Free contraceptives could soon be no longer available to young people in Hamilton. Both the Ministry of Health and the Waikato District Health Board are reviewing the delivery of free family planning advice. DHB spokeswoman Mary Anne Gill said funding of contraceptive consultations was subject to a Ministry of Health review which would affect all Read more
Blessed Pope John Paul II is a step closer to being declared a saint with evidence of a second reported miracle being investigated by a commission of medical experts. John Paul II was beatified in 2011 after the Congregation for the Causes of Saints accepted evidence of the healing of a French nun, Sister Simon Read more
The Vatican’s ambassador to the Pacific is on his farewell visit after seven years in the job. Members of the Catholic Church in Samoa are hosting a farewell dinner in honour of His Excellency Archbishop Charles D. Balvo tonight. His Excellency’s visit is part of his farewell trip to the 10 Pacific island nations he served Read more
A two-year-old girl in Florida will have three parents on her birth certificate after a judge decided that a lesbian couple and a gay man are all her parents. The sperm-donor father, hair stylist Massimilano Gerina, went to court after the lesbian couple, both clients of his, said he would not have parental rights. After Read more
Three senior Catholic Church officials — including the Archbishop Philip Wilson of Adelaide — will testify at an inquiry into the alleged cover-up of child sex abuse in a New South Wales diocese. The NSW inquiry on abuse will look at whether the Church protected predatory priests in the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle. The inquiry will Read more
The Leader of the Opposition in Canada has declared that traditional Christian beliefs on sexuality go “completely against” Canadian values and even Canadian law. Thomas Mulcair, the leader of the New Democrat party, was complaining about a government grant supporting a Christian group’s efforts to improve water access in Uganda. The group, Crossroads Communications Inc., Read more
The poverty of people in work must be addressed through ensuring wages are sufficient to ensure lives of dignity, says Catholic social justice agency Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand. Speaking in support of the principle of a living wage, Caritas Director Julianne Hickey says Catholic social teaching has long supported the concept that workers have a Read more
A Vietnamese priest imprisoned for criticising human rights abuses has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize by two members of the United States Congress. Father Thadeus Nguyen Van Ly, 65, has been nominated by members of Congress Chris Smith and Zoe Lofgren along with the Patriarch of the Unified Buddhist Church of Vietnam, the Read more
The Catholic Church in the highlands of Papua New Guinea must work harder to combat a belief in sorcery. That’s according to the Archbishop of Mt Hagen, Douglas Young. Police in the city have rescued two women who were in danger of being killed for alleged sorcery. This follows an incident in which a twenty Read more
Say No To Asset Sales is a political rally with a slight difference: the lineup doesn’t include any Members of Parliament. With opposition to the proposed sales cutting right across party loyalties, it’s just a fact that a number of the speakers – each of whom holds strong views on this issue – simply wouldn’t Read more