In January 2025, Pope Francis will become the first sitting pontiff to publish an autobiographical memoir titled “Hope.” Random House Publishing announced the memoir’s unprecedented global release on Wednesday. According to the publisher, the original plan was to release it after his death. However, the pope decided to publish it in light of the upcoming Read more
Higher rents are the biggest contributor to the annual inflation rate, but landlords say Dunedin’s rates rises are to blame. Stats NZ this week said rising rent prices were the biggest contributor to the annual inflation rate and almost 20% of the 2.2% annual increase in the consumer price index (CPI) was due to rent Read more
Three Rohingya refugees suffocated to death while packed into trucks in Thailand, with two suspected people-smugglers arrested on Oct 18, police said. The mainly Muslim Rohingya are heavily persecuted in war-torn western Myanmar, and thousands risk their lives each year to try to reach Malaysia or Indonesia through Thailand. A passing monk found two dead Read more
Everything remains in white. This is roughly how the Pope’s recent decision to allow the English Dominican priest and future Cardinal Timothy Radcliffe to dispense with the cardinal’s robe can be described. In an interview with the English radio station “BBC” broadcast on Sunday, the Englishman said that he had asked the pontiff whether he Read more
Mental health nurses say they’re still in the dark about how Health New Zealand is going to take over mental health callouts from police, just weeks before the changes are set to be phased in. Handling of mental health callouts will start transitioning from a police-led response to a health-led response from November 1. New Read more
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi returned to Moscow on Monday to meet with Russian authorities as part of the peace mission entrusted to him by Pope Francis. The cardinal’s trip to Moscow is to “evaluate further efforts to promote family reunification of Ukrainian children and the exchange of prisoners, with a view to achieving the much-hoped-for peace,” Read more
Amid its war on Ukraine, Russia continues to block several external religious websites, social media accounts and apps from several countries, preventing believers of various faiths from accessing information and engaging in dialogue, according to a human rights watch group. Forum 18 — a news service that partners with the Norwegian Helsinki Committee in defending Read more
An Anglican delegation will attend COP16, the United Nations Biodiversity Conference in Colombia Oct 21 to Nov 1. The aim is to share Anglican calls for action with governments attending, demonstrate Anglican commitment in tackling nature loss and emphasize the power of faith groups in achieving change. The delegation is led by the Rt Rev Read more