A group of Auckland primary school parents who took concerns about religious lessons to the Human Rights Commission are outraged Christian teaching will restart next term. At the start of the year, Roy Warren, whose 5-year-old son attends St Heliers School, originally complained to principal Craig McCarthny about the 30-minute sessions running during school time, Read more
Christchurch will finally see a stunning stations of the cross art exhibition that was thwarted by the February 2011 earthquake. Geraldine artist John Badcock was about to transport his Stations of the Cross for display in ChristChurch Cathedral when the February 22 quake shook the city apart. Stations of the Cross will go on show in the Transitional Read more
On March 8 the Little Company of Mary celebrated 100 years since the Sisters came to Aotearoa New Zealand and made the first foundation in Christchurch. Sisters from Korea, England, Australia and Tonga 25 LCM’s were present for the celebration which began with Mass in St Mary’s Pro Cathedral. In his homily Bishop Barry said: Read more
Catholic, Protestant and Muslim leaders from the Central African Republic have warned of a genocidal war in their country. They have pleaded for the deployment of United Nations peacekeepers. Continue reading
Ireland’s bishops have issued a public statement about the local results of the Vatican survey on family life, in a reversal of a previous decision. The bishops acknowledged that Church teaching can sometimes be a challenge, with some respondents seeing the teaching “as disconnected from real-life experience”. Continue reading
The Vatican has expelled an American cleric from the priesthood for repeatedly defying a lifetime ban on ministry with children. Fr Michael Fugee from New Jersey had attended youth retreats and heard confessions from minors, despite a decree forbidding such activities. Archbishop John Myers’s role in the Fugee case has drawn strong criticism. Continue reading Read more
A prominent human rights campaigner in Sri Lanka has been detained by police in the former war zone in the north of the country. Ruki Fernando was detained with Father Praveen, a Catholic priest, as they were looking into the detention of a woman who was campaigning to discover the whereabouts of her missing son Read more
The Labour Party says Education Minister Hekia Parata’s consideration of performance funding in schools could lead to the most radical shakeup of education in a generation. Ms Parata has revealed that she is looking to fund schools according to the progress their pupils made. Continue reading
In a serious escalation of tension in Crimea, a Ukrainian Greek Catholic priest was kidnapped on Saturday. Sources in Ukraine say Father Mykola Kvych, a pastor and a Ukrainian military chaplain, was abducted by pro-Russian forces after celebrating the liturgy. Continue reading
A US survey of donors to Catholic activities shows Pope Francis is prompting increased giving. Hispanic donors are the group most likely to have increased their giving. Continue reading