Welcoming Rev. Dr Jione Havea
The Synod of NSW and ACT welcomes Rev. Dr Jione Havea to a placement in the role of Mission Catalyst - Stewardship of the Earth, commencing today with Uniting Mission and Education (Climate Action Team).
The Synod of NSW and ACT welcomes Rev. Dr Jione Havea to a placement in the role of Mission Catalyst - Stewardship of the Earth, commencing today with Uniting Mission and Education (Climate Action Team).
Rev. Dr Jione Havea is an ordained minister of the Free Wesleyan Church of Tonga (FWCT) who was seconded to the NSW & ACT Synod in 2000 to teach at United Theological College (North Parramatta) until 2015. Since then, Rev. Dr Havea continued as a research fellow with the CSU School of Theology to date.
Rev. Dr Havea has both history as well as dreams for “Stewardship of the Earth” in the contexts of NSW and ACT. He had experiences in organising and delivering bible studies, workshops, conferences, and publications on matters related to “Stewardship of the Earth” – for local, regional, and global audiences.
Rev. Dr Havea is looking forward to the opportunities in this role to work at three of his commitments: First, he is committed to working with grassroots and local people. He foresees this role will give him opportunities to draw from the deep wells of the Synod, especially among indigenous and migrant communities, and part of his task would be to disseminate those insights. He co-authored the book Losing Ground: Reading Ruth in the Pacific as an example of how he could do this task in and with the NSW/ACT Synod. Second, he is committed to working toward a green’er church and society. And third, he is committed to shaping the theological and cultural consciousness of the church and the society.
"These commitments will energise me to meet some of the (so many) expectations spelled out in the PD for this role," says Rev Dr Jione Havea of the role.
Finally, his approach and style involve talanoa (a native Pasifika culture that involves story, telling, conversation), which encourages interacting with and embracing people’s experiences and wisdoms. Talanoa enables empowerment, transformation, advocacy, and collaboration. Talanoa is effective in my teaching, research, and ministry, and it is already functioning in the Synod.
With this wealth of knowledge, skills and expertise, we welcome Rev. Dr Jione Havea to the UME - Climate Action team. We also welcome Jione’s family Dr Monica J. Melanchthon and daughter Diya Lakai to our Mission Team family.
Please say hi to Jione and family as we welcome them to UME and to our Synod family.
Rev. Dr Havea has both history as well as dreams for “Stewardship of the Earth” in the contexts of NSW and ACT. He had experiences in organising and delivering bible studies, workshops, conferences, and publications on matters related to “Stewardship of the Earth” – for local, regional, and global audiences.