A man Philanthropist Gareth Morgan calls New Zealand’s own Mother Teresa has died in Bangladesh. Edric Baker was an inspirational New Zealand medical doctor who worked in an isolated rural area in northern Bangladesh for 35 years. His vision of ‘health care for the poor by the poor’ led him to set up of the Kailakuri Health Read more
The Bishop of Christchurch has issued a pastoral letter on the Diocesan Recovery Plan. In the letter, Bishop Barry Jones stated that the plan for the diocese is a “single plan” including the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament. The letter sets out the goals in terms of time frame and building standards to be achieved. The Read more
The New Zealand Catholic Bishops have welcomed the Terms of Reference released by Parliament’s Health Select Committee for an investigation into ending a person’s life in New Zealand. The inquiry will look at the factors that contributed to a person wanting to end their life, as well as the experiences of other countries who have Read more
The students at Hato Petera College are taking things into their own hands in an effort to ensure their hostel remains a going concern. The Ministry of Education doesn’t have oversight of school hostels, but it is responsible for their licensing and in extreme circumstances they can revoke them. The ministry has expressed concerns about Read more
A statue of Our Lady believers say has slashed the number of deaths on a Northland road has been restored and returned to its place overlooking the once accident-plagued highway. For more than 20 years, Our Lady of the Highway – known to locals as Matou Whaea (Our Lady) – has looked out over State Read more
You may not be surprised to know that the St Vincent de Paul Society in Hamilton has the Loaves & Fishes programme, which takes school lunches to children in 24 Hamilton schools. What may be more of an eye opener is that a local gang is doing the same thing. The Tribal Huks is a Read more
The Archdiocese of Wellington and the Diocese of Auckland are cooperating to provide opportunities for New Zealanders to attend World Youth Day 2016 in Krakow Poland. Two pilgrimage packages are being provided, one for a direct pilgrimage to Poland, the second will also include a visit to the Holy Land. The Wellington Archdiocese is inviting expressions Read more
In November and December eight seminarians and a priest from Holy Cross Seminary in Auckland will be cycling the length of New Zealand to promote and pray for vocations to the priesthood. The pilgrimage will begin at Cape Reinga, which is the northern most point on the mainland of New Zealand. It will take about Read more
This week has been designated as Vocations Awareness week in New Zealand. Its purpose is to promote vocations to the priesthood, women and men religious, diaconate and consecrated life through prayer and education, and to renew prayers and support for those who are considering one of these particular vocations. In 2013, Pope Francis declared that Read more
New Zealand’s reputation as a great place to bring up kids is taking some big blows. Fourteen women, six men and ten children are killed by a member of their family every year on average. Now the Government is considering making family violence a stand-alone offence. Domestic violence is gaining the attention of the Vatican. Read more