Christchurch bishop backs under-threat college

The college has been served with a court application by the Christian Brothers to sell the school’s land and buildings in order to pay victims of sexual abuse in Australia, Stuff reported.

In a statement posted to the Christchurch Diocese website on July 15, Bishop Gielen said that, for more than 50 years, “St Thomas’s has been an integral part of Catholic education in Christchurch”.

“The Diocese gifted to the Christian Brothers the land on which the school sits – a place which has served the education of young men of faith, character and intellect,” Bishop Gielen said.

“As the Catholic Bishop of Christchurch, I have made it clear to the principal, Steve Hart, and to the chair of the school’s board that I will stand alongside the college to ensure St Thomas’s remains a Catholic college.

“This in no way detracts from the responsibility held by the Church and the Christian Brothers to provide reparation to those who have suffered abuse.

“I will walk with the college community to achieve the outcome we all desire: the continuation of Catholic education on that site,” the bishop stated.

Mr Hart said “discussions about the future of the college have understandably focused on ownership, governance and assets, but in doing so there is a danger that we overlook the very thing that gives a school its true value”.

Schools were the most human of organisations, Mr Hart said.

“To speak about releasing or realising assets to a point where a school could potentially face closure overlooks the reality of what a school represents to thousands of people whose lives are intertwined with it.”

FULL STORY

Message from Bishop Michael regarding St Thomas of Canterbury College (Catholic Diocese of Christchurch)

Principal’s ‘most challenging’ time as well regarded school faces potential sudden closure (Stuff)