The Lutheran and Catholic churches in New Zealand have approved a statement recognising the unity of each other’s baptisms. The baptism agreement is the first major work of New Zealand’s Roman Catholic-Lutheran Dialogue Commission. The Commission has held regular meetings since being created by Lutheran Bishop Mark Whitfield and Cardinal John Dew in 2017 during Read more
The New Zealand Government says it will quadruple overseas aid to help poorer countries deal with climate change. The allocation has been increased to $1.3 billion. The Government says the increase in overseas aid means that New Zealand will now be paying its fair share towards global climate funding. It is part of a global Read more
Lawyers for New Zealand Churches and a Catholic bishop acting in a private capacity tried to push back on the scope of the Royal Commission of Inquiry into abuse in care, says the Royal Commission chair. The move infuriated a survivors’ group so much it has pulled out. This is a “final blow” to an Read more
Hundreds of charities and community groups are struggling to meet multimillion-dollar revenue shortfalls as the impact of Covid lockdowns continue – according to new figures. A local initiative which offers $1m in funding to charities and community organisations has had applications for over six times the amount of available funds this year. New funding data Read more
New figures show over two thirds of the children who have died in state care since Oranga Tamariki was established were Māori. Experts say this is due to an over-representation of Māori in state care. Information accessed by the Herald by an Official Information Act request shows 23 out of the 28 children who died Read more
Changes to New Zealand legislation in March 2020 has resulted in a three per cent rise in abortions. After a decade of falling numbers, the Ministry of Health says 13,246 abortions were performed last year. This number compared to 12,857 in 2019 and 16,630 in 2010. The mean age of those having an abortion last Read more
A Westport priest’s house was gutted in an early morning fire on Saturday. Father David Gruschow was out with his dogs when the fire started. He came back to a burned out shell, with all his possessions destroyed. Gruschow bought the house when he moved to Westport three and a half years ago. He is Read more
A sharp increase in demand for mental health support has helped spur the University of Otago’s push to improve student support services. Counselling and chaplaincy services, especially for the university’s burgeoning Maori student population are in particular need of extra support. The costs of the additional services will be met from student fees. To achieve Read more
The General Secretary of the Pacific Conference of Churches, Reverend James Bhagwan, says its vital Pacific voices are heard at the UN’s Climate Change Conference in Glasgow which begins at the end of this month. The conference, also known as COP26, is billed as the most important climate meeting since Paris in 2015 when countries Read more
Since the start of the Delta outbreak lockdown, 8500 more people have ended up on the benefit, Ministry of Social Development figures show. While job losses have been nowhere near as severe as the first lockdown in March last year, many thousands of whānau are still struggling to make ends meet, as COVID-19 restrictions remain Read more