From the Principal

Challenging times

Since writing our article for Dio Today earlier this year, a dreadful tragedy occurred in our country that seemed to make the content of the previous article irrelevant. To express the deep change that occurred for us as a country in the aftermath has been complex and wide ranging. Although some worried through the media that our international reputation might be somewhat tarnished, deeper issues in our society have been revisited and analysed intensely. Whatever the outcome, we believe we are in a different place as we realise a sense of lost innocence that these things would never happen in New Zealand, and a new realisation of how we want to be.

It was a very sombre start to the day at Diocesan’s Open Day on Saturday 16 March, the day after we became aware of the magnitude of the terrorist attack and the horror that had unfolded in Christchurch. Staff arrived in tears as we contemplated how we should honour the Muslim families and enable people to express their condolences. Reverend Sandy helped us all with a prayer for the families at the start of each session, and the Chapel of our Glorified Lord had 49 candles (later 50) lit for each life that had been lost. Visitors were invited into the Chapel to offer prayers, and to light a candle for the Muslim community of Christchurch. On Monday, we offered prayers to start the day and staff members asked girls for a moment’s silence before the school day began. On Tuesday, we held a full school assembly to help girls think about some of the messages that were related to the tragedy. It was important to mention the role of the internet in providing an unmoderated place for violent and immoral thinking to be shared. We encouraged girls to think carefully about their responsibilities in viewing material that can never be unseen and reminded them of recent laws introduced to hold people to account. While the internet has many useful purposes, it has unfortunately become a forum for racism, judgemental criticism and other forms of hatred toward others.

Knowledge today is co-constructed in the milieu of technologies and social media, often not face-to-face, and with seemingly no old-fashioned test of morality, resulting in a melting pot of unprecedented diverse, perverse, violent and radical thought. Although pressures are afoot for Facebook and media outlets to manage their ‘anything goes’ approach, decisions are slow as the same diverse views of what is right and what is wrong create a level of paralysis. Free speech, human rights, religious rights, cultural rights, feminist rights – we see our world struggling to deal with the ethics involved. At Diocesan, we are immensely proud of the programmes we provide, designed expressly to address these emerging issues. Our Centre for Ethics and futurefocused leadership programme explore ideas that we might action by examining the rights and responsibilities we have as communities to protect our planet, learn about the values and ethics of other cultures, and find ways to work together for the common good of all people. Our comprehensive religious studies programme teaches our girls about all religions and the common values of service, love, inclusion, justice and peace.

Out of all the hand-wringing debate has come a reinforcing of our compassion – and many other things that we are at this school that enhance and deepen cultural and religious knowledge. The world is an ever-changing place and every one of us is experiencing the challenge this brings. We value the expansive knowledge our girls experience at Diocesan. May we prepare them to thrive in this ever-changing world and to use their knowledge, confidence and values to successfully navigate the complexities of humankind with compassion and understanding.

Be strong, be brave, be steadfast – kia kaha, kia maia, kia manawanui.