For the faith and in the service of humanity
John Whitehead from our Onslow parish was recently installed as a Knight of the Order of St John by the New Zealand Governor-General. He has written a piece to share the history of the Order of St John, its significance in his own life, and the place that the Anglican church has in its heritage and culture.
St John (or to give it its full and rather long title) “The Priory in New Zealand of the Most Venerable Order of the Hospital of St John of Jerusalem”, is not to be confused with St John’s College in Auckland: the former being named for the Baptist and the latter for the Evangelist.
The current international Order was established via Royal Charter by Queen Victoria in the 1880s, but traces its origins back to at least 1080 when Benedictine monks, under the leadership of the Blessed Gerard, established a mission in Jerusalem to care for sick pilgrims regardless of their faith. Its motto is Pro Fide, Pro Utilitate Hominum: For the Faith and in the Service of Humanity. The Order is dedicated to serve “our Lords, the Sick and the Poor”, drawing its inspiration from Matthew 25:40: “…just as you did it to one of the least of these…you did it to me”.
Firmly founded therefore on Christian principles, St John in the New Zealand of today is increasingly ecumenical and multi-faith but remains connected to its Christian origins. With around 18,000 employees, volunteers and youth members, it provides first aid and health care throughout the country, and ambulance services to 90% of the nation’s population – the Wellington Free Ambulance covers Wellington and the Wairarapa. While it is widely recognised for its ambulance work (as seen dramatically in the tragic Mosque shootings and at Whakaari/White Island), its lower-profile work throughout the community is of continuing importance.
Anglicans are strongly represented in St John and members of this diocese are no exception, whether as employees or volunteers, including Chaplains and Youth workers. Ven. Monty Black retired in June of this year as Dean of the New Zealand Order, a position now occupied by Archbishop David Moxon. As a member of our Diocesan Council (and Chair of the Diocesan Board of Trustees and of the Diocesan Risk and Assurance Committee), I became Chancellor of the Order on St John’s Day (25th June). The Chancellor is Chair of the national St John Board and performs a wide range of functions and ceremonial duties, reporting to the Governor-General who is the titular head (the Prior) of the Order in New Zealand. I was also was invested as a Knight of St John by the Governor-General in October.
I became involved with St John in 2015 on a governance level, and after being admitted onto the Board as an advisor I eventually was moved to being a full member. When I came back to New Zealand after having worked for a time at the World Bank in the U.S, sitting in an office oftentimes discussing things that would have flow-on effects on the lives of people in other countries, I wanted to work with and for others. In this way, the sense of humble service found at St John really appealed to me. As an immigrant child who moved to New Zealand, I was incredibly with the opportunities available here, and have thought on that verse from Luke 12 out of a desire to give back – “From everyone who has been given much, much will be demanded; and from the one who has been entrusted with much, much more will be asked.”
St John provides a practical example of faith at work in our community, and internationally, with a vision paralleling our own Diocese’s focus on the last, the lost and the least. In the words of Nelson Mandela, himself a Knight of St John: “St John’s focus on health care, especially amongst the poorest of the poor, and its capacity to tap the most generous and caring human impulses, gives it a special place in our hearts.”
By John Whitehead
