Welcome Friends!
My name is Wayne Tinsey and I live in Melbourne, Australia. I am husband to Lita, father to Danny and Carlos and grandfather to little Luna.
I am currently the Global Ambassador for Edmund Rice Education Beyond Borders. It is my privilege to serve, support and animate the vision of nearly 300 Catholic schools in the tradition of Edmund Rice, across 25 countries.
I have previously worked in and led large Catholic education systems nationally within Australia and was Professor of Religious Education at Notre Dame University in Fremantle.
The thoughts and reflections in this Blog, have been compiled towards the end of my full-time working life and as I embrace a slower, more deliberate and contemplative time in my life. They have given me inspiration, direction and guidance as I have negotiated my lifelong spiritual journey, as well as the challenges and privileges of 40 years as a teacher and leader in Catholic education.
I am an observer of the world and a collector of wisdom that helps me make sense of my journey. Some of these reflections will speak more directly to priorities for Catholic education and Christian mission. However, I hope that all reflections will speak to our universal search for God, meaning and purpose. It is my hope that they might aid, inspire and motivate not only educators, but all who seek truth and happiness. In the end, we all must come to our own understandings of who we are, what we believe and what we must do to fulfil our purpose and find meaning in life.
I am a seeker of truth, and, after years of travel, contemplation and reflection, these ideas have emerged as truth for me. A reader will see that my inspiration comes from a wide variety of sources. My spiritual journey began in earnest when I first travelled to India in my student days. India, its wisdom and people, has remained a great teacher, reference point and source of inspiration for me. I had the privilege of living and working in Peru for a time, and have a Peruvian family. Latin America, its story and people, has given me the language to speak of justice and the plight of the disenfranchised.
And so, as I begin this project, acknowledge my indebtedness to the countless and nameless people of India, Peru, other places in the developing world, for the formation I have received and continue to receive from them. I have learned more about life, spirituality and education from my time in these places, than I ever did in any formal university studies.
I have learned that authenticity and excellence in Catholic schooling have little to do with the numbers of Catholics enrolled or the standard of our buildings. I have learned that inclusion is at the heart of the Christian Gospel and exclusion is the Gospel’s greatest betrayal. I have learned that our capacity to make a difference is not simply dependent on our physical resources, but on our resolve to build the Reign of God and embrace solidarity with the excluded of the world.
I have also learned that happiness never results from material possessions, that gratitude, presence and equanimity
are the vehicles of peace and that, if we trust in Divine providence, all will be well and unfold in our lives as it must.
Wishing you peace and joy.
With much gratitude,
Wayne
My name is Wayne Tinsey and I live in Melbourne, Australia. I am husband to Lita, father to Danny and Carlos and grandfather to little Luna.
I am currently the Global Ambassador for Edmund Rice Education Beyond Borders. It is my privilege to serve, support and animate the vision of nearly 300 Catholic schools in the tradition of Edmund Rice, across 25 countries.
I have previously worked in and led large Catholic education systems nationally within Australia and was Professor of Religious Education at Notre Dame University in Fremantle.
The thoughts and reflections in this Blog, have been compiled towards the end of my full-time working life and as I embrace a slower, more deliberate and contemplative time in my life. They have given me inspiration, direction and guidance as I have negotiated my lifelong spiritual journey, as well as the challenges and privileges of 40 years as a teacher and leader in Catholic education.
I am an observer of the world and a collector of wisdom that helps me make sense of my journey. Some of these reflections will speak more directly to priorities for Catholic education and Christian mission. However, I hope that all reflections will speak to our universal search for God, meaning and purpose. It is my hope that they might aid, inspire and motivate not only educators, but all who seek truth and happiness. In the end, we all must come to our own understandings of who we are, what we believe and what we must do to fulfil our purpose and find meaning in life.
I am a seeker of truth, and, after years of travel, contemplation and reflection, these ideas have emerged as truth for me. A reader will see that my inspiration comes from a wide variety of sources. My spiritual journey began in earnest when I first travelled to India in my student days. India, its wisdom and people, has remained a great teacher, reference point and source of inspiration for me. I had the privilege of living and working in Peru for a time, and have a Peruvian family. Latin America, its story and people, has given me the language to speak of justice and the plight of the disenfranchised.
And so, as I begin this project, acknowledge my indebtedness to the countless and nameless people of India, Peru, other places in the developing world, for the formation I have received and continue to receive from them. I have learned more about life, spirituality and education from my time in these places, than I ever did in any formal university studies.
I have learned that authenticity and excellence in Catholic schooling have little to do with the numbers of Catholics enrolled or the standard of our buildings. I have learned that inclusion is at the heart of the Christian Gospel and exclusion is the Gospel’s greatest betrayal. I have learned that our capacity to make a difference is not simply dependent on our physical resources, but on our resolve to build the Reign of God and embrace solidarity with the excluded of the world.
I have also learned that happiness never results from material possessions, that gratitude, presence and equanimity are the vehicles of peace and that, if we trust in Divine providence, all will be well and unfold in our lives as it must.
Wishing you peace and joy.
With much gratitude,
Wayne