WelCom April 2022 A cathedral in Geneva, Switzerland, has celebrated its first Catholic Mass in nearly 500 years. The last Mass celebrated at St Pierre Cathedral took place in 1535. After the Reformation, the building was taken over by John Calvin’s Reformed Protestant Church. All the cathedral’s statues, paintings and stained-glass windows were destroyed and […]
WelCom April 2022 World Day of Prayer is a global ecumenical movement, led by Christian women, and celebrated on the first Friday of March each year. World Day of Prayer encourages Christian women to join in prayer and to help raise awareness of the lives and concerns of others throughout the world, for peace and […]
WelCom April 2022 On 15 August 2021, the bishops of New Zealand renewed the dedication of this country to the patronage of Mary, Mother of God Assumed into Heaven. Bishop Jean Baptiste Pompallier made the original dedication at the first Mass in Aotearoa at Totara Point in the Hokianga, January 13, 1838. To celebrate, the […]
WelCom April 2022 Pope Francis sent a video message in Spanish last month, to young people involved in preparations for World Youth Day 2023, to take place from August 1–6 in Lisbon, Portugal. The Pope said he looks forward to meeting young people for the celebrations just as they do in gathering together from around […]
WelCom is the monthly newspaper of the Archdiocese of Wellington and the Diocese of Palmerston North. Copies of the newspaper are free and available in parishes and schools.
WelCom March 2022 “Every war leaves our world worse than it was before. War is a failure of politics and of humanity, a shameful capitulation, a stinging defeat before the forces of evil.” Fratelli tutti (261) – Franciscus Pope Francis’ tweet in Russian and English, 24 February 2022 In an unprecedented departure from diplomatic protocol, […]
WelCom March 2022 Pope Francis has called for a day of prayer and fasting for peace in Ukraine to be observed on Wednesday 2 March – Ash Wednesday. At his general audience on Wednesday 23 February, Pope Francis called on believers and non-believers to combat the ‘diabolical insistence, the diabolical senselessness of violence’ with prayer […]
WelCom March 2022 As I write this we are into the third week of the protests at Parliament, which are affecting the streets and precincts of Parliament, the Court Houses, the Anglican and Catholic precincts, St Mary’s College, Sacred Heart Cathedral School, the National Library, private businesses and residents. The lives of many people have […]
WelCom March 2022 Cardinal John Dew has written to priests and lay pastoral leaders, urging them to relieve the anxiety of parishioners by clearly having precautions in place for their safety. ‘This may involve going beyond the government’s guidelines in some areas, such as by not singing, and requiring the priests and other ministers to […]
WelCom March 2022 Bishop Steve Lowe, formerly Bishop of Hamilton, was installed as the 12th Catholic Bishop of Auckland, on Saturday, 19 February 2022. This follows the retirement of Bishop Pat Dunn who has been Auckland’s Catholic Bishop for 27 years. The installation of Bishop Lowe was at Auckland’s St Patrick’s Cathedral under the protocols […]