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Humble teacher was the ‘embodiment of the spirit of Marcellin Champagnat’
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| 26 April, 2009 |
Br Michael Naughtin
November,16, 1919–March 21, 2009
The universal respect and affection which Br Michael Naughtin enjoyed were born of the “integrity and the humility” with which he approached everything in his life, says Br Michael Green.
“Students and colleagues saw it in his intellect and mental sharpness, in his mastery of such a broad range of subjects, in his effectiveness as an educator, and in his gentle and respectful manner towards all,” he said.
“Those closer to him, especially his confreres, saw also the depth of his faith, and the centrality to him of his religious life as a Marist Brother.
“Before all else, Br Michael understood himself to be about the work of God, and the faith journey of his own life.
“He went about these in the way that he learnt from the Marists who taught him and with whom he lived.
“Their way was that of Mary: simplicity, modesty and humility – the ‘three violets’ of St Marcellin – were the defining qualities they chose to live out the Gospel of Jesus.”
The community of St Joseph’s College, Hunters Hill, is mourning the death of Br Michael Naughtin, who died on March 21.
He was 89.
Br Michael was much-loved and highly respected by students, old boys, families, staff and Brothers of St Joseph’s.
He has been described as the embodiment of the spirit of Champagnat – a man of great faith and friendship who was wise, humble and devoted to the education and care of young people.
His teaching career spanned 63 years – beginning when he was 19 and ending when he was 83.
However, the most significant element of his career was not the length of it, but rather the extraordinary depth and quality of his teaching and interactions with students, colleagues and families.
St Joseph’s headmaster Ross Tarlinton said the college community was mourning the loss of a “very great man”.
“While this is a time of great loss for many, we know that Br Michael is now with the God he loved so much,” he said.
“Throughout his life, many people sought out Br Michael’s wisdom, experience and compassion. He will be remembered with great honour and deep affection.”
Vincent Patrick Naughtin was born in Lockhart, NSW, on November 16, 1919, and grew up across the border in Yarrawonga, Victoria, where his family was involved in farming and prominent in local civil and church affairs.
His father was at one time shire president. Primary schooling at the local state school was followed by secondary years as a boarder with the Marist Brothers at Assumption College, in Kilmore, just north of Melbourne.
Earning an outstanding senior pass, with highest honours in mathematics and science, Vincent chose neither to enter the University of Melbourne nor to follow eight of his classmates to the seminary at Werribee but, instead, to become a teacher and to seek admission to the Marist Brothers.
His training as a Brother took him to Mittagong, NSW, where, according to the practice of the time he was required to repeat his final year of secondary school in the Marist Juniorate there.
It was, however, as an unofficial teacher rather than a student that he was often engaged in that year. He did, nonetheless, sit for his NSW Leaving certificate and earn First Class Honours in Mathematics.
He entered the novitiate of the Marist Brothers on the Feast of the Visitation, July 2, 1937, and was given the religious name of Br Michael when he received the habit.
It was by that name that he was to be known for the rest of his life.
A brief appointment to the Brothers’ school at Forbes in the second half of 1938 was followed by his Scholasticate back at Mittagong in 1939, a couple of years at Eastwood, then back, officially this time, as a teacher in the Marist Juniorate for the remaining years of World War II.
Between 1946 and 1956, Br Michael spent 11 years as teacher and then superior and headmaster of the Marist Brothers’ High School at Darlinghurst, a school known for its high academic achievement and the calibre of its student body.
Br Michael Green said: “They were golden years for Br Michael. With all the energy of a man in his late 20s and early 30s, he invested himself with passion and imagination into the lives of the students and the direction of this fine school.
“The mark he made on his students was gently but indelibly put, equipping them as the ‘good Christians and good citizens’ of whom St Marcellin Champagnat dreamed.
“They remember an exceptional teacher of Mathematics, Science and Religion, an enthusiastic cricket coach, a warm friend and wise mentor.”
In the first part of that decade, Br Michael enrolled as an evening student at the University of Sydney, initially to read for a degree in Mathematics and Science.
The unavailability of part-time classes in his chosen field prompted him to switch to the classics.
Despite the demands of a full-time teaching load, administrative duties and co-curricular responsibilities, he excelled in his study of Latin and Greek literature, winning the prestigious Cooper Scholarship which was later to allow him to continue his study at King’s College, Cambridge.
Before taking up his scholarship, Br Michael completed his term as headmaster at Darlinghurst, and then for two years was headmaster at the Marist Brothers’ High School at Kogarah.
In 1957-58 he completed the exercises of the Second Novitiate of the Marist Brothers at St Quentin-Fallavier in France, before joining King’s College.
“He successfully defended his doctoral thesis there in 1960, attracting plaudits for the depth and insight of his research into Medieval Latin poetry,” said Br Michael Green. “His time at Sydney and Cambridge Universities gave Br Michael a life-long passion for classical literature and culture.
“The value of the study of Latin and Greek language in secondary school was something that he advocated strongly for the rest of his career.”
Returning to Australia, Br Michael acted as superior and headmaster of the Juniorate at Mittagong for a year, before his appointment at the beginning of 1962 to St Joseph’s College, his home until his death.
Taking the role of prefect of studies at St Joseph’s, Br Michael had a ‘defining influence’ over the academic life of the college for decades.
“He arrived at an institution that had come to expect the highest levels of scholastic endeavour, and it fell to him to shape what such an expectation might mean in the whirlpool of curricular and other changes that began in the 1960s and continued with growing complexity and momentum thereafter,” said Br Michael Green.
“He was more than fit for that challenge. He also, of course, continued his teaching of senior Religious Education, English, Latin and Greek, and involved himself in the college’s extramural offerings, particularly in coaching the First XI cricket and the senior debating and public speaking teams.
“As the Catholic schools’ representative on the Board of Senior School Studies for 16 years from 1962, as a member of the Australian College of Education, and the Classical Association, he also played an important part in broader educational and academic forums.
“Within the Marist Brothers he was a long-serving member of the provincial council, and meticulously fulfilled the role of province archivist for over a quarter of a century.”
For four decades, Br Michael was centrally placed in the life of the college, but fulfilled his tasks without “fanfare or heavy-handedness”, including the several periods when the role of acting headmaster was added to his many other responsibilities.
He also managed the intricacies of the college teaching timetable for 38 years, became editor of the annual college magazine and the Old Boys’ journal, Cerise and Blue, the college archivist and the author of the college’s acclaimed centennial history, A Century of Striving, and oversaw a myriad of tasks from college photos to updating of honour boards.
Br Michael was awarded a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in 2004 for his outstanding service to education, particularly through St Joseph’s College, as a teacher and administrator.
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