The Queen is right – our national religion is a force for unity and a channel of peace. William Blake famously asked “And did those feet, in ancient time, / Walk upon England’s mountains green?” The short, factual answer is, almost certainly, “No.” There is no evidence that Jesus ever made it to these shores. If Read more
US-dominated globalization is not compatible with cultures of the south. Among the 22 new cardinals receiving a biretta on February 18 from Pope Benedict XVI, 10 hold positions in the Roman Curia. Italians comprise seven of the 22, making them the largest group. Only three are from outside Europe or North America. So this consistory Read more
The earthquake of February 22 will still feel raw to most of us come Wednesday when we mark the first anniversary of that unforgettable day. We will all pause to commemorate the dead and remember the bereaved and the injured and all that has been lost. Then we will carry on as we know we Read more
I feel like an idiot. When the U.S. bishops came out so strongly against the new government rules regarding contraceptives and health insurance, they said the issue was one of religious freedom. And I believed them. When the bishops argued that it was not the administration’s place to decide whether Catholic hospitals or colleges fit Read more
Atheists’ arrogance is their Achilles’ heel, as a cringemaking radio performance has proved. Which of us hasn’t groaned when the Rev Giles Fraser, former canon of St Paul’s, pops up with his Thought for the Day on Radio 4? Dr Fraser is the archetypal 21st-century vicar, as predictably Lefty as he is drearily on-trend. That Read more
I’m sorry we upset the British with our antics in London on Waitangi Day. They’re not used to this sort of thing. The British are known for their abstemious ways with alcohol, and the respectful way they behave on, for example, soccer grounds. They may be known for their steady drinking at neighbourhood pubs, their Read more
Tricia Kane is a retired librarian and a grandmother. She writes: Ben Hana, who had been living on the streets of Wellington since the 90s, died recently in hospital, in the course of a regular 3 monthly check. Could he have been helped to recover from his addictions? Concerned individuals made efforts to help Read more
A Prayer for the People of Christchurch Lent 2012 Reader: O God, Your Son Jesus Christ is our sure and certain hope. In him we place our trust. Assembly: In him we place our trust. Reader: In this time of Lent We pray for the people of Christchurch: For those whose lives were lost; may they know Read more
Whistleblowing in the corporate world, or in any organization, demands courage. The personal cost can be enormous. Since loyalty is often the pre-eminent virtue in corporate and other institutions, the pressure to maintain silence is considerable. People daring to break the code of secrecy and silence to reveal unethical behaviour are in danger of automatic Read more
Separation of Church and State is an essential pre-condition for Western style democracies. But it is not total separation, as desired by the secularists. Church members vote and hold high office as citizens. The Churches have a part to play in the ‘public square’. In fact Evangelical Catholics are committed to robust public proclamation of Read more