The Bishop of Auckland, Bishop Patrick Dunn, has described some of pop-singer Madonna’s performances as ‘highly offensive to Christianity’. Bishop Dunn’s comments, made to the New Zealand Herald, came ahead of performances by Madonna in Auckland. “There is no question in my mind that some of Madonna’s material is highly offensive to Christianity and will Read more
The head of the Polish bishops’ conference has lumped New Zealand in with the German bishops in terms of contributions at last year’s synod on the family. Archbishop Stanislaw Gadecki discussed the synod in a recent interview with EWTN Germany. The archbishop was asked about if there had been a “German-Polish” war at the synod. Read more
An old creche in Memorial Park could bring an influx of tourists and millions of dollars to Wellington, but it’s not without headaches according to Suzanne Aubert Compassion Centre director Francis Fanning. Fanning said a key part of that plan would be to turn the Home of Compassion creche, which was built by Mother Aubert in Read more
In September last year, Wellington’s Anglican and Catholic Bishops asked the Red Cross how they could help the Syrian refugees coming to New Zealand. They were asked to kit out homes, and people have been giving from right across the region. So far religious groups in the lower North Island have gathered household supplies for Read more
New Zealand prime minister John Key has opened the door to accepting 37 asylum seeker children destined for Nauru, offering a solution to the current immigration standoff. Speaking ahead of a meeting with Australian prime minister Malcolm Turnbull this week, Key said it was “potentially possible” for New Zealand to accept any genuine refugees from Read more
Requiem Mass for The Bishop of Christchurch, Barry Jones, who died on Saturday, will be held at 1pm on Friday. Burial will take place after the Mass at Bromley Cemetery. He will be taken to the Carmelite Monastery on Tuesday afternoon. On Wednesday afternoon the Bishop will rest at Te Rangimarie Centre. He will then lie Read more
Scientists have found an explanation for the rise of widespread co-operation among humans in societies – the fear of an angry god. International researchers, including the University of Auckland’s Associate Professor Quentin Atkinson, have published the results of their study in the journal Nature. They found people who believe their god is more punitive and Read more
Pa Hemi Hekiera died in Rotorua on Friday. His priestly ministry was focused on strengthening Maori Catholics as both Māori and Catholic. His sudden death follows the recent deaths of two other priests who spent many years working with Māori Catholics. Fr Wim Tuerlings, a Mill Hill priest died in the Netherlands on 2 December. Read more
The Marist Brothers in Australia, Melanesia and the Pacific are heeding a call for their ministry to spread to people on the margins of society. The Brothers’ Melanesia district covers Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and Bougainville, and the Pacific district includes New Zealand, Samoa and Kiribati. Almost 50 Brothers attended a gathering at Read more
An ecumenical body comprising the Anglican, Methodist and Presbyterian churches of New Zealand is stressing its opposition to the introduction of “physician assisted suicide.” The ecumenical body advises the churches on the “spiritual, ethical and cultural issues connected to biotechnology and related issues”. In making its submission to the Health Select Committee, the InterChurch Bioethics Council (ICBC), accepted that Read more