In 2025, CathNews will be published by the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference (NZCBC). The Church Resources Ltd board, the current publisher of CathNews, recently made this decision. The move follows the closure of NZ Catholic in June and the promise of a new publication. Forward looking – a new chapter This change marks a Read more
Catholic Church leaders in Palmerston North have urged a District Court judge to take an empathetic approach to sentencing Tony MacDonald, who set fire to the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit in April 2023. MacDonald had been in prison since May 2023. He appeared in the Palmerston North District Court on Wednesday charged with arson. He Read more
Lyn Tankersley says homeless people in Masterton will soon have a safe place to sleep. To that end, accommodation for 13 is being fashioned from a once-derelict hall near central Masterton and is being transformed into “a haven of hope”. “My father was a Presbyterian minister. My mother was a Presbyterian minister’s daughter. The motto Read more
Christchurch’s Anglican Diocese has reaffirmed its good relationship with the Catholic Diocese of Christchurch amid concerns about the sale of St Albans Church to the Transalpine Redemptorists. The Anglican diocese recently sold St Albans via a trust. The church is now being used by the Sons of the Redeemer, also known as the Transalpine Redemptorists. Read more
Gaza should not be investigated to see if the conflict meets the technical definition of a genocide, Edith Bruck told Pope Francis (both pictured). The Pope can’t call Gaza a genocide. It isn’t, insists Bruck – a 93-year old Holocaust survivor. “Genocide is something else. When a million children are burned to death, then you Read more
A new initiative aims to provide tailored support to people who have been sheltered in emergency housing for over a year, helping them transition to permanent accommodation. Wellington City Mission and Emerge Aotearoa in Waikato are the first organisations to deliver the two-year trial. Associate Housing Minister Tama Potaka announced that up to 100 participants Read more
To combat abuse and protect vulnerable people, France’s Catholic bishops adopted new guidelines last week for priests hearing confessions and giving spiritual counselling. The new measures follow recommendations from the Independent Commission on Sexual Abuse in the Church (CIASE) which three years ago urged the Church to implement strict directives for confessors. The guidelines specify Read more
After formally banning several “doctrinally problematic” hymns last week, a Missouri bishop, Shawn McKnight, changed his tune, rescinding his original decree in favour of a 12-month synodal process. In his 5 November decree, McKnight wrote “It is now clear that an authentically synodal process of greater consultation did not occur prior to its promulgation”. He Read more
In an unexpected move, the contentious Transalpine Redemptorist Order asked to leave the Christchurch Catholic diocese earlier this year has taken over an historic church – in the Christchurch Catholic diocese. Last Friday the Order – also knows as the Sons of the Most Holy Redeemer – announced on its “Latin Mass Chaplaincy Christchurch” Facebook Read more
A new Catholic support network that will extend across the Pacific aims to take care of Oceania’s migrant workers, refugees and their families. The Most Rev. Anthony Randazzo of Broken Bay, Australia (pictured left), who is President of the Federation of Catholic Bishops Conference of Oceania, (New Zealand, Australia and the South Pacific Islands) says Read more