John William Fitzmaurice pleaded guilty to five charges of dishonestly using documents and one of obtaining money by deception when he appeared in the Christchurch District Court on Monday. He committed the fraud while he was the parish priest at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament and at Addington’s Sacred Heart Parish. The charges relate to Read more
The Christchurch Diocese has been providing insurance cover for property to the value of $260 million, and this year’s policy to November 30 cost $379,000. The policy is with Ansvar and expires on November 30. Christchurch diocesan financial administrator Paddy Beban says the diocese was shopping around to see what insurance company and what policy Read more
A spokeswoman from St James School, a Catholic integrated school in Christchurch, said she did not envisage the proposed Christchurch shake-up of schools will have an effect because the school’s buildings were owned by the Catholic diocese. ”But we’re feeling very sorry for our colleagues down the road. We’re all in close proximity and it’s Read more
Over thirty projects have already received help from the Christchurch Diocese’s Earthquake Recovery Fund. Most recently assistance has been provided to the Parish of St Mary’s Pro-Cathedral for a project to identify and support parishioners who have been disadvantaged by the earthquakes and to continue to facilitate a sense of community post parish amalgamation and Read more
Earthquake prone churches in Temuka and Pleasant Point have become the latest earthquake victims with both churches now closed following engineering reports. The Catholic Bishop of Christchurch, Bishop Barry Jones, after consultation with parish priest Father Brian Fennessy, accepted the structural engineers’ recommendations to close the buildings. The St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Temuka has Read more
A preliminary engineering assessment of St Mary’s Hokitika has revealed that the building is earthquake prone. Whilst engineering solutions are assessed the church is unable to be used. St Mary’s School hall has been suggested by engineers as a suitable alternative for the parish in the interim. The parish and school are working together to Read more
There have been more church buildings closed in the Christchurch diocese. Preliminary engineering assessments of Our Lady of Fatima Church (Mairehau) and St Mary and Francis de Sales Church (Rangiora) and the Catholic Social Services building has revealed that all three buildings are earthquake prone. The 126-year-old St Mary and Francis de Sales Church is Read more
To date the diocese has spent about $3 million deconstructing the damaged parts of the Blessed Sacrament cathedral, on cleaning and saving and numbering stones, windows and unique elements, and on transporting material, at night, to the new site. Management Board chairman Lance Ryan said discussions leading up to a decision on whether the cathedral Read more
Christchurch school children at five Catholic schools will have to move into temporary accommodation again because repair work needs to be done. Catholic Education Office manager Mike Nolan said classrooms at St Peter’s, Christ the King, Our Lady of Assumption, St Bernadette’s and St Mary’s schools will have to be vacated for between 10 and 12 Read more
There will be several months before any decision on 20 Catholic chuches in Canterbury can be made.
Five churches have been demolished, and a further 16, including the Basilica, have been out of action since December.
Financial Administrator, Paddy Beban, says at this stage the bill for rebuilding and repairing the churches is in excess of $120 million.
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