John William Bluck (born 22 July 1943) is a New Zealand author and an
Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
clergyman who served as the 14th
Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
of
Waiapu from 2002 until 2008. From 1990 to 2002 he was the eleventh
Dean
Dean may refer to:
People
* Dean (given name)
* Dean (surname), a surname of Anglo-Saxon English origin
* Dean (South Korean singer), a stage name for singer Kwon Hyuk
* Dean Delannoit, a Belgian singer most known by the mononym Dean
Titles
* ...
of
ChristChurch Cathedral
ChristChurch Cathedral, also called Christ Church Cathedral and (rarely) Cathedral Church of Christ, is a deconsecrated Anglican cathedral in the city of Christchurch, New Zealand. It was built between 1864 and 1904 in the centre of the city, ...
; until he was ordained to the
episcopate
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...
on 17 August 2002.
[ACANZP Lectionary, 2019](_blank)
(p. 146)
Early life and education
Bluck was born in
Napier Napier may refer to:
People
* Napier (surname), including a list of people with that name
* Napier baronets, five baronetcies and lists of the title holders
Given name
* Napier Shaw (1854–1945), British meteorologist
* Napier Waller (1893–19 ...
in 1943, the eldest son of Edgar and Alice Bluck. Bluck spent his childhood in
Nūhaka
Nūhaka is a small settlement in the northern Hawke's Bay Region of New Zealand's eastern North Island, lying on New Zealand State Highway 2, State Highway 2 between Wairoa and Gisborne, New Zealand, Gisborne. The road to Mahia turns off the highw ...
. He is a maternal nephew of two other New Zealand Anglican Bishops,
Edward Norman and
Peter Mann
Peter Travis Mann (born 7 September 1970) is a former Australian rules footballer. who played a total of 118 matches in the AFL for the North Melbourne and Fremantle Football Clubs. Peter is currently residing in Perth.
Claremont and North M ...
, bishops of Wellington and Dunedin, respectively. He boarded at
Napier Boys’ High School, and at the age of 18 studied English literature and theology at the
University of Canterbury
The University of Canterbury ( mi, Te Whare Wānanga o Waitaha; postnominal abbreviation ''Cantuar.'' or ''Cant.'' for ''Cantuariensis'', the Latin name for Canterbury) is a public research university based in Christchurch, New Zealand. It was ...
. Bluck was offered a place at the Episcopal Theological School in Cambridge, Massachusetts but finished most of his studies at
Harvard Divinity School
Harvard Divinity School (HDS) is one of the constituent schools of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school's mission is to educate its students either in the academic study of religion or for leadership roles in religion, gov ...
. While studying in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, Bluck was a reporter for ''The Pilot'', Boston's Catholic Newspaper.
Ordained ministry
Bluck was ordained as a priest in 1971
[ Crockford's Clerical Directory London, Church House 1975 ] by
Bishop Paul Reeves and began his ministry at Holy Trinity,
Gisborne. He soon moved to Wellington to tutor journalism at Wellington Polytechnic, as well as being the institution's chaplain.
Bluck soon moved to Auckland and was
editor
Editing is the process of selecting and preparing written, photographic, visual, audible, or cinematic material used by a person or an entity to convey a message or information. The editing process can involve correction, condensation, orga ...
of ''The New Zealand Methodist''.
Later he was Director of
Communication
Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...
s at the
World Council of Churches
The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, most juri ...
then
Professor
Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...
of
Pastoral Theology
Pastoral theology is the branch of practical theology concerned with the application of the study of religion in the context of regular church ministry. This approach to theology seeks to give practical expression to theology. Normally viewed as a ...
and
Communication
Communication (from la, communicare, meaning "to share" or "to be in relation with") is usually defined as the transmission of information. The term may also refer to the message communicated through such transmissions or the field of inquir ...
at
Knox Theological Seminary
Knox Theological Seminary is an independent, evangelical seminary in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, founded in 1989 by D. James Kennedy. The school offers ministry training at its residential facility in Fort Lauderdale and through its internet camp ...
.
In 1990, Bluck was invited to be the Dean of ChristChurch Cathedral by Bishop
David Coles, which he accepted. Bluck held this position until 2002 where he became the 14th Anglican Bishop of Waiapu.
Bluck resigned his
See
See or SEE may refer to:
* Sight - seeing
Arts, entertainment, and media
* Music:
** ''See'' (album), studio album by rock band The Rascals
*** "See", song by The Rascals, on the album ''See''
** "See" (Tycho song), song by Tycho
* Television
* ...
in 2008.
Retired life
Bluck is now an author. He creates podcasts for
Radio New Zealand
Radio New Zealand ( mi, Te Reo Irirangi o Aotearoa), commonly known as Radio NZ or simply RNZ, is a New Zealand public-service radio broadcaster and Crown entity that was established under the Radio New Zealand Act 1995. It operates news and c ...
and writes articles and opinion pieces for them and other New Zealand media companies.
Publications
Authorship
* ''Taranaki's Cathedral'' (13 January 2010)
* ''Wai Karekare = Turbulent Waters: The Anglican Bicultural Journey, 1814 - 2014'' (1 January 2012)
* ''Seeking the Centre'' (1 January 2019)
* ''Becoming Pākehā.'' (Auckland: HarperCollins, 2022).
Forewords
* ''Honest to Goodness'' (12 March 2019)
References
External links
''John Bluck writes'', RNZ
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bluck, John
1943 births
People from Napier, New Zealand
University of Canterbury alumni
Deans of Christchurch
Anglican bishops of Waiapu
21st-century Anglican bishops in New Zealand
Living people