News Shorts

Women, peacemaking and conflict prevention

Thursday, April 19th, 2018

Women’s voices must be integrated into all aspects of conflict prevention, peacekeeping and post-conflict operations, Archbishop Bernardito Auza says. Auza is the Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations in New York. Read more              

Children in state care in NZ at all-time high

Thursday, April 19th, 2018

For the 6100 children in state care – a record-high number – the current situation doesn’t offer a lot of hope. With an inquiry into historic abuse of children in state care around the corner, things are also likely to get a lot darker before the year’s out. Continue reading

Nun-activist protests immoral nuclear weapons

Thursday, April 19th, 2018

A nun whose concern about nuclear weapons landed her a two-year jail sentence says it’s illegal to deal in weapons of mass destruction. “Immoral and illegal,” Sister Megan Rice says. “We’re not being taken to the international court of justice and indicted the way Iran or some other place would,” she said. Read more  

Anglican network unfolding the new while attached to the old

Thursday, April 19th, 2018

You may have heard that “Spiral Network” is the new name for the Pioneer Development Unit. The spiral is a picture that captures the idea of new things unfolding yet still attached to the centre and the old.  It’s a network of different groups who are pioneering new ways of doing church or are reaching Read more

The biggest obstacle to the Catholic Church is itself

Thursday, April 19th, 2018

The biggest obstacle to preaching the gospel today in Scotland is the Catholic Church itself, says the Bishop of Galloway. Read more          

Muslim women’s forum in Auckland to start open conversation

Thursday, April 19th, 2018

A Muslim women’s forum in Auckland is creating a conversation with the wider community about employment, discrimination and housing. The forum has been organised after leaders within the Muslim community met last year and identified areas that needed improvement. Continue reading

Chile’s Catholic Church calls for drastic solution

Monday, April 16th, 2018

Chile’s Catholic Church has asked for a drastic solution that could include resignations. The call came a day after Pope Francis acknowledged “grave mistakes” in handling a sexual abuse crisis and summoned Church leaders to Rome. At a meeting of Church leadership on Chile’s central coast, Santiago Silva, the president of the Episcopal Conference, said Read more

Samoa’s PM threatened new Sabbath law that would ban any work from Friday evening until Monday morning

Monday, April 16th, 2018

Samoa Prime Minister Tuila’epa Sa’ilele Malielegaoi has revealed that he threatened the council of churches with a proposed new law which would close the country down completely every weekend to allow Christians to keep the Sabbath holy. Continue reading

Archbishop backs global prayer movement

Monday, April 16th, 2018

A global prayer movement has been endorsed by the Archbishop of Westminster and the Archbishop of Canterbury. The prayer movement urges Catholics to join others around the globe in praying Thy Kingdom Come between Ascension and Pentecost. The prayer Thy Kingdom Come is a prayer of longing, of hope and trust in the promise that Read more

Chief censor says New Zealand needs to do more to tackle pornography problems

Monday, April 16th, 2018

The chief censor says New Zealand needs to take a societal approach to tackling the pervasive effects of porn, including further regulation. Family First national director Bob McCoskrie is calling for an expert panel to better understand the breadth and nature of the health and social issues created by pornography, and how to tackle it.  Continue reading