News Centre

Our new flag unveiled

Casey Lototau and Ochre Sugiharto from Stage Crew were given the job of unboxing and assembling the new school flag which will be displayed at school events and to identify Sancta Maria College at out of school occasions.

The Flag features the mission schooner Sancta Maria on which Bishop Jean Baptiste Pompallier sailed around New Zealand. The name Sancta Maria is a Latin title for Mary the Mother of God. It means Holy Mary. While the school is named after the schooner, the emphasis is on ‘Holy Mary’, on which our charism is based.

Bishop Pompallier devised his own flag for the vessel – a bunting version of the Miraculous Medal. It consisted of a blue cross surmounting a large M and surrounded by twelve stars. These twelve stars (representing the twelve Apostles) have been incorporated into the school flag to represent our College Values, along with the Sancta Maria and the school’s motto ‘Faith is our Compass’.

The College’s name commemorates the historic arrival and work of Bishop Pompallier. There is a comparison between the vessel Sancta Maria being used to spread the Word and our College being a vessel for nurturing spirituality and deepening our personal relationship with a loving God.