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).
England’s Cardinal Vincent Nichols has pledged the Church’s ‘support and prayers’ to King Charles III ahead of his 6 May coronation, as the new monarch praised the work of faith communities in national life.
The Catholic Church in South Korea has officially petitioned the government for a total abolition of the death penalty, saying it is ineffective in curbing criminal offences.
The Nicaraguan Government has closed the apostolic nunciature in Managua and its embassy to the Holy See, after Pope Francis compared President Daniel Ortega’s regime to communist and Nazi dictatorships.
Pope Francis will travel to Hungary at the end of April, where he will meet with government officials, refugees, academic scholars and young people in Budapest. He will meet with Katalin Novák, president of Hungary, and the country’s prime minister, Viktor Orbán, as well as local bishops, priests and other members of Hungary’s Catholic community.
‘World War III has been declared,’ Pope Francis said in a wide-ranging conversation with the editors of European Jesuit publications, referring to Russia’s attack against Ukraine. ‘The world is at war,’ he said. ‘For me, today, World War III has been declared. This is something that should give us pause for thought. What is happening to humanity that we have had three world wars in a century?’
World Day of Prayer for Vocations is observed this year on Sunday, April 30, 2023. It is also known as Good Shepherd Sunday. The purpose of this day is to fulfil the Lord’s instruction to, ‘Pray the Lord of the harvest to send labourers into his harvest’ – Mt 9:38; Lk 10:2.
Across the Pacific, people are picking up the bones of their ancestors like shells on the beach. Burial grounds are being washed away by rising tides. Communities are shoring up seawalls with old tyres.
Chaplain Brian Fennessy ED, RNZChD
Later in the year I’m going on a Battlefield Tour of Germany including a visit to the Mohne and Eder Dams, of the Dambusters fame, and Colditz Castle. Charles Upham VC & Bar was a prisoner at Colditz for about six months.
Palm Sunday – Matthew 21:1-11 When they drew near Jerusalem and came to Bethphage, on the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two disciples, saying to them, ‘Go into the village opposite you, and immediately you will find an ass tethered, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them here to me. And if […]
A once popular form of prayer honouring Our Lady, Mary, Mother of Jesus, is rarely heard today, Fr James Lyons writes.