New Zealand

Bishop Peter Cullinane’s anniversary celebration was a party two Comments 0

cullinane

Bishop Peter Cullinane recently celebrated the 40th anniversary of his episcopal ordination. “How did I celebrate under lockdown?  – Jesus and I did it quietly together; we are hoping to celebrate with others later. He is in my bubble,” he told NZ Catholic. The anniversary on April 23 occurred when New Zeland was under Level Read more

App offered free to help NZ Churches contact trace Comments 0

churchappsnz

Snapp Mobile has released a new service in its app that gives churches a free and easy way to track and register members who want to visit the Church during Alert Level 2. Churchappsnz gives churches two options either to track or register its visitors. The service has already been offered to its 600+ existing Read more

Analysis and Comment

The Pandemic: Enduring human costs of poverty Comments 0

Loneliness is the feeling of being disconnected, excluded and disengaged from others, an agonizing feeling of emptiness or desolation, a feeling that no one cares. At the same time there is the yearning to belong, a restlessness to make a satisfying relationship, to feel valued. Prior to the coronavirus pandemic, loneliness had been identified as Read more

The United States used to have leaders Comments 0

Just over 50 years ago, on April 4, 1968 Martin Luther King Jr was assassinated and across the United States explosive protests broke out all over the country. In stark contrast to today, Robert Kennedy, a Democratic presidential candidate, gave the following speech in Indianapolis. Kennedy’s speech perhaps offers a lesson in leadership and reminds Read more

Digital celebrations Comments 0

digital celebrations

With the advent of Covid-19, Facebook and similar digital platforms seem to have become liturgical spaces. Every kind of celebration is transmitted through them: “home-made” liturgies are held, retreat houses offer online activities, spiritual assistance is offered through a computer screen and so on. The coronavirus crisis is reinforcing a trend that has been going Read more

The end of Hong Kong is being prepared Comments 0

hong kong

History is repeating itself in Hong Kong. In 2003, after the SARS epidemic, attempts were made to introduce a national security law. Similarly, it is happening now as the coronavirus recedes. But this time we fear there will be no happy ending. It is difficult to find words that we have not already written to Read more

Sacred Heart Cathedral gets grant from City Council Comments 0

grant

The Metropolitan Cathedral of the Sacred Heart and of Saint Mary His Mother in Hill Street, Thorndon, Wellington, popularly known as The Basilica has received a grant of $120,00 to assist in its $3.3 million strengthening project. The grant is a “one-off” ‘out of round’ contribution from the Wellington City Council’s Built Heritage Incentive Fund. Read more

  • Oddly

    • Christ Church Cathedral’s feline outlaws captured

      Christ Church Cathedral is now feline-free for the first time in years after the capture of Bonnie and Clyde. The pair were the last two cats left roaming the earthquake-damaged cathedral and the surrounding square after more than 25 cats Read more

  • World

  • Trump angers US bishops Comments 0

    As President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump visited a shrine to Saint John Paul II on Tuesday, Archbishop Wilton Gregory rebuked those who organised the visit. Gregory said arranging for Trump to visit the shrine was “baffling and reprehensible.” He is outraged at what he called a politicised photo opportunity. Protesters from a Read more

  • LGBT community needs better spiritual guidance Comments 0

    Now the Catholic Church is starting to address how to minister to the LGBT community, Italian Cardinal Matteo Maria Zuppi is inviting Catholics to look at gays and lesbians “as God looks at them.” “When communities will truly begin to look at people as God looks at them, then homosexual people — and everybody else Read more

  • Church in Brazil fights fake news during pandemic Comments 0

    The Catholic Church in Brazil is currently fighting both fake news and the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. During the pandemic lockdown, fake news on the internet seems to have intensified in Brazil. Much of it is directed against the Church, often by people who claim to be Catholic. One event that triggered a new wave of Read more

  • Holy See cuts corruption, centralises procurement and contracting Comments 0

    Centralising procurement procedures and contracting are among several measures the Vatican is establishing to cut waste, root out corruption and bring the Holy See’s finances into the 21st century. Pope Francis approved new norms governing contract bids and procurement procedures in his latest effort to reform the Vatican’s finances. The Vatican’s financial situation was reportedly Read more

  • Faith, not efficiency, at heart of church’s mission Comments 0

    Faith, not efficiency is at the heart of the Church’s mission, Pope Francis said in a message to the pontifical mission societies after their recent general assembly was cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic. Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelisation of Peoples, Cardinal Tagle, says Francis “is not against efficiency and methods” that could Read more