17 February 2005: The new SCMA website is being launched tonight. New and updated information will be available at http://www.scm.org.nz/home/ from this time. Please direct any questions to webmaster@scm.org.nz.

Student Christian Movement Aotearoa

                            P.O. Box 22-652 Christchurch, Aotearoa/New Zealand.

Tel:+64-3-366-9274, Fax:+64-3 365-2919, email: natsec@scm.org.nz

Update No. 46                                                                                                     December 2004

Dates For Your Diary                                             

Unit News                                                                

Regional Development Workers                         

Senior Friends

National Conference Highlights

National Coordinating Group Report

National Office News

WSCF: Regional and Global

History Working Group Report

SCMer Responds to the Windsor Report

SCMA DoV Report

Dates For Your Diary

December 14, 2004 (Tuesday): Agnes MacGregor Salmond Movement Development

Fund launch & farewell to Michael Wallace, 7.30pm, Old Stone House, Shalamar Drive,

Cashmere, Christchurch.

January 28-31, 2005: Parachute Music Festival, Hamilton

February 2005: University Orientation Weeks & Clubs Days

Unit News

Auckland: The last two years have seen a steady reawakening for SCMA Auckland. In 2004 we have had regular devotions, hosted guest speakers and held weekly discussions themed around a wide range of topics. To celebrate our revitalization, we held an end of year dinner for senior friends and the many people who have helped us out this year.

Canterbury: Tilly Flood has organised fortnightly unit meetings in the Chaplains' meeting room to consider various topical issues around justice issues. The unit lost a good number of its members in the year to overseas experience and domestic transfer. There is energy for the new year.

Victoria:  The unit held its AGM and elected new leadership. Officers’ verbal reports and finances were presented to the secretary and the meeting. We offered our support to those members who are working on the SCM website update www.scm.org.nz. We agreed to plan fortnightly meetings for the coming year which looks better than the weekly meetings we have now.

Otago: The is looking forward to a strong start to the new year. Otago's profile on campus has continued through the Book Exchange. Abe Huey-Jollie has been the regional development worker this year.

Regional Development Workers

In late February, the SCMA regional development workers' scheme was launched. This is about having an SCMA regional animator on a 3hrs a week basis to liaise with schools and college chaplains, meet with parish ministers and schools to ‘market’ SCM. We are excited about this programme and see  movement building as our main priority at present. The RDW scheme is set to continue in the new year - dependent on the availability of funds.

Senior Friends

Many thanks go to our senior friends country wide. They responded generously to our annual appeal and continue to serve the movement as volunteer staff, advisors, supervisors and well wishers.

In particular we are very grateful to the following:

Members of the SCMA Trust

Alison Hardie (SCMA accountant)

Alison Grimshaw (Professional Supervisor to the National Secretary)

Margaret Wallace (SCMA Database Manager)

and to all our CWS and CCANZ colleagues.

You have all meant a great deal in the life of SCMA this year.

National Conference Highlights

1. Attendance was 100% more than last year's, much to the delight of the organisers.

2. A line-up of well-researched and dynamic speakers were well received by SCM participants.

3. The conference venue at Wellington's Tapu te Ranga Marae set a hospitable and relaxed tone for the conference. Some SCMers enjoyed their debut marae experience(the national secretary included).

4. The conference committed itself to a range of key movement building tasks focused on
'relevance and meaning to society'. In 10 years time, SCM will have a
vibrant research desk, will become an alternative voice to the Maxim
institute, will have 20 000 members (!), full time RDW's, national conferences
with at least 200 participants and units at every tertiary institute in the
country.

5. In the short term, we are committed to active engagement on social
justice issues around the Civil Union Bill, Ahmed Zaoui, the .7% campaign
and many others. Very soon, our website will undergo a revamp and up-date.

6. The senior friends' night at the Loaves and Fishes was great. Denzil Brown
led us through a brief and powerful service and showed us a 6-minute SCM
video. We had a pot luck dinner followed by a powerful presentation by
Marion Maddox on Multi-culturalism in Australia- challenges to New Zealand.

7. There is no doubt, all the units will go into this term with vigour and
energy, thanks to the 2004 conference.

National Coordinating Group Report

Many thanks go to Michael Wallace who has served diligently as Convenor of the National Coordinating Group (NCG) till last month when he stepped down to prepare for his new assignment as General Secretary for the World Student Christian Federation in Geneva. Stuart Bradshaw, outgoing treasurer, replaces Michael. Farewell Michael, welcome Stuart. Other members of the NCG are Daniel List(Otago), Tilly Flood( Canterbury), Jean Kite and Toby Harper (Auckland), Jonathan Ah Kit (Victoria), Stuart Bradshaw (Treasurer/Convenor) and Mandla Akhe Dube (national secretary).

National Office News

We are excited that early this year we commissioned the regional development workers programme and are convinced it is the way to go. SCMA must regain its pole position on campuses and offer its critical thinking mass as a challenge to right wing fundamental Christian growth. It is out of this vision that we will launch a movement development fund on 14 December 2004. The Agnes MacGregor Salmond Movement Development Fund will become the financial backbone for our movement building efforts over the next decade and beyond. Nesta Salmond was a leader in the movement and served as National Secretary.  We are grateful to the family for according us the honour to name the fund after her.

WSCF: Regional and Global

This year has seen two Aotearoa SCMers take up key positions in the Federation at both the inter-regional and regional levels. Michael Wallace starts in Geneva in January 2005 while Michael Perkins will represent SCM on the Asia-Pacific regional committee. He will also sit on the World Executive Committee (ExCo) as the Asia-Pacific representative. Congratulations to the two Michaels.

News release from SCM Philippines (SCMP):

"We demand Justice for human rights advocate and church worker Joel Baclao"

"We in the Student Christian Movement of the Philippines (SCMP) demand the immediate impartial investigation on the brutal slaying last November 10 of Joel Baclao, a former regional leader of the SCMP in the early 1990’s and currently a national council member of the Promotion of Church People’s Response (PCPR) and lay-preacher of the United Church of Christ in the Philippines (UCCP). He was a staunch and outspoken opponent of the militarization campaign in Albay province and mining in the region.

( A full version of this statement is available from the national office natsec@scm.org.nz)

History Working Group Report

We are pleased that the History working group has re-convened to consider continuity, archives collection and productions of memoirs. The group appeals to all senior friends to send lists of any archival material (reports, photos, tapes etc) that they have to the national office.  The group is also keen to hear from anyone who has information about NZSCM records reputed to have been deposited in the Wairarapa region during WWII.

SCMer Responds to the Windsor Report

Canterbury SCM's Stuart Bradshaw has written an academic article questioning the value of the Anglican Church's recently released Windsor Report. According to Stuart the report doesn't offer unity or freedom. His article claims that the report starts out by asking all the wrong questions.  For a copy of the article contact the national office at <natsec@scm.org.nz>

SCMA DoV Report

SCMA endorses the churches ecumenical decade to overcome violence in all its forms.

SCM work on the goals of the Decade have so far included a Live-In Theological Experience on the theme of Non-Violence.

‘the national conference provided space for active engagement on contemporary issues’.