In a Papal-first, Pope Francis sent a video message to tens of thousands of fans during Sunday’s Super Bowl game between the New England Patriots and Atlanta Falcons. The Super Bowl is the annual championship game of the National Football League In his message, Francis said he hoped the Super Bowl would provide “a sign Read more
On 26 January, a meeting took place in the archbishop’s residence in Lyons to formally open the beatification process of Fr Jean-Claude Colin, Founder of the Society of Mary. The meeting was presided over by the Vicar General of the archdiocese. Others in attendance were the Promoter of Justice, the Notary of the Cause, and Read more
The BBC has apologised for saying the Catholic Church was silent about Hitler and the Nazi Party’s activities during the Holocaust. It admitted a BBC One news item when Pope Francis visited Auschwitz in July “did not give due weight to public statements by successive popes or the efforts made on the instructions of Pius Read more
Porirua’s Holy Family school deputy principal Gina Lefaoseu recently won a SunPix award for leadership in education. The awards are growing in popularity as a leading forum to acknowledge Pasifika successes nationwide and Lefaoseu is determined her school will keep succeeding. Lefaoseu says Holy Family school is very diverse; it has 180 students, 85 per cent Read more
A quake-damaged church spire is part of this year’s Christmas Crib at the Vatican. The spire comes from one of the many churches damaged in this year’s earthquakes. Its presence reminds us that the Holy Family were refugees at this time of the year, Pope Francis says. Read more
A proposed bylaw allowing stores in Marlborough to open on Easter Sunday has an unlikely advocate – a pastor. The Marlborough District Council called for public submissions on the issue after Parliament passed a bill to give local councils the power to create their own bylaws on Easter Sunday trading in August. Many church leaders in Marlborough opposed the Read more
Film director Martin Scorsese says his latest film, Silence, was a “pilgrimage of faith”. The movie, set in the 1600’s, focuses on Jesuit priests in Japan. Silence has been called a “Masterwork movie about faith and ideas that rocks everything we’ve been dealing with.” Read more
New warnings by Destiny Church leader Brian Tamaki include the perils of Harry Potter and that the hit children’s character lures young people into the “demonic world.” And in the latest book released by the church leader, Tamaki has also delivered a new chapter on the Kaikoura earthquake saga – and that he predicted the Read more
Child soldiers are what Pope Francis calls a “scandal”. “We must do everything possible so that the dignity of children may be respected, and end this form of slavery,” he says. “Whoever you are, if you are moved as I am, I ask you to join me in this prayer intention: that the scandal of Read more
One man is on a mission to take back Santa from the corporate clutches of Coca-Cola for the sake of future generations. And he’s starting with the giant Christmas display at the Clarence Street Pak ‘n Save in Hamilton – which is hard to miss. Continue reading