WelCom August 2021 On 19 July 2021, PNG Bishops called for Australia to legislate for the freedom and resettlement in Australia of detainees on Manus Island and Nauru who are unable to return to their home country. The date, 19 July, marks the eighth anniversary since the Australian Parliament legislated the mandatory, indefinite offshore detention […]
WelCom August 2021 Sr Josephine Gorman dolc The 186th anniversary of the birth of Suzanne Aubert – Meri Hohepa, coincided with Pope Francis proclaiming 2021 the year of St Joseph, to mark the 150th anniversary of the dedication of St Joseph as Patron of the Universal Church. Because St Joseph was so important in the […]
WelCom August 2021 A Jubilee Mass of Thanksgiving was celebrated at St Patrick’s Church, Kilbirnie, 14 July, as a significant milestone in the lives of several clergy in the Archdiocese of Wellington. Celebrating presbyterial ordination anniversaries: 65 years – Fr John Rea sm (2020); 60 years – Msgr Charles Cooper, Frs Des Darby sm (2020), […]
WelCom June/July 2021 The New Zealand Catholic Bishops and the Nathaniel Centre for Bioethics have started a campaign to provide accurate information about the COVID-19 vaccine, which is being rolled out throughout Aotearoa New Zealand. Director of the Nathaniel Centre, Dr John Kleinsman, said that the Bishops were concerned about the amount of misinformation circulating […]
WelCom June/July 2021 Michael Fitzsimons Donors to Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand will have their donations multiplied fourfold, thanks to a new funding partnership with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT). Under the new partnership, called He Oranga Taurikura (‘A Thriving Life’), the government will match donations by adding $3 for every $1 donated […]
WelCom June/July 2021 Cardinal John’s homily below was delivered at the final Mass and closure of St Gerard’s Church, Mt Victoria, on Pentecost Sunday, 23 May 2021. On Easter Sunday the women thought they would find a body to anoint; they found an empty tomb. They went to mourn the dead; they heard a proclamation […]
WelCom June/July 2021 Emma Dodsworth At a packed Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in Palmerston North on Tuesday 11 May, Tony Murphy was awarded the title Knight of the Order of Saint Gregory the Great for his service to the Church. The title was awarded by Pope Francis and Cardinal John Dew presented Tony with […]
WelCom June/July 2021 Pā Piripi Cody Richard (or Dick) Puanaki of Wairoa died (aged 72) at his hometown on Tuesday, 20 April, 2021. In his Requiem Mass, at St Peter’s Church Wairoa, he had pre-recorded a message for his whānau and for people to remember. In that message he stated, ‘If my tombstone has my […]
WelCom June/July 2021 New Zealand Catholics hungering for inspiration after the long pandemic are invited to join the Alive in the Spirit online conference from 8–10 July 2021. Three long-standing and wide-reaching Catholic networks have combined forces to host the Trans-Tasman event – the Pastoral Ministry Network, Christian Initiation Australia Network, and the Mission Planners […]
WelCom June/July 2021 Michael Fitzsimons Substantial increases to base benefit rates announced in Budget 2021 have been welcomed by a range of church agencies. It was announced in the May Budget that benefits will be boosted by up to $55 a week, with the increase being implemented in two stages, the first being a $20-a-week […]