New Zealand Marist priest, David Mullins won selection from the New Zealand ANZAC Gallipoli 2015 centenary commemoration ballot and will travel to Gallipoli next year. Fr Mullins will join 2,000 other New Zealanders commemorating 100 years since the ANZAC landing on the peninsula in Turkey, where more than 8,500 and 2,721 New Zealand soldiers lost Read more
A visiting United Nations delegation says the New Zealand Government needs to investigate why a systemic bias against Maori is evident in the country’s criminal justice system. The delegation, which reports to the UN Human Rights Council, in a statement released at the conclusion of its visit to New Zealand any bias against Maori leading Read more
Already plans are well underway inNew Zealand’s cathedral churches to mark the canonisation of Pope John XXIII and Pope John Paul II . The canonisations will take place at St Peter’s Basilica in Rome at 10am on 27 April, the Second Sunday of Easter (Divine Mercy Sunday). The corresponding time here in New Zealand will Read more
New Zealand minister of Justice, Judith Collins is hailing the success of restorative justice conferences as a way to bring down crime rates. She says it’s clear restorative justice conferences are a useful tool in keeping offenders from going on to commit other crimes. “It’s estimated from the 1569 meetings held in 2011 and 2012, Read more
Differences over the blessing and ordination of gays could see the Anglican church in New Zealand could split or even disintegrate. These are two of the options being considered by a church commission dealing with differing views over same-sex relationships. The commission, established two years ago, and chaired by former governor-general, Sir Anand Satyanand, was Read more
Severe flooding in the Solomon Islands helped give extra meaning to the 6,000 young people taking part in the Caritas Challenge over the weekend. “We need to be far more grateful for all we have because they have so little and even that is being taken away from them,” said Mareko Ennor, a Year 12 student Read more
Over 6,000 youth will be participating in Caritas Challenge events in New Zealand this week end. The Caritas Challenge is an annual 24-hour event for schools and youth groups during Lent At Garin College in Nelson, for example, over 170 students are spending Saturday night in cardboard boxes on the school’s tennis courts and going Read more
A Polish priest, Father Slawomir Kostrzewa, is citing a study from New Zealand in a dire warning that Lego’s new line of Monster Fighters and Zombies figures are tools of Satan that can destroy their children’s souls. Kostrzewa says the Danish toy company had taken a lurch to the dark side with its series of Read more
This weekend Samoan representatives from 25 Auckland parishes will meet in south Auckland to discuss political parties and Christian values. Some commentators are saying this will be a litmus test for Labour support. South Auckland electorates are traditionally Labour thanks in large part to church-going Pacific Islanders. The meeting is a response to small group of Read more
The principal of Porirua’s Bishop Viard College is on extended leave for the whole of the next term. Board of Trustees Chairman, Alan Holden, confirmed Tuesday evening, it had grated Teresa Cargo’s request. On Tuesday, CathNews reported that Mr Holden described Ms Cargo’s request as “not unwelcome”. There is much comment in the media that Read more