That is Jesus Christ giving the same call.

Carey is a community that seeks to embody the vision of Te Tiriti o Waitangi. We want to honour the diverse and distinctive gifts of every culture and uphold the covenantal commitment between tangata whenua and tangata te tiriti.

“I was a skinny white boy who didn’t understand the reo.” That’s how Pastoral Leadership student Jono Edmeades describes his experience at Ihumātao. His placement involved exploring what the church could look like in Aotearoa in the 21st century and that journey drew him to spend time with the land protection movement at Ihumātao. “God grew in me an increased willingness to lay down the standard way of doing things and go. That is what genuine relationship involves. Stepping into others’ spaces, learning to ‘be still’ in order to listen and learn humbly.”

Missional in our orientation

Our learning is oriented towards Spirit-enabled participation in God’s mission of reconciling all people and all of creation in Christ. We exist to help our students answer the question, “How can I participate faithfully in that mission?”

Carey graduate and pastor, Monique Lee, used to think mission was being called to go overseas, living in a slum somewhere and never seeing your family again. Through her time at Carey, and community placements with UNOH (Urban Neighbours of Hope) and Māngere Baptist Church, she has come to believe it is something very different.

“Carey was really good at unpicking those preconceived ideas— the baggage you grow up with—and putting an accurate, biblical framework around it, rather than assumptions. Mission happens through relationship. And isn’t that the gospel? Interaction with the good news that is real. Yes God is in church, but he’s also gone out for the sheep on the hills that are not yet in the fold, and that’s where he spends most of his time—I want to join him there.”