Mike Riddell
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| Mike Riddell | |
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| Born | March 23, 1953 Porirua East |
| Occupation | minister, writer |
| Nationality | New Zealander |
| Genres | Urban Fantasy |
| Subjects | Christian theology |
| Literary movement | Emerging church |
| Children | 3 |
Michael Riddell (born 1953 in Porirua East) is a Dunedin, New Zealand-based writer.
Mike Riddell was born into a Railways house in Porirua East (now Cannons Creek), 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 shifted 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, an initial encounter with drugs led to a lifetime switch from sciences to arts, and a new arena of education. His parents divorced, he discovered political protest, and dropped out of university two years in a row.
After a failed engagement, a couple of years of drug induced haze, and an abundance of short-term labouring jobs, 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 another succession of jobs long enough to earn a fare to the UK. Hitchhiking around Europe and Northern Africa eventually found him in a Moroccan prison for six weeks on a drug conviction. He returned to London, found Rosemary, a New Zealander who became a lifetime partner, and travelled back to New Zealand via Asia.
Thence followed exploration of spirituality, marriage, and a further succession of labouring jobs in Christchurch. Two children were born, and Mike and Rosemary spent a year living in community. Mike settled for a while as a trainee Telecom Linesman, before being accepted for NZ Baptist Theological College in Auckland.
The family shifted there in 1979. During the time at College, Mike was involved in protest against the 1981 Springbok tour, and was arrested 3 times. That year was also marked by the arrival of another (and final) child. The family moved to Switzerland in 1982, where Mike pursued postgraduate studies in Theology at an international seminary near Zurich, graduating summa cum laude at the end of 1984. 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, Mike 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, Mike was involved in a confrontation with Auckland City Council over the proposed sale of Council housing in the Freemans Bay Area. Mike startled councillors by interrupting their meeting and stripping to his underpants. He informed the councillors that this was what they were doing to the poor of their city: stripping them of their dignity and leaving them naked. The mayor called for a cup of tea.
Mike resigned from being minister at Ponsonby Baptist in 1993. He became a lecturer in theological education, teaching under the University of Auckland's Bachelor of Theology degree.
In 1997, Flamingo published his first novel, The Insatiable Moon. The book proved too controversial for his Baptist employers, and brought about Mike's negotiated resignation from his position as Lecturer in Practical Theology. Mike 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 which is currently under production.
In 2003 he finally completed his PhD through the University of Otago, on James K. Baxter’s contribution to New Zealand spirituality.
Contents |
[edit] Publications
[edit] Fiction:
- The Insatiable Moon (1997)
- Deep stuff (2000?)
- Masks & Shadows (2000)
[edit] Non-fiction:
- GODZONE a traveller's guide (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)
