Pope Francis has appointed the Bishop of Christchurch, Paul Martin SM, as the Coadjutor Archbishop of Wellington. The appointment was announced in Rome overnight and comes into effect immediately. Archbishop of Wellington, Cardinal John Dew says he is delighted with the appointment, which comes at a time of a heavy workload in the Wellington Diocese. Read more
Many in the Wairarapa Catholic community are mourning orders to close three of its five Catholic churches. Earthquake-prone building regulations, ageing populations and shrinking Mass attendance have all had a part to play in deciding to close the buildings. Cardinal John Dew, of the Wellington Catholic Archdiocese, said at least one Sunday Mass or Vigil Read more
The Catholic Church is determined to listen, learn, and reflect on abuse survivors ‘ evidence at the Royal Commission into Abuse in Care. The comment came in a statement from Catholic Bishops and religious leaders on the morning of the first day of the Royal Commission into abuse in faith-based care. “The bishops and congregational Read more
Palmerston North is still without a new Catholic bishop, a year after the resignation of Charles Drennan. Drennan, the former bishop of the Palmerston North diocese, resigned in October last year after an investigation into a complaint made by a young woman about behaviour of a sexual nature. Cardinal John Dew of Wellington has been Read more
Pope Francis’s new encyclical Fratelli Tutti is a call for everyone to see the world as being without borders and view everyone as their brothers and sisters, says Catholic Archbishop of Wellington Cardinal John Dew. “Fratelli tutti is a profound document,” says Dew, vice-president of the NZ Catholic Bishops Conference. “It can change minds and Read more
Catholic emergency housing providers in Auckland are struggling to cope with increased demand for shelter as the COVID lockdown continues to wreak havoc on employment. Monte Cecilia Housing Trust chief executive officer Bernie Smith puts the increased demand down to reduced working hours and increasing unemployment. Smith told NZ Catholic the Catholic housing trust received Read more
After many months of deliberation, the fate of five Wairarapa church buildings owned by the Catholic church has been decided. Three will be put up for sale. Cardinal John Dew announced in June that only Featherston’s St Teresa of Avila and Masterton’s St Patrick’s Church would be kept. The following properties will be up for Read more
Cardinal John Dew, June, announced that St Joseph’s Catholic church at Riversdale Beach would be sold along with three other churches in the Wairarapa. Since then, consultations have taken place between the cardinal and the Riversdale Beach Charitable Trust about the church’s status. According to Trustee Neil Prichard, a sale was unlikely to happen. He Read more
The Royal Commission into Abuse in Care has published documents giving the details of its investigation into the Catholic Church. They include the Church’s part in faith-based redress for survivors – which will form part of the commission’s Inquiry into the historic abuse of children in the state and faith-based care. Cardinal John Dew, Vice-President Read more
On Sunday 26th July a Covenant (Kawenata) was signed at Pukekaraka, Ōtaki. The original agreement set up an inalienable relationship. The present Covenant renews the original agreement. It recalled the partnership established when local Māori invited the Catholic church to come and live there. It marks the “sharing of these lands in perpetuity for the Read more