Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand (PCANZ) Deaconess Collection


Country	New Zealand
Repository	Presbyterian Research Centre (Archives), Knox College, Arden Street, Opoho, Dunedin 9010, New Zealand
Section	Inscriptions on Asia-Pacific National Registers
Gender Dimension	Achievements of women in history
GEM	GEM 1– Gender Sensitive
Description	The Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand (PCANZ) Deaconess Collection shines a light on a group of 175 New Zealand women, who over 75 years, from 1901-1975, served many of New Zealand’s poor and vulnerable yet to this day receive very limited recognition. The Deaconesses were an order for women in the Presbyterian Church. However, they could not be ordained as Ministers even though their training was almost identical to the Ministry training for men. The collection includes extensive correspondence, minute books from the Training Institute and the Deaconess Associations and Women’s Work Committee, and one personal diary. There are handwritten memoirs, oral histories, photo albums, slides, index cards outlining the career of each Deaconess, the list of Deaconesses 1901-1964 and a number of artefacts. The Deaconess order was a way of making women’s work visible within society and gave women a voice and a formal role outside the home, paving the way for the first ordination of women in 1966. It is also an example of the growth of active women’s leadership, funded by women, during the 20th Century. Through their work the deaconesses made significant contributions to education and social services throughout New Zealand and worked in Presbyterian missions in Asia and the Pacific. In tough times, such as the depression, the deaconesses played an important role providing comfort and reassurance. The documentary heritage was inscribed onto the New Zealand’s Memory of the World register in 2018.
Reference	https://unescomow.nz/inscription/pcanz-deaconess-collection https://pcanzarchives.recollect.co.nz Photo credit: © Presbyterian Research Centre
Map