WelCom is the monthly newspaper of the Archdiocese of Wellington. Print copies of the eight-page newsletter are free and available in parishes, and sent to parishes and schools in PDF form. The archive contains WelCom stories published from 2007 to 2026 (May).
On 19 December 2022 Sister Francesca Bourke rsj, of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Sacred Heart will be celebrating her 100th birthday in Whanganui. Family, Sisters and friends will be gathering with her to reminisce and be thankful for her long life.
To mark World Day of the Poor on November 13, Dr Mary Eastham and Dr Mary Nash held a workshop at Palmerston North’s diocesan centre about The Letter – a new documentary, directed by Emmy-winner Nicholas Brown. The film premiered at the Vatican on 4 October and can be viewed online at theletterfilm.org
Palmerston North’s new deputy mayor, Debi Marshall-Lobb, is a former Catholic school principal, including at Hato Pāora Catholic Māori Boys’ College and Masterton’s Chanel College.
Retired Anglican bishop, former Dean of Christchurch Cathedral, theologian and writer, John Bluck has written a new book exploring spirituality and biculturalism in this country.
A new initiative to provide support services for Pasifika Communities in the Hawke’s Bay was officially launched in Hastings last month. Kainga Pasifika Services Trust was formally opened on 24 November at a ceremony at the Aubert Centre in Flaxmere, the base of its operations.
Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand is deeply concerned carbon-cutting commitments under the Paris Agreement on climate change still leave the world facing a 2.5°C temperature rise – and that’s if countries deliver on their promises.
The latest issue of WelCom is available to read here.
As we come to the end of what seems to have been for many a tumultuous year, and as we seem to be hurtling towards Christmas faster than ever, it is time for me to say THANK YOU to everyone around the Archdiocese of Wellington and the Diocese of Palmerston North. It is also time to stop and reflect once again on what it means to have our God living among us, present to us and walking with us.
Nine months from the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Pope Francis has sent a letter to the Ukranian people praying for peace and saying he shares in their suffering, especially that of the children, the elderly and women who have endured violence.
Wellington Coadjutor Archbishop Paul Martin sm is calling on the Catholic community of the archdiocese to help bring the Sacred Heart Cathedral Restoration project to completion. A cathedral is the cornerstone of a diocese and a point of unity for everybody in the diocese, says Archbishop Paul.