Up to one in twelve Catholic priests in England and Wales are former Church of England clergy, recent research shows. A study reported by The Tablet shows there are 389 Catholic priests who were once Anglican priests, with 87 being in the Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham. It is estimated that there are 3000 Read more
A long-running dispute between Napier City Council and the owners of Mission Estate Winery has been settled out of court. The dispute began when the council used the Public Works Act to take 1.5 hectares from the winery to realign a road. The council and Marist Holdings (Greenmeadows) fought a protracted battle over the valuation Read more
A Tuvalu family has won an appeal to stay in New Zealand after they claimed they would be affected by climate change if they went home. This is the first successful application for residency on humanitarian grounds in New Zealand that has featured climate change. The Immigration and Protection Tribunal said the family has strong Read more
Marlborough’s Catholics marked the end of an era on Sunday when the earthquake-damaged Ward church was formally decommissioned ahead of demolition. After singing, a reading, and a prayer at the site, the congregation took the church’s altar and sign and processed to St Peter’s Anglican church nearby, where the sign would be installed and the Read more
Among the dangers of a “sterile” form of celibacy are bitterness and gossip, Pope Francis told a group of Italian priests and bishops on July 26. When a priest disagrees with his bishop or when bishops disagree with each other, they must air their differences – even loudly – but never talk behind each other’s backs, Pope Read more
A practising Catholic has been appointed as the new chief executive of Stonewall, which is Britain’s largest gay rights organisation. Ruth Hunt has pledged to do more to win over “hearts and minds”. Announcing her priorities, Ms Hunt said she wanted to build on recent successes – including legal same-sex marriage – by helping change Read more
Another step is soon to be taken in the path to canonisation of the “smiling pope”, John Paul I. Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone announced that the position document for the beatification of Pope John Paul I will be submitted to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints in the northern autumn. This sets out the pros Read more
Thousands of embryos, sperm and eggs frozen in New Zealand will be discarded in November as the legal limit for their storage expires. Institutions that don’t comply will face a $20,000 fine. A time limit was set by legislators 10 years ago. From November 21, institutions like fertility clinics will not be able to keep Read more
Former St John of God Brother and convicted abuser Bernard McGrath has dropped a judicial review bid against Justice Minister Judith Collins. Australian authorities are trying to extradite McGrath from New Zealand to face 252 child sex charges. He is currently on bail. A Christchurch District Court judge put the final extradition decision in Ms Read more