• 10 years ago we had been in NZ for 5 years, not yet fellow citizens with the saints, but well-established manuhiri, looking back a decade it seems strange that I've taught my last class in the University of Auckland, back then all Carey classes were University of Auckland classes, more recently I've been 50% Carey 50% School of Theology... a big change now that casts its shadow back to my memories of long ago...

• 20 years ago I was vice-recteur of les Facultés Protestantes au Zaïre (the institution that has now added other faculties to the two we had then to become the
  Université Protestante au Congo)

• 30 years back I was beginning work on my PhD at the University of Glasgow in what was then the Faculty of Divinity but is now merely a department of Theology and Religious Studies, having recently resigned as pastor of Upper Studley Baptist Church

So that's three countries or continents in the period under review, obviously I shall have to seek employment in either Asia or the Americas if this trend is to continue indeed I must be overdue for relocation ;-)


It is always difficult to know who to tag, in one's turn, on these occasions. I do not have a good record. Since northern hemisphere memes seem to propagate just as our academic year down here is in final panic mode I often pick on people who have already had a go (which somehow I missed amid the marking). However, here goes:

I hereby tag:

• AKMA (because his blog always has interesting reminiscences and I'd be glad of more context)
• Mark Brown (because his post Wonderful News!! gave us a tantalising fragment of the story)
• Judy Redman (to ensure that another antipodean is disturbed at this disturbing time of year, and to make sure that all those North Americans are aware that the University of New England is naturally down here!)
  

Update:

• AKMA has responded, with a much fuller account than mine (but I'm not ashamed, just marking!)
• Judy has also responded, also giving a fascinating insight through glimpses into her life particularly into how far from "egalitarian" our society was still in the late 20th century (I'm still not too ashamed, because still half sunk in the tide of marking :(