Some planned parish closures and mergers in the US St Louis archdiocese have ground to a halt following appeals and a Vatican directive. Pastoral planning The proposed parish closures and mergers were part of a major archdiocesan pastoral planning initiative. Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski announced the parish closures and mergers a year ago in a plan Read more
Germany — a nation whose history is entangled with the Catholic Church — has become a “mission country” its Bishops’ Conference says. Conference president Bishop Georg Bätzing says under half of Germany’s citizens still belong to Christian denominations. Evangelisation in Germany has been a central theme since the time of Pope St John Paul II Read more
Three innovative Roncalli College pupils hope Young Enterprises judges like their idea the best. Krishna Shah, Alexis Miller and exchange student Oliwia Sobocinska have developed a product to help ease menstrual pain. What they came up with isn’t – as some might think – maybe a soothing tisane or perhaps an app with stretching and Read more
A new “Pray the News” initiative from the Anglican Missions is inviting people to sign up to a weekly prayer blog. The Anglican Diocese of Wellington says the blog will focus on news headlines and current events affecting people everywhere. “Pray the News is for everyone” says Rev. Michael Hartfield, National Director of Anglican Missions. Read more
The Catholic Church in New Zealand is issuing a call for feedback regarding its role and response in the ongoing Royal Commission of Inquiry into Abuse in Care. Te Rōpū Tautoko, the body established to manage the Church’s dealings with the Royal Commission, has initiated an anonymous electronic feedback process that is accessible from anywhere Read more
Filipino Fr Reynaldo Bunyi Getalado was ordained Coadjutor Bishop of Rarotonga on Saturday. In what is described as “a significant and deeply moving” ordination ceremony, the Catholic Diocese of Rarotonga, Cook Islands, witnessed the beginning of a new chapter. The ordination signalled the end of 53 years’ New Zealand leadership in the diocese. A sign Read more
Soaring insurance costs are leading Catholic churches in Otago and Southland to reconsider their options. Between them, the churches in the Catholic Diocese of Dunedin face a $240,000 insurance premium bill this year. It’s a lot of money. During the past 10 years the diocese has had just one significant claim as a result of Read more
After much debate, prayer and waiting, the site for the new Christchurch Catholic Cathedral has been announced. On Sunday, Christchurch diocese’s Catholic bishop, Michael Gielen, announced the decision to use the Barbados Street site. It will be on the same site which the beautiful Petrie-designed Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament occupied until the 2011 earthquake destroyed Read more
The New Zealand Catholic Bishops Conference has selected Whanganui Parish Priest Fr Craig Butler to attend a pre-synod world meeting of parish priests at the Vatican. Butler (pictured) will represent New Zealand’s Catholic priests at the gathering from 28 April to 2 May. He and 300 confreres from across the globe will share views and Read more
NZ Catholic Bishop Steve Lowe (pictured) is dismayed Easter trading – and the current ban on it – is up for change. He’s concerned about the ACT Party’s Easter Trading bill, which was drawn in a ballot just before Easter. “I guess when I read about this, I groaned. I thought: ‘Here we go again’. Read more