Mike Riddell
Encyclopedia
Michael Riddell is a Dunedin
, New Zealand
-based writer.
), and began schooling at Porirua East Primary School. He was the youngest of a family of four, with two sisters and a brother. His family moved to Christchurch
, where he continued schooling at Northcote Primary School, while living near the Styx River.
Secondary schooling took place at Christchurch Boys' High School
, complete with Army Cadets and regular rugby. In the sixth form, he switched from sciences to arts.
He flew to Australia
, hitchhiking up the east coast from Adelaide to Cairns, and spending some time living in a hippie commune in the rainforest north of Cairns. A return to NZ saw him hold down a succession of jobs long enough to earn a fare to the UK. Hitchhiking around Europe and Northern Africa. He returned to London, where he met Rosemary, a New Zealander who became his lifetime partner, and travelled back to New Zealand via Asia.
Riddell was accepted for the NZ Baptist Theological College in Auckland, so the family moved there in 1979. During the time at College, Riddell was involved in protest against the 1981 South Africa rugby union tour of New Zealand. The family moved to Switzerland
in 1982, where Riddell pursued postgraduate studies in Theology
at an international seminary near Zurich, graduating summa cum laude at the end of 1984.
While minister of Ponsonby Baptist, Riddell was instrumental in establishing the Community of Refuge Trust, a community housing initiative providing accommodation for psychiatric patients and low-income tenants. He was actively involved in local affairs and served for a time on the Ponsonby Community Committee. In 1991, Riddell was involved in a confrontation with Auckland City Council over the proposed sale of Council housing in the Freemans Bay Area. He informed the councillors that they were stripping the poor their city of their dignity and leaving them naked.
Riddell resigned from being minister at Ponsonby Baptist in 1993. He became a lecturer in theological education, teaching under the University of Auckland School of Theology
batchelor degree.
In 2003 he completed his PhD through the University of Otago
, on James K. Baxter
’s contribution to New Zealand spirituality.
Dunedin
Dunedin is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the principal city of the Otago Region. It is considered to be one of the four main urban centres of New Zealand for historic, cultural, and geographic reasons. Dunedin was the largest city by territorial land area until...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
-based writer.
Early life
Riddell was born in Porirua East (now Cannons Creek, New ZealandCannons Creek, New Zealand
Cannons Creek is a suburb of Porirua City approximately 22km north of Wellington in New Zealand.- External links :* at Statistics NZ* at Statistics NZ* at Statistics NZ...
), and began schooling at Porirua East Primary School. He was the youngest of a family of four, with two sisters and a brother. His family moved to Christchurch
Christchurch
Christchurch is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand, and the country's second-largest urban area after Auckland. It lies one third of the way down the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula which itself, since 2006, lies within the formal limits of...
, where he continued schooling at Northcote Primary School, while living near the Styx River.
Secondary schooling took place at Christchurch Boys' High School
Christchurch Boys' High School
Christchurch Boys' High School is a single sex state secondary school in Christchurch, New Zealand. It is situated on a 12 hectare site between the suburbs of Riccarton and Fendalton, 4 kilometres to the west of central Christchurch. The school also provides boarding facilities for 130 boys, in a...
, complete with Army Cadets and regular rugby. In the sixth form, he switched from sciences to arts.
He flew to Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, hitchhiking up the east coast from Adelaide to Cairns, and spending some time living in a hippie commune in the rainforest north of Cairns. A return to NZ saw him hold down a succession of jobs long enough to earn a fare to the UK. Hitchhiking around Europe and Northern Africa. He returned to London, where he met Rosemary, a New Zealander who became his lifetime partner, and travelled back to New Zealand via Asia.
Riddell was accepted for the NZ Baptist Theological College in Auckland, so the family moved there in 1979. During the time at College, Riddell was involved in protest against the 1981 South Africa rugby union tour of New Zealand. The family moved to Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
in 1982, where Riddell pursued postgraduate studies in Theology
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
at an international seminary near Zurich, graduating summa cum laude at the end of 1984.
Religious career
He returned to New Zealand, and was ordained and appointed minister of Ponsonby Baptist Church, a small congregation in the central city. Here he was to remain for some 9 years. He held a variety of jobs concurrent with that of minister, as a journalist for New Outlook, a current affairs journal, and later as a part-time lecturer at Baptist College. His first book, Godzone: A Guide to the Travels of the Soul, was published in 1992.While minister of Ponsonby Baptist, Riddell was instrumental in establishing the Community of Refuge Trust, a community housing initiative providing accommodation for psychiatric patients and low-income tenants. He was actively involved in local affairs and served for a time on the Ponsonby Community Committee. In 1991, Riddell was involved in a confrontation with Auckland City Council over the proposed sale of Council housing in the Freemans Bay Area. He informed the councillors that they were stripping the poor their city of their dignity and leaving them naked.
Riddell resigned from being minister at Ponsonby Baptist in 1993. He became a lecturer in theological education, teaching under the University of Auckland School of Theology
University of Auckland School of Theology
The School of Theology at the University of Auckland is an ecumenical provider of theological education working in partnership with a number of Colleges of Theology as a result of a Memorandum of Agreement. These include the Catholic Institute of Theology, St John's College and Trinity Methodist...
batchelor degree.
Writing career
In 1997, Flamingo published his first novel, The Insatiable Moon. Riddell moved to Dunedin, where he has become a Catholic layman, and now writes full time. This has resulted in another ten books, a play, Jerusalem, Jerusalem, and a screenplay of The Insatiable Moon, a feature film released in New Zealand in October 2010. In 2006 Riddell shifted to the Waikato, where he now resides in Cambridge.In 2003 he completed his PhD through the University of Otago
University of Otago
The University of Otago in Dunedin is New Zealand's oldest university with over 22,000 students enrolled during 2010.The university has New Zealand's highest average research quality and in New Zealand is second only to the University of Auckland in the number of A rated academic researchers it...
, on James K. Baxter
James K. Baxter
James Keir Baxter was a poet, and is a celebrated figure in New Zealand society.-Biography:Baxter was born in Dunedin to Archibald Baxter and Millicent Brown and grew up near Brighton. He was named after James Keir Hardie, a founder of the British Labour Party. His father had been a conscientious...
’s contribution to New Zealand spirituality.
Fiction
- The Insatiable Moon (1997)
- Deep Stuff (1999)
- Masks & Shadows (2000)
Non-fiction
- Godzone: A Guide To The Travels Of The Soul (1992)
- Alt.Spirit@Metro.M3: Alternative Spirituality For The Third Millennium (1997)
- God's Home Page - A Journey Through the Bible for Postmodern Pilgrims (1998)
- Threshold of the Future - Reforming the Church in the Post-Christian West (1998)
- Sacred Journey - Spiritual Wisdom for Times of Transition (2000)
- The Prodigal Project with Mark Pierson and Cathy Kirkpatrick, SPCK (2000)