New Zealand’s Catholic bishops are supporting a campaign to help people stay safe on social media. The campaign was developed after diocesan communications and pastoral staff noticed an increase in suspicious activities on Church social media pages. The Staying Safe on Social Media campaign starts next Monday, 20 March. It features special posts each day Read more
Plans for Christchurch’s new Catholic Cathedral are now under review, says Simon Thompson, the diocese general manager. “Bishop Michael (pictured) just wants to make sure he gets it right.” He said the new Cathedral precinct would be a fantastic addition to the city, a place where people, including tourists, would be able to “bump into Read more
A Ukrainian couple who fled their war-torn homeland and found sanctuary in Aotearoa are pleading with the New Zealand Government to let them stay. Andrii Mishchenko and Olha Turska arrived in New Zealand in April 2022 on the two-year special Ukraine visa. The area surrounding their hometown of Sloviansk in Donbas was involved in intense Read more
Cardinal John Dew is to have spinal surgery on March 21. A period of 6 – 8 weeks of convalescence will follow. Known to be a keen walker, Dew writes on Facebook: “since June of last year I have had difficulty walking due to pain in my legs. “I have greatly missed my early morning Read more
A Catholic defector granted asylum in New Zealand in 2018 says he wants New Zealanders to understand the importance of democratic freedom. When Dong Luobin, now 39, fled from Auckland’s Consulate for the People’s Republic of China nearly five years ago, he told NZ police he feared his Catholicism was putting his life in danger. Read more
The future of Christchurch’s Catholic Cathedral precinct is suddenly looking shaky. The ground shifted when the City Council revised its CBD roading plans. Developers – those putting up millions and encouraging growth – don’t want one-way streets near their sites. Not when they were supposed to be two-way streets. One of the many projects caught Read more
One of Cyclone Gabrielle’s many casualties was a beautiful little Catholic chapel on the north side of Wairoa’s town bridge. Like many places in Wairoa’s North Clyde area, St Therese’s was swamped. Silt got into everything and did its worst. The same happened at the marae next door – and to numerous homes and properties. Read more
An Otago Regional councillor says he walked out when a karakia opened a meeting because “it was just a tick box exercise” and “no-one was listening anyway”. Kevin Malcolm said his walkout in Dunedin on Wednesday was not related to Kaipara mayor Craig Jepson stopping his district’s first Māori ward councillor, Pera Paniora (Te Roroa, Read more
“The loss of tax deductibility on interest costs is having a negative impact on the rental market. A future government of any stripe must bring it back as soon as possible,” says Tim Kearins, Owner of Century 21 New Zealand. His comments follow a survey, commissioned by the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development, that Read more
On Wednesday, a group of New Zealand Catholic women called ‘Be the Change’ participated in another Pink Shoes into the Vatican event. Held on International Women’s Day, the event at Auckland’s St Patrick’s Cathedral plaza included a display of well-worn pink shoes. The event was timed to coincide with midday Mass. ‘Be the Change’ invited Read more