History Of The School Crest

The Whitsunday Anglican School Crest

When establishing the Whitsunday Anglican School, the seventh Anglican Bishop of North Queensland, The Right Reverend John Lewis SSM, approached well known Anglican, Mr Stan Moses of Atherton, who has designed Coats of Arms for the Diocesan Schools and designed and made vestments, banners and pieces of furniture for liturgical use. Mr Moses designed and carved the Eagle Lectern for use at our school assemblies and in memory of Thomas Jacklin.

The Coat of Arms incorporates:

  • The Dove, symbolising the Holy Spirit of the first Whitsunday – Pentecost
  • The Cross of St James – Patron Saint of our Diocese
  • The rising sun symbolising Jesus and the first Whitsunday morning
  • The blue sea and yellow sand associated with Mackay and the Whitsunday Islands named on June 4, 1770, by Captain James Cook
  • The sea is in wave form as the sea, the Holy Spirit and the School are always moving (suggested by Archdeacon David Philp)
  • The Motto: Spiritus Scientiae – the Spirit of Knowledge is noted as one of the gifts of God to God’s people as written in the First Letter of Paul to the Corinthians Chapter 12.

Whitsunday – Pentecost

On the day of Pentecost (A Jewish festival that came fifty days after Passover and celebrated the wheat harvest) all the Lord’s followers were together in one place. 2Suddenly there was a noise from heaven like the sound of a mighty wind! It filled the house where they were meeting. 3Then the followers saw what looked like fiery tongues moving in all directions, and a tongue came and settled on each person there. 4The Holy Spirit took control of everyone, and the followers began speaking whatever languages the Spirit let them speak. 5Many religious Jews from every country in the world were living in Jerusalem. 6And when the religious Jews heard this noise, a crowd gathered. They were surprised because they were hearing everything in their own languages. 7They were excited and amazed, and said:

Don’t all these who are speaking come from Galilee? 8Then why do we hear them speaking our very own languages? 9Some of us are from Parthia, Media, and Elam. Others are from Mesopotamia, Judea, Cappadocia, Pontus, Asia, 10Phrygia, Pamphylia, Egypt, parts of Libya near Cyrene, Rome, 11Crete, and Arabia. Some of us were born Jews, and others of us have chosen to be Jews. Yet we all hear them using our own languages to tell the wonderful things God has done.

12Everyone was excited and confused. Some of them even kept asking each other, “What does all this mean?”

13Others made fun of the Lord’s followers and said, “They are drunk.”


Peter Speaks to the Crowd

14Peter stood with the eleven apostles and spoke in a loud and clear voice to the crowd:

Friends and everyone else living in Jerusalem, listen carefully to what I have to say! 15You are wrong to think that these people are drunk. After all, it is only nine o’clock in the morning.

38Peter said, “Turn back to God! Be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ, so that your sins will be forgiven. Then you will be given the Holy Spirit. 39This promise is for you and your children. It is for everyone our Lord God will choose, no matter where they live.”

41On that day about three thousand believed his message and were baptized.


Life among the Lord’s Followers

43Everyone was amazed by the many miracles and wonders that the apostles worked. 44All the Lord’s followers often met together, and they shared everything they had. 45They would sell their property and possessions and give the money to whoever needed it. 46Day after day they met together in the temple. They broke bread (ate together and celebrated the Lord’s Supper) together in different homes and shared their food happily and freely, 47while praising God. Everyone liked them, and each day the Lord added to their group others who were being saved.