See Judge Act: Training Catholic activists in New Zealand, 1937-83

Description

See, Judge, Act is the history of the New Zealand Catholic youth movements. Combining social analysis with spiritual training, these organisations showed members how to be fully Christian and yet fully lay people. They trained hundreds of activists to become leaders at every level of New Zealand society. Today, when the church is in crisis in many respects and struggling to find a path forward, the author raises the relevance of members' experiences, and asks: what is `spirituality' for a lay person? do lay people have a role in shaping church teaching? what do the laity now need from their church? and what does the church need from them? This history examines the `See Judge Act' method and argues for its place in the modern church.

Rod Orange gained experience in the `See Judge Act' method as a member of the Auckland Catholic Youth Movement from 1957, and later through his involvement in the Christian Family Movement. He enjoyed a successful career in teaching, both in the state sector and as principal of a Catholic secondary school. Rod and Claudia married in 1959, and are active church-going Catholics, with three adult children and seven grandchildren. Besides church renewal, Rod's interests are in our human heritage - both cultural and natural - and in choral music, bird study, and tramping.