The Director of Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand, Julianne Hickey is calling for action from politicial leaders to address child poverty in New Zealand. Stats NZ figures show there has been an increase in material hardship and Hickey warns child poverty risks becoming ingrained. In voicing its concern, Caritas points out that 4100 more children living Read more
Papua New Guinea (PNG) should discuss resettling Manus Island refugees in New Zealand, says the Catholic Church in PNG. The general secretary of the Catholic Bishops Conference of PNG, Giorgio Licini, wrote to PNG’s Prime Minister James Marape in January about this. In the letter Licini reminded Marape of New Zealand’s long standing offer to Read more
Our unborn babies will lose their legal rights if Parliament passes the Abortion Legislation Bill in the form proposed by a select committee, New Zealand’s Catholic bishops say. Their existing rights are already tenuous, the bishops note. The legislation offers infants with foetal disabilities even less protection than they have under the current law. Speaking Read more
Catholic education is in demand – but going to a Catholic school and attending Sunday Mass are not necessarily a package deal to many Catholic families. Taranaki priest Simon Story says many Catholic families approach him for the religious endorsement required to get their children into a Catholic school. This endorsement attests to the children Read more
The Catholic Church should apologise for its role in the confiscation of Māori land and colonisation, says the New Zealand Māori Council . A pivotal part of this involves the “Doctrine of Discovery”. This doctrine (which is enshrined in Catholic law) was used internationally as justification for Christians to claim land belonging to non-Christians. Māori Read more
Cardinal John Dew preached a message of religious tolerance, inclusion and acceptance when giving the homily on Waitangi Day. Dew, the Archbishop of Wellington, urged New Zealanders to recommit to protecting the beliefs of followers of all religions and of non-religious people. Preaching at the interdenominational church service at Waitangi on Thursday, Dew recalled the Read more
The National Centre for Religious Studies has produced a new framing document for Catholic Schools and the wider Aotearoa Catholic community on human sexuality education. The document is titled He Anga Whakamārama – Te Mātauranga Hōkakatanga: He puka ārahi mā ngā hapori Katorika o Aotearoa (Framing Document – Human Sexuality Education: A guide for Catholic Read more
Integrated schools are considering legal action against the Government after being left out of the $396 million funding package announced at the weekend to upgrade state school properties. Education Minister Chris Hipkins says state-integrated schools funding will go up as a result of an investment and he isn’t worried about potential court action. Association of Read more
In Samoa, fifty-three people are now dead, after having contracted measles. More than 3000 people have now been infected with the disease and doctors say the death toll is likely to rise. George Fa’alogo, Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand’s (CANZ) humanitarian coordinator, is in close contact with Caritas Samoa. He says, “We’re at a loss to Read more
Caritas New Zealand is shocked and deeply saddened to learn a convicted child abuser Luk Delft, (pictured), a Belgian Salesian priest, was appointed as the Country Director for Caritas Central African Republic (CAR). Caritas NZ has written to Caritas Internationalis expressing its deep concerns and asking how this was able to happen. “We have sought Read more