Our mission is to prepare people for faith-based leadership.

This is achieved through our vision statement, which is to be an exemplar to the church and society of:

• bicultural relationship

• under-graduate education providing quality interative education and blended learning

• graduates prepared for global awareness and community engaged leadership within the Pacific Region

• curriculum provision that clearly addresses cultural and linguistic diversity

• innovative delivery methods to dispersed communities

• on-going educational opportunities and professional development for laity and clergy.

Trinity's promise, from the Principal, David Bell.

We are a community of presbyter-scholars and support staff, who are committed to the Methodist ethos. We will provide for you the best educational opportunities that we can, from the resources that we have.

Our courses and papers are for all people interested in theological reflection and who are passionate about the practice of ministry in contemporary society.

Full-time ministry students will find Trinity College a stimulating environment. Tuition is in small, lively classes and parish placements. There is a strong emphasis on developing both creative thinking and rigorous theological reflection.

Part-time and private students can choose single papers.

There are many options to explore.

Welcome, from the Chair of Trinity College Council, Max Thomson.

To all students and prospective students...

We hope this website will be helpful to you as you work with representatives of the College to sort out your study for the year.

You will come from varying backgrounds with different academic and/or practical qualifications; and the study opportunities available are designed to enable you to select courses that suit you as you work towards ministry in the Methodist Church.

The courses available also provide opportunities for those who wish to strengthen their lay leadership skills.

Enjoy your time at Trinity—it will be well worth your while.

Principal
Rev Dr David Bell

College Manager
Nicola Grundy

College Chaplain
Rev Elizabeth Hopner

Tutors

Biblical Studies
Rev Dr Nasili Vaka'uta
Rev Dr Lynne Wall

Church History
Rev Dr Susan Thompson
Rev Tony Franklin

Effective Leadership
Rev Andrew Gammon

Fijian Lay Preachers
Rev Dr Sevati Tuwere

Lead Worship
Kalo Kaisa
Mary Nicholas

Maori Studies
Rev Diana Tana
Te Aroha Rountree

Methodist Studies
Rev Dr Terry Wall

Mission and Evangelism
Rev Andrew Doubleday
Rev Alan K Webster

Practical Theology
Rev Dr Lynne Frith
Rev Prince Devanandan
Rev John Murrray

Preaching and Teaching
Rev Andrew Doubleday
Rev Alan K Webster

Professional Studies
Rev Val Nicholls

Tongan Lay Preachers
Rev Siosifa Pole
Rev Goll Manukia
Rev Alipate 'Uhila

Plus our colleagues in the Anglican Faculty of the College of St John the Evangelist

The educational aims of Trinity College are to:

• provide educational opportunities relevant to the needs of individual students
• provide educational opportunities relevant to the needs of the Methodist Church of New Zealand
• prepare people for ministry, both lay and ordained
• relate education in the formal disciplines of Theology to the practice of ministry, through processes of ministry formation and theological reflection.

Trinity College is an NZQA registered provider, with a level 1 ranking.

It is envisaged that by the end of your training you will fit our graduate profile which is:

• a strong sense of personal identity
• a strong biblical/theological grounding
• a developed and mature Christian faith
• an ability to engage cross-culturally
• an ability to be socially and politically aware
• effective people skills
• practical church management skills
• servant leadership skills
• a commitment to life-long learning
• an ability to be a forward thinker
• an understanding of the distinctive nature and ethos of Methodism.

A Brief History of Trinity College

Trinity Methodist Theological College had its beginnings in the early nineteenth century.  New Zealand Methodism’s first theological College emerged from the work of the Wesleyan Maori Mission.  The Wesleyan Native Institution opened in Grafton, Auckland in 1845 to train Maori students for work as teachers and ministers among their own people.

The college left the Grafton site in 1849. Theological education took place at Three Kings from the 1870s, Prince Albert College from the 1890s and Dunholme College from 1912.  In 1929, ministry training returned to Grafton to be based in the newly-built Trinity College.  For the next half-century, Trinity College was a centre of Methodist educational activity and a focus of Methodist identity.  This was a period of significant growth and consolidation.

In the early 1970s, the College moved into partnership with the Anglican College at St John’s in Meadowbank.  While not without its challenges, the ecumenical venture exposed Methodist students to a wider range of religious traditions and has contributed to a greater understanding between the two denominations.

Further changes to ministry education occurred in the 1990s and 2000s.  There was an increasing desire to develop an approach that emphasized practical theology; and in addition the academic side of training was strengthened by participation in the University of Auckland’s School of Theology. 

While training emphases have changed and developed, Trinity College has sought to balance a focus on practical ministry training on the one hand and academic theological scholarship on the other.

In November 2008 Conference disestablished the Board of Ministry and re-established the Trinity College Council as its governing body.

Are you open to personal transformation?

To know if Trinity is really the right place for you to develop your full potential in ministry cannot necessarily be seen from the outset. Learning to ask the right questions, however, about which kind of theological training is very useful. Ask yourself:

• Am I committed to the Way?
• Is my heart open to being in a learning community which nurtures discipleship?
• Is my mind open to exploring all the riches of the theological traditions?

Whether lay or ordained, full-time or part-time, private student or ministry candidate, you will find Trinity College gives you the greatest benefit when you make your personal commitment to its unique learning environment.