Father Jack Wiremu Smith has arrived in Gisborne as the new assistant to Monsignor Frank Eggleton at Saint Mary’s Star of the Sea church. Now in his late 70s, Father Smith comes from Ngati Kahungunu and was born near Wairoa. But a great grandmother came from the Coast so he does have connections here, he says. Read more
On the eve of the fifth anniversary of the shooting that wounded former Representative Gabrielle Giffords, CNN hosted a town hall with President Barack Obama on the topic of guns in America. The live audience, at George Mason University, in Virginia, included people whom CNN had flown in: gun owners, gun sellers, survivors of shootings, Read more
A former Manchester United footballer has started his studies towards the priesthood. Former Northern Ireland international Phil Mulryne, 34, has enrolled at the Pontifical Irish College in Rome. During his time as a footballer Mulryne dated a model, Nicola Chapman. He was once sent home from the Northern Ireland squad in 2005 after breaking a Read more
On Saturday 5th December before a full church at St Mary’s Pro-Cathedral, Deacons Do Nguyen, Tien Cao and Thanh Tran were ordained to priesthood. These are the first of our Vietnamese men to be ordained to priesthood, after arriving over seven years ago to learn English before entering Holy Cross Seminary. The church was full Read more
Pope Francis has described some Catholic priests as so scary and neurotic that he keeps away from them. At a conference on Friday marking 50 years since Vatican II’s declarations on priestly ministry and training, the Pontiff said he is instinctively suspicious of overly pious candidates for ordination. “I will tell you sincerely, I’m scared Read more
Twelve priests in Ireland have issued a statement calling for an open discussion on equality for women in the Church, including in ministry. “Discriminating against women encourages and reinforces abuse and violence against women in many cultures and societies,” they said. Some of the 12 have been prominent members of the reformist Association of Catholic Priests in Read more
Last Sunday, newly ordained Patrick Bradford celebrated a thanksgiving Mass in St Joseph’s church in Waitara. Bradford, who is 29, grew up in St Joseph’s Parish. He studied for the priesthood at a seminary in Melbourne and was ordained in Melbourne on 12 September. After leaving Francis Douglas Memorial College, Bradford majored in accounting at Read more
Last weekend, the Archdiocese of Sydney was blessed with two new priests – Fathers Thomas Stevens and Lewi Barakat. Ordinations are always an emotional occasion, but this particular Ordination Mass had a significant impact on me. In the weeks leading up to the Ordination, (then) Deacon Lewi had told me that the Ordination was not Read more
In November and December eight seminarians and a priest from Holy Cross Seminary in Auckland will be cycling the length of New Zealand to promote and pray for vocations to the priesthood. The pilgrimage will begin at Cape Reinga, which is the northern most point on the mainland of New Zealand. It will take about Read more
When the news spread of the death of 92-year-old Fr Bill Corcoran on July 4, there was raw sadness felt for loss of this much loved and respected priest. He was able to drive a vehicle until a couple of months ago when he became seriously sick. But there were also sighs of Alleluia that Read more