Posts Tagged ‘Presbyterian Church’

Group protesting church tree removal want council to bring back heritage tree register

Thursday, August 24th, 2023

The Lumsden Tree Lovers group has been protesting the removal of 130-year-old cypress trees from the Lumsden Presbyterian Church grounds this week. On Monday, a small group of people gathered at the church and chained themselves to one of the trees in protest of a decision to fell the trees, planted in the 1890s, to Read more

A church investigates supplying cheap electricity

Monday, November 26th, 2018
cheap electricity

A Hawkes Bay church wants to build a mega solar farm to help to reduce energy poverty in the region. To alleviate the energy situation for about 400 Flaxmere households, Reverend Jill McDonald and Chris Lambourne of St Andrew’s Presbyterian Church in Hastings hope to construct a large solar farm to provide Flaxmere with cheap Read more

Presbyterians elect Tokelauan-Samoan as new Moderator

Thursday, September 27th, 2018

The Right Rev Taimoanaifakaofo (Fakaofo) Kaio of Auckland is the new Moderator or elected leader of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand. He begins his two-year term from the evening of Wednesday 3 October 2018. Continue reading

Presbyterian Church welcomes Pope Francis’s encyclical

Friday, June 26th, 2015

Pope has important message on climate change for New Zealand says Presbyterian Church The Presbyterian Church has enthusiastically welcomed Pope Francis’s encyclical on the environment which addresses one of the great moral challenges of our time, climate change. “Climate change is a global problem with grave implications: environmental, social, economic, political and for the distribution Read more

Dunedin minister named a Presbyterian Moderator from 2016

Friday, October 24th, 2014

A Dunedin minister is ”quite humbled” to be named as the next leader of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand. On Tuesday the Rev Richard Dawson was  announced as moderator-designate, and will become moderator in late 2016. Mr Dawson (56), who is minister at St Stephens Leith Valley Presbyterian Church, said he was surprised Read more

Wellington church defies same sex marriage decree

Friday, October 10th, 2014

A Wellington Presbyterian church will defy the its Church’s decree and will continue to perform same sex marriages. On 7 October the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church of Aotearoa New Zealand decided to ban its ministers from conducting same sex-marriage ceremonies. “What matters in a marriage is the quality of the commitment and the Read more

Columba College seen as toxic workplace by PPTA

Friday, December 6th, 2013

The Post Primary Teachers Association says a prestigious Presbyterian girls’ school in Dunedin is a toxic workplace that may need outside intervention. A dispute between the management of Columba College, staff and the PPTA has reached a stand-off, with union no-confidence motions, resignations and board investigations. The PPTA says it began raising complaints at Columba Read more

New Zealand church turns to alcohol to attract more members

Tuesday, September 17th, 2013

With promotional events like “Wine and theology evenings” and “Beer and barbeque” church services, congregants of New Zealand’s  Presbyterian Church are now embracing alcohol as an evangelism tool to attract more members and increase their bottom line according to a new study coming out of that country. Highlighting new research by religion expert, Dr. Geoff Read more

Presbyterians asked to preserve unity by banning gay weddings

Tuesday, August 20th, 2013

The head of New Zealand’s third-largest church has asked its ministers to consider a temporary ban on gay weddings to preserve the church’s “peace and unity”. The call from Presbyterian Church Moderator Ray Coster comes as all the country’s biggest Protestant churches remain divided over how to respond to the legalisation of gay weddings, which Read more

Proposed SkyCity deal potentially devastating for Pasifika people

Tuesday, July 16th, 2013

The National Party’s two Pasifika MPs are being urged to ‘do the right thing’ and vote against legislation for the SkyCity convention centre deal. Under a deal with the Government, the casino operator will build a $400 million centre in Auckland in exchange for a 27-year extension to its licence and the right to have Read more