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It is not possible to find Jesus outside the Church, the community that gives Christians their identity, Pope Francis said in a homily on his personal feast day. Dozens of cardinals living in Rome or visiting the Vatican joined in the April 23 celebration of Mass on the feast of St George — the patron Read more
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I was thinking about questions in the census concerning religious belief and began wondering how we identify ourselves. Many brought up in traditional faiths now no longer want to identify with these belief systems. Neither do they want to dismiss these systems as they recognise them as pivotal in shaping their worldview. So they tick Read more
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I read … “I am amazed how often I meet people who ‘once were Catholics’. You never ask why they left the church. There will be umpteen reasons why just as there are umpteen people. But millions have remained true to their Catholic faith.” Merepeka Raukawa-Tait in The Daily Post, March 19, 2013 I wondered Read more
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In an article on the state of the church in Christchurch, New Zealand, Anna Turner says the number of Christians in Christchurch is dropping, while those identifying as non-religious is steadily on the rise. According to the last census, many Christchurch Christians were older, with 20.6 per cent being over 65. Those who were non-religious Read more
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I read, with a sickening mix of disbelief and recognition, about the mother of a shark attack victim trying to change a flight so that she could cradle her dead son. She encountered an impersonal, inflexible CALL CENTRE. The bereaved woman was left on hold; and finally only offered expensive alternatives. Governed by protocols and Read more
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I am one of a rapidly growing group – a woman in the second-half of life, struggling to find a place of belonging in the institutional church. The mainstream churches are hemorrhaging committed, gifted, passionate, knowledgeable, prayerful, spiritual seekers. Women who have given twenty, thirty, forty, fifty years in the service of their spiritual or Read more
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Some mainstream New Zealand churches are struggling to keep their heads above the communion wine but other religions are thriving, building new churches, mosques and temples and gathering devoted worshippers in their thousands. Banks of lights pulsate in waves of colour, and cameras project images on to three monstrous screens. And there is plenty of Read more
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The Roman Catholic Church is the largest Christian denomination, with more than a billion members worldwide. Its Latin Rite (there are several others) is the only organized branch of Christianity to expand substantially beyond Europe. However, this globalization is relatively recent. Yes, there were Franciscans with Marco Polo on his 13th century journey to China. Read more
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In a return to old fashioned values, New Zealand youth are admiring skill, determination and achievement above wealth and fame. The most respected heroes and icons are Mother Teresa, Martin Luther King, Sir Edmund Hillary, Mahatma Ghandi and Nelson Mandela. Jesus and God are the highest ranking religious figures. Youthtown commissioned Point Research to perform Read more
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Church groups need to recruit young women to perform voluntary work traditionally done by older women, leaders say. Lutheran Women SA president Joan Zilm said older women performed crucial everyday tasks in congregations and women’s groups contributed significantly to congregation and district budgets. “If women weren’t there to do those things I wouldn’t say the Read more
