A legal expert says Destiny Church is unlikely to be deregistered as a charity despite thousands of people signing a petition calling for its charitable status to be revoked. It comes amid controversy over Brian Tamaki’s involvement in anti-lockdown protests. Tamaki’s Freedoms and Rights Coalition is responsible for organising several anti-lockdown protests, while Tamaki himself Read more
The Vatican’s liturgy chief said this week that Pope Francis issued Traditionis custodes as the effort to reconcile the Society of St Pius X (SSPX) “has not entirely been successful” and it is necessary to “go back” to what Vatican II required of the Church. In an interview with a television channel serving Italian-speaking Switzerland, Read more
Staff at the St Vincent de Paul foodbank were left with the unusual sensation of wondering where to start putting things after a truck loaded to the brim with food arrived at the centre yesterday. Centre and pastoral co-ordinator Sarah Strang said the Dunedin City Council had done a collection around all its staff and Read more
The Church of England is facing questions over its role in converting hundreds of asylum seekers, including the Liverpool suicide bomber, to Christianity in an attempt to help them avoid deportation. Priti Patel, the Home Secretary, is understood to be appalled at the “merry-go-round” of failed asylum seekers changing religion and using other tactics to Read more
Thousands of unmarried women and their children born out of wedlock who were shunned by Irish society and sought refuge in state-owned homes — where many were then abused by nuns and officials of the Roman Catholic Church — will be eligible for compensation from a new multimillion-dollar initiative the Irish government has established “in Read more
An ecumenical service was held at Knox Church, in Dunedin, last night to celebrate 75 years of theological study at the University of Otago. Theology head the Rev Associate Prof Christopher Holmes said the service was a way to honour what had been done at the university over the past three-quarters of a century. “We Read more
Pope Francis will canonise seven new saints in Rome next 15 May. One of them will be Lazarus Devasahayam, the first Indian layperson to be so recognised by the Catholic Church. The Vatican announced the date yesterday after the green light for the canonization was given on 3 May during the ordinary public consistory. Charles Read more
Overcoming the barriers of engineering living tissues in a lab and growing organs to alleviate the world’s shortage of transplant organs is one step closer, after an Otago researcher was awarded a major fellowship today. University of Otago (Christchurch) Department of Orthopaedic Surgery and Musculoskeletal Medicine researcher Dr Khoon Lim has been awarded a Rutherford Read more
More than 60 Catholic organizations have signed the following Statement on COP26 Draft Agreement by Laudato Si’ Movement. As Catholics, united for our common home, we urgently ask leaders at the United Nations 26th Climate Change Conference to follow Pope Francis’ leadership in reaching a prophetic final agreement. The science is clear: an extractive, unsustainable Read more