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).
WelCom December 2021 Leaders of Ireland’s Christian churches presented a united front during a ceremony marking 100 years of partition of Ireland. ‘For the past 100 years, partition has polarised people on this island. It has institutionalised difference, and it remains a symbol of political, cultural and religious division between our communities,’ said Catholic Archbishop […]
WelCom December 2021 India will have its first canonised layman in May next year. Nilakandan Pillai, born in 1712, took the name ‘Lazarus’ – Devasahayam in the local Tamil language – when he converted to Catholicism. ‘While preaching, he particularly insisted on the equality of all people, despite caste differences. This aroused the hatred of […]
WelCom December 2021 A new survey of US priests has found younger clergy tend to be more conservative than their elders on many issues. ‘We find strong empirical confirmation of the nearly ubiquitous perception that younger priests are more orthodox in their beliefs than older priests,’ the authors state in the abstract. ‘Additionally, we find […]
WelCom December 2021 Lucienne Hensel Parishes around the archdiocese are engaging with the Synod process, and submissions are flowing in. Our Synod Team have been working with parish leadership teams, pastoral councils, and ethnic community leaders, guiding them through the process and helping them to facilitate Synod groups in their respective communities. Some parishes are […]
WelCom December 2021 In response to the extension given by the General Secretariat for the Synod of Bishops, the Diocese of Palmerston North has moved the deadline of the Synod’s ‘listening phase’ to 31 March 2022. Submissions are welcome from groups and individuals up until this date. So far, this extension has been well received, […]
WelCom December 2021 With the new year rapidly approaching, we are in a race to gather the remaining funds to complete restoration of our Sacred Heart Cathedral. The hope is to reopen this spiritual and cultural treasure by mid-2022. Picking up the pace, a group of parishioners will be seeking one-off donations to cover items […]
WelCom December 2021 The congregation of St Peter’s Church in Wairoa, north of Napier, celebrated a significant occasion on Sunday, 31 October, when they welcomed into the church Thea Olive Clarke – a fourth-generation member of the Clarke family. ‘It was a stupendous day, blessed with lovely weather, as four generations gathered for the baptism […]
WelCom December 2021 Rev Dr Joe Grayland After nine years at the Cathedral and before this in the Palmerston North Diocesan Office, Kate Bell has decided to move to begin a new adventure in Wellington. During the 1990s, Kate worked as the city’s tertiary chaplain. Kate has long and strong family connections to the Cathedral […]
WelCom December 2021 Jane Lee, Parish Secretary Betty and Gerry Durr of Our Lady of Hope Parish, Tawa and Titahi Bay, were presented with a Papal Blessing on 8 November 2021, after celebrating their 60th anniversary on 24 June this year. The celebration was rather belated due to overseas postal and freight delays with framing. […]
WelCom December 2021 Pā Colin Durning came to the priesthood as a late vocation after a life of remarkable achievements. Over the years he has not only been father to his eight children but also Fr Colin Durning, Professor Durning, as well as being recognised as a kaumātua by Māori. Last month whānau and friends […]