Here are some notes that can be the basis of an article.

To clarify, the Oceania Continent Synod response talked about during the FCBOC meeting in Suva, but the FCBOC statement is not the Oceania Continent's Synod response to be sent to Rome.

A group of lay people prepared a synthesis for the Oceania Continent Synod in Melbourne a few weeks back (there are photos of that meeting on the NZCBC FB page, which I'm told is a good source of material).

That synthesis document was discussed in Suva. When asked when we might expect to see that document, the source tells me (CathNews has learnt) the Oceania Synod document could be up to some weeks before it is published.

The sources says that it could come out anytime between now and some weeks.

Then reference to https://international.la-croix.com/news/religion/the-synod-has-not-been-mapped-out-in-advance-says-official/17309 and some comments from Sister Nathalie Becquart about the synod and her perception of oceania.

Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand is excited today as they launch a new initiative for New Zealand Catholic schools.

For 15 years, the New Zealand Catholic Primary Principals Association (NZCPPA) and Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand partnered with Catholic schools across New Zealand to raise almost $300,000 to support small schools in need across the Pacific through an annual event known as Mufti Mania. In 2022, a new chapter begins and Mufti Mania has been re-branded as YCC Day. Watch and share the promotional video for YCC Day here.

Why YCC day? The letters remind us of the purpose:

You + Caritas Combined

Your Choice of Clothing

Young Catholics Care

Youth Creating Change

When thousands of young people gather together in solidarity for a good cause and have fun by wearing non-uniform for the small cost of a gold coin, lasting change can be brought to a school which may not enjoy the same privileges as ourselves.

While the name may have changed, the legacy will live on. Michael Stewart, who is part of the Caritas education team said that "Mufti Mania has always been an amazing event and I've been privileged to see the impact on young people, both here in New Zealand and overseas. Now is the right time for a change and we are super-excited to keep the legacy going with the new YCC Day! We know that Catholic schools will get involved as we have so many kind and generous young people across the country who are always willing to respond to the call for justice and love." Read more about the Mufti Mania legacy here.

"This year's YCC Day is for a great cause," says Roger Ellis, Engagement Manager at Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand. "I'm hoping young people from all over Aotearoa will join in this work of justice to give a helping hand to Laura Vicuna School in Bethlehem. It's a small school situated in the Holy Land. The school began in 1988 and is in dire need of support to fix and repair toilets, purchase new laptops and projectors as well as round tables for small group learning activities. Here in Aotearoa it is easy to take these things for granted. We're very thankful for the generosity of students here in New Zealand," he says.

YCC Day takes place in 2022 on Friday 8th July and funds received from this event will help support Laura Vicuna School in the Holy Land. Everyone is invited to join in

Thanks for your email and questions regarding the new YCC Day. We appreciate your interest and have endeavoured to provide responses to the questions you raised.

Could I please ask why Laura Vicuna School in Bethlehem has been chosen?

Every year our (International Development) Programmes team, who is made aware of schools in need by our overseas partners, helps us to decide on the school we should support.

Laura Vicuna School is a worthy recipient of support as the students come from very poor families and most cannot afford and do not pay the minimal tuition fees.

Actually, the Sisters who run the school rely on donations and charity organisations to keep the school running.

Many students come from neighbouring refugee camps. Children of refugees sometimes suffer greatly - psychologically as well as physically.

In addition, the toilets at this school are unhygienic and badly in need of repair/maintenance and they have resource needs for teaching and learning too.

What distinguishes it from other similar needy schools perhaps closer to home, in the South Pacific for example, ones who may not even have toilets and clean water?

90% of the schools Caritas has supported over the years have been in the Pacific. There is a huge need throughout the Pacific of course and that is why most of the development work is focused there.

After highlighting Tonga, PNG, Fiji and Solomon Islands in recent years, the thought was to widen the awareness of NZ Catholic school students too and this took us to the Holy Land and Bethlehem. Which of course was a nice connection to starting a new initiative and also returning to the place where Christ was born.

Who runs the school?

Five Salesian sisters are involved in the running of the school.

Who owns the school?

Laura Vicuna School, as it is today, was a convent for the Salesian nuns known as the Daughters of Mary Help of Christians. The School first opened its doors to students in October 1970 when it was decided by the Gozo Salesian nuns that part of the convent would be used as a school. A class was added each year until 1978 when the school started offering classes from Kindergarten to Year 6. Since then the Gozo Salesian community has been educating children from all over Gozo. Over the years, students have pursued their studies to Secondary School level and beyond, so as to take their place in work, in the academic world and in society itself. The school ethos, in line with Don Bosco's teachings, nurtures the holistic development of the person. This is deeply rooted in our Roman Catholic belief that each of us is loved by God and therefore worthy of respect. The sisters strive and commit themselves so that every child who attends the school enjoys the process of education and can benefit from this experience all throughout life.

How will the funds be distributed - who will receive them?

The funds will be sent to and be disbursed by Caritas Jerusalem - our sister agency in the Holy Land. It will receive the funds directly from us towards the end of the year (after schools have sent in their fundraising) and then they will pass it on to the school.

Source: Supplied - Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand

The Government announced on Wednesday a 200-person limit for those with a vaccine pass at a religious gathering such as Mass, says a statement from the bishop's conference.

"It is really welcome that these restrictions are being eased in the middle of Lent and with Easter just over three weeks away."

"While the bishops supported vaccine passes and similar restrictions when they were introduced last November, we said our support was based on the pandemic emergency as it was at the time," said Bishop of Auckland, Administrator of Hamilton and Secretary of the NZ Catholic Bishops Conference, Stephen Lowe.

"We are well aware of the toll the emergency measures have taken, with many people experiencing serious and at times unforeseen hardships. With medical experts now telling us the Omicron wave is peaking and starting to reduce in some places, it is good to see some of these restrictions coming to an end.

"However, this is not yet life as normal.

"We know that the virus will continue to have an impact on the way we celebrate in our churches for a while yet."

The bishops say people gathering inside at a church setting will still need to remain cautious.

"We will need to avoid certain ways of celebrating rituals that might make it easier for infections to spread," says Lowe.

Source: http://catholic.org.nz/news/media-releases/covid-easing/

Dr Miles Pattenden recently published a short history of The Theology of Chocolate.

He said chocolate's history was an important part of the story of early modern globalisation and that the Catholic Church's response to it reveals how the Church adapted to a fast-changing world.

"Chocolate has a history but, for Catholics, it also has a theology. Long and learned treatises were written about whether it was licit to consume it - and when," he said.

The Church was initially uncomfortable with its adherents drinking chocolate because the drink had been used as part of Aztec religious rituals. The Aztecs regarded chocolate as gift of the gods and associated it with the human heart.

"Many Maya and Mixtec images of human sacrificial victims show those victims as anthropomorphic cacao pods. Such ideas and images hardly endeared chocolate to the first friars who crossed the Atlantic to convert indigenous peoples to Christianity. Some wondered whether it could be appropriate for Christians to drink something so intimately associated with idolatry and ritual murder?"

On the other hand, some priests thought the use of chocolate in ritual could be effectively converted along with the users, and chocolate replaced wine in some American indigenous communities.

Another problem created by chocolate was how it should be treated in relation to laws of fasting and luxury. The question of whether fasting religious ought to be allowed to drink chocolate was a matter of debate for more than 100 years. Was it a food or a drink? Did it break the spirit of the laws against luxuries even if it was not technically forbidden?

The Dominicans sent a representative to Rome in 1577 to seek Pope Gregory XIII's opinions on a beverage he had neither seen nor tasted. The Jesuits, who had developed commercial interests in cacao production and distribution, secured a 16-page opinion from Cardinal Francesco Maria Brancaccio on the use of chocolate. The Carmelite sisters asked Pope Innocent XII for a dispensation to drink chocolate inside the walls of their convent.

Dr Pattenden said in the end none of the Church's attempts to manage or restrict consumption of chocolate were effective. He said the popularity of chocolate, despite Church attempts to limit it, held lessons for how the Church works in practice.

"Chocolate's acceptance into the Catholic diet was clearly less the result of what theologians or canon lawyers did or said than of the decisions of ordinary clergy and laity who drank it regardless. There are lessons in that for other things that the Church would have Catholics abstain from today such as smartphones and contraception in bed."

Press release - Australian Catholic University (Supplied)

Bishop Morris's book "Benedict, Me and the Cardinals Three", published by ATF Press, is banned from sale in Catholic bookshops in Toowoomba and Brisbane.

It is only available on request in Sydney's and Adelaide's Catholic bookshops. It will not appear on bookshelves at these outlets.

Bishop Morris was asked by Pope Benedict to resign in 2009, but negotiated early retirement in 2011.

The book, which was to have been launched on June 17 in Toowoomba, has appendices of the correspondence between Bishop Morris and the Pope.

Bishop Morris could not attend the Toowoomba launch because of illness, but this has been rescheduled and five further launches are planned in Australia.

The day after the launch, the ATF Press's Hilary Regan delivered copies that the Toowoomba Catholic bookshop had ordered.

But an hour later he was told by a diocesan official that Toowoomba's Bishop Robert McGuckin did not wish the book to be sold there.

So it will now be sold from another outlet in Toowoomba.

Two weeks ago, Adelaide's Archbishop Philip Wilson wrote to parishes in his archdiocese stating that publicity about a local launch did not have his permission or authority.

Adelaide's Catholic bookshop will stock the book, but will not display it on bookshelves.

In the book, Bishop Wilson slams a lack of transparency in how Vatican officials dealt with him.

He said he was not allowed to see the accusations levelled against him.

Bishop Morris explains that a conservative pressure group in his diocese had a disproportionate influence in the Vatican, based on selective information, which fatally compromised his role as bishop.

He said three influential cardinals, Francis Arinze, Giovanni Battista Re and William Levada, believed things about him that were not true.

Bishop Morris said he fell foul of a culture of centralised power in the Vatican and was seen as a troublemaker.

Another recently launched ATF Press publication, "Potiphar's Wife: The Vatican's Secret and Child Sexual Abuse", is also not on bookshelves in the Sydney Catholic bookshop, but is available if requested.

Sources

• ATF Press
• ABC Radio
• Toowoomba Chronicle
• Image: Toowoomba Chronicle

I said, "Well, I don't know."

What might you be doing?"

"I think I'll go to the seminar."

"Whyich one?"

"The Marists."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah."

"Do you want an application form?"

"Yep."

He started rummaging around for an application form.

I said, "Do you mind if I have a smoke?"

He had a packet of Pall Mall Filters sitting on his desk.

He said, "Go ahead, help yourself."

So I took a cigarette and lit the wrong end. I lit the filter end.

I went home and told my parents and my dad said, "You'll bloody well have to pull your socks up before they let you in!"

So the shortest answer is it was done in the spirit of the moment, but therre were other things. Ten of us went that year from st Pat's Town, so it was the atmosphere.

Other reasons to go were more grounded in the way I was brought up: Irish Catholic. I had a number of relatives who were priests and religous. The story goes that at two weeks old I was being ooh-ed and arr-ed at by certains Sisters of Compassion, who still remind me of it! So that was there in the blood and in the roots.

The other thing was, I had good connections with some of the priests at St Pat's and I was impressed by their community life. And when I had surgery and was on crutches for five months, these fellows were very good at picking me up, taking me to school and then home again. So there was this personal connection they made with me.

As far as alternatives when, I didn't have any girlfriends. I was too shy to go down that track. I went on a blind date once and it was pretty appalling. Not from her side, but from mine. I certainly wasn't mature, not for a long time. So that helped get me to the seminary too.

My first impressions of the place were of a community of fellows who were quite respectful with each other. There was acceptance by older fellows and friendships developed. The place was physically beautiful. I remember the first few mornings waking up with the fog at the base of the hill stretching across to Napier and I thought, 'This is pretty nice. I could stay with this.'

Read more excerpts from On a Mission by:

Andrew Gunn
Dennis Farrelly
Chanel Houlahan
Merv Duffy

Get your copy of On a Mission

Get your copy of On a Mission

As a preist I was very privileged. Initially I was overwhelmed with being in a responsible position whereby people trusted me instinctively. It generated in me a deep feeling of, 'I need to honour this responsibility,' so I used to try hard to prepare for anything I did. I spent hours preparing anything to do with a sermon or liturgy, so much so that I used to spend sometimes until three in the morning preparing. Yes, I sued to burn the midnight oil a lot.

I was unhappy about the lifeless way some priests said mass. I didn't think that the repetitive distributing on Holy Communion saying words that sounded like "By Carp, By Carp," was the thing to do. There was a priest at school who was like a bumblebee in his expression of Mass. I used to find my own words and that took a long time. I was damn sure I wasn't going to sell people short on any of my ideals.

...

As time went by, my ideas diverged from those of the church and I found myself critiquing things: the church's attitude towards homosexuality; the issues of sexuality outside of marriage; and of course the freedom of women in the church. So disenchantment grew.

There was dissonance between me and being an icon of the church, bing a priest. More and more my beliefs weren't church beliefs at all. Over time the dissonance was too sharp and I couldn't keep it together any longer, I felt I had to leave the active priesthood in the Catholic church which I did.

During all this time, in terms of sexuality, I was extremely immature. I didn't have any sexual encounters before going into the seminary and certainly none during or after. Whenever I heard of such luminaries as monsignors misbehaving, I just couldn't make sense of it. So my sensual drive was unexpressed. There were certainly no homosexual or heterosexual overtures - it was like an unknown area really. When I came to Auckland it was still that case and I was totally unknowing of what people's reactions were to me. If there had been any sexual agenda behind their relating to me, I would not have been aware of it. It was totally of the radar. I didn't have the language or the signals.

...

I'm not anti the Church but I am grief-stricken that I can't find a faith community that I feel comfortable with. I've been to different places from time to time, but they just don't resonate with me,, so I don't tend to go. My main concern is that my own kids don't have a faith community to fall back on.

Read more excerpts from On a Mission by:

Tim Howard
Andrew Gunn
Dennis Farrelly
Merv Duffy

Get your copy of On a Mission

Then, and now, that strikes me as wrong. Given how good the group of people in the place was, it seemed to me that there was a massive reservoir of goodwill and great talent around the country.

I've been told that the seminary was the best 'finishing school' in the country. One woman I know says that every prospective husband should be sent through it, if only to learn how to clean toilets. James K Baxter said, "We're called to be a servant church and a servant's job is to clean lavatories, actual and metaphorical."

Read more excerpts from On a Mission by:

Tim Howard
Andrew Gunn
Dennis Farrelly
Chanel Houlahan

Get your copy of On a Mission

When I left the seminary, i did struggle to find the signficant meaning that it provided. I don't find it in my career, quite frankly. I find a certain amount of satisfaction having success in business and helping other people and seeing employees grow and making a profit. But for me it would be like six out of ten.

I've had that lingering sense that anything else that I've done subsequently is great is good, but it's not the ultimate. It's not to denigrate what I've done in my life. It's not to undermine the importance of family and partners. But there was certainly something very big that we are part of: that mision, that vocation, which we passionately believed in - or I did anyway.

There are echoes of that in my life now. In some of the things I have done in my life: my tenacity in business that wes struggling; my tenacity in my relationship. What's important to me is things that will last. The business isn't important, but being loyal to my family, through thick and thin is.

Read more excerpts from On a Mission by:

Tim Howard
Dennis Farrelly
Chanel Houlahan
Merv Duffy

Get your copy of On a Mission

The turning point that made me really question whether this was my vocation was in the Comparative Religions. There was this woman there. She was absolutely beautiful and gradually I wanted to see her a bit more and talk to her and we got on. She was actually a nurse at Wellington Hospital. She had to be away one day and she said, "Can you get me the notes?" It suited me fine because there was an attraction. She had something special about her. I would go ato study at the varsity and think, 'I hope she's here.' That started to draw me away from my community. I used to go for runs. I'd run up around Wadestown where she lived and I would drop in to see her. I was upfront with her about being a seminarian and everything. It was just that I was infatuated with her.

I still remember getting back late for night prayer because I was in the library and she was there. Now deep in mind I used to be strident about getting to liturgy, but gradually it wasn't quite as important. It was a gradual breaking down of my focus on Religious and priestly life. I started to have doubts.

I went to my spiritual director, Joe Cahill, about it. Originally he said, "No, you don't have to leave because of that." But as I went back more to Joe he said, "Maybe this is not the vocation for you." I was hoping he would say that because I felt I had to go. When Joe came around too, it settled me down. In fact to break the news with Joe initially was hard going. Joe was tremendous in the community. He was the old holy guy that you could relate to. He was straight-up. He was in the world and yet not of this world. He was a real man. I didn't feel as if I had to hold back. I could reate to Joe even though he was close to seventy then.

Yes, this woman was the turning point, as it were. I remember telling her, "I'm going to leave." And she said, "Is it because we've studied all these other religions?" I said, "Oh no, it's nothing to do with that, I've still got my Christianity."

I never told that woman, but I wrote one letter to her. I didn't know her address but I remember writing the letter. I'll tell you who I found out she was: she was the daughter of one of the prime ministers we had during that time. I found her parents' address and I wrote a letter to her, but never heard back. It's funny but I still think about her ... She made a lasting impression: she was a buautiful blue0eyed girl with curly hair. Funny isn't it.

Read more excerpts from On a Mission by:

Tim Howard
Andrew Gunn
Chanel Houlahan
Merv Duffy

Get your copy of On a Mission

Exorcisms in New Zealand are rare, but they do happen - and Catholic Education Office chief executive Pat Lynch said canon law made it obligatory for a bishop to have someone able to perform an exorcism.

"These things, they are not in the realm of fantasy," he said.

He remembered a house, near where he lived in Auckland in the 1970s, where "some sort of black magic was taking place".

"People were getting in touch with the Underworld".

The story was that a one-metre hole would open up in the side of a wall, leaving scorch marks around it.

While parts of the story may have been embellished, a priest with exorcism credentials was brought in to perform the ritual as described in the canon for exorcising spirits.

The ritual apparently worked, he said.

"I have no reason to disbelieve it".

Source

• Stuff.co.nz
• Image: i152.photobucket.com

The organisation is reported to be "ship-shape" with sound management and financial reports as well as a boost to volunteer numbers.

Father Jeff Drane SM of Wellington will take the organisation forward as new National Director, assisted by the new Deputy, Deacon Sid Wells of Tauranga.

Father Jeff acknowledged the special place that Catholic seafarers have in the place of NZ's maritime history during the AGM's group visit to the Mount Street Cemetery. "Unless we know our past, we don't have a future", said Father Jeff, as a commemorative plaque, funded by AoS, was unveiled in honour of the early Catholic pioneers who sailed to settle in NZ in the 1840s.

Many of these pioneers died "the New Zealand Death" — drowning — in one of the many coastal shipwrecks not uncommon in the era, or in the harbour.

A key priority at the AGM was to continue to develop strategies to future-proof the AoS.

Given the growth in shipping and trade, seafarer numbers can be expected to keep increasing. The challenge is in dealing with the increased demand for AoS services with an ageing volunteer base and replacement volunteers not being easy to find.

Father Jeff is delighted to welcome 21 new volunteers to help strengthen the AoS following a dedicated AoS awareness-raising drive. The new volunteers were commissioned during Mass at the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart on Saturday evening.

A 2020 strategic plan is being more fully developed to help deal with the many areas of responsibility, such as health and safety, code of ethics and security.

During the AGM Father Kevin Head reported back on his participation at the AoS World Congress in the Vatican City last November. "The new evangelisation is the challenge of working with Catholics who no longer walk with us. But evangelisation starts with us - our lives of prayer and quiet goodness are the first step if we are to have any significant effect in spreading the gospel."

Source

• Dr A G Stewart, Tauranga.
• Image: Fr Jeffrey Drane, SM, National Director, AoS NZ

Want to know more?

• To join Apostleship of the Sea or find out more information contact Fr Jeff Drane at jeffdrane@gmail.com
• The key objects of the Apostleship of the Sea in NZ are to promote as fully as possible the spiritual welfare of Catholic seafarers and fisherfolk and the social welfare of all seafarers and fisherfolk irrespective of nationality or creed.
• AoS works in four centres in New Zealand - Wellington, Auckland, Napier and Tauranga
• AoS operates in about 100 countries around the world in about 250 centres, e.g. http://www.apostleshipofthesea.org.uk/, about 100 of which are ecumenical

Banned by the bishops from using the word Catholic in their name, Catholic Action raised the ire of MP's after sending an email telling them they were "on the road to hell for all eternity" if they voted in favour of the Marriage Amendment Bill.

The group also sent follow-up emails to MP's, including the Green's Kevin Hague, saying that homosexuality was "an abomination crying out to Heaven for vengeance", and accusing Hague and Labour MP Ruth Dyson of having "an agenda promoting abominable perversity".

Labelling homosexuality as a 'mortal sin' the group said homosexuality would see people "cast into hell to suffer eternal punishment".

Group spokesperson, Arthur Skinner, said the New Zealand Bishops' inactivity on the matter meant they have to take the issue on and do the bishops' jobs for them.

Skinner accused the NZ Bishops of becoming mere politicians.

President of the NZ Catholic Bishops' Conference, Archbishop John Dew, reiterated that Catholic Action does not have permission to use the name Catholic, but said he would not excommunicate Skinner.

"We have made it known to them and to others that they haven't sought permission from the bishops to use the name Catholic, and we've told them not to use it," Dew said, "but there isn't actually anything else we can do. It would have to be something heretical for them to be excommunicated".

MP Kevin Hague, however, noted that the Catholic bishops who had been vigorous in their opposition to the Marriage Amendment, will not move against Skinner.

"It's interesting whether the Catholic bishops are effectively saying the same thing, but in a more genteel way," he said.

Hague said it is incumbent on the bishops to identify the substantial differences between their position and that of Catholic Action.

Archbishop Dew said he had not seen Catholic Action's submission.

"We try and say whatever is done should be done in charity, and so using language which is inflammatory is not charitable language, not a part of who we are as gospel people," he said.

Archbishop Dew said he'd had no response to his letter to Skinner and Catholic Action denying them the right to use the name Catholic, and didn't expect one.

He said it was the first time he'd been aware of a group using the church's name without permission.

Sources

• Stuff
• CathNews
• Image: TVNZ

Boyle said cyber-bullying is even more insidious because the younger generation is on the whole far more adept in their use of technology than parents or St Bede's college staff.

Imploring parents to keep an eye on how their sons are using technology, Boyle said parents are welcome to contact the St Bede's guidance counsellor if they had a concern they cannot address.

Boyle promised to keep parents informed of a programme to address the issue proactively.

The programme is being designed by the College guidance counsellor and some senior students.

The incident involved a 14 year old student being held over a bin by three pupils, while a fourth took a photo and uploaded it to Facebook.

Boyle said the victim was not physically injured and is coping well.

The incident happened in the last week of last term and came to light only through an anonymous "survey" the school periodically ran to give students the opportunity to report inappropriate behaviour.

In St Bede's latest newsletter, Boyle said the school was working hard to tackle the problem, and he has told parents that if the school community chooses to ignore cyber-bullying it does so at its own peril, reports Stuff.

"I'd implore parents to keep an eye on how your son is using technology and if you have concerns you feel you cannot address, contact the college," he wrote.

NetSafe, an independent organisation promoting cybersafety, reported in 2007 that one in five New Zealand high school students have been cyber-bullied.

"Everyone has the power to do this in their hands yet most are choosing to exercise this power responsibly," Martin Cocker executive director of NetSafe said.

The St Bede's incident comes amid a push for a law change to address cyber-bullying. Under government proposals, aimed at protecting victims of online bullying, cyber-bullies could be jailed for up to three years.

Boyle said the cyber-bullies' behaviour "hasn't come to my attention before this, that's why they were given a second chance."

Sources

• Stuff
• St Bede's College Newsletter (PDF)
• Daily Mail

The report claims Pacific people now have the highest unemployment, the lowest incomes and a widening income gap that could mean they're left behind when the economy recovers.

The average Pacifican income is $479 a week compared with $721 for non-Pacific adults, which represents an increase of just $2 in five years for Pacific adults, compared with $54 for everyone else.

One of the report's authors, Ronji Tanielu, says the huge income gap and painfully slow growth in pay affects everything from housing, to problem debt and putting food on the table.

Mr Tanielu says there's been a big spike in demand from Pacific families for Salvation Army food parcels, budgeting advice and drug and alcohol addiction services.

Speaking with CathNews, Parish priest of Otara, Auckland, Fr Brian Prendeville SM, agrees with the report's findings.

Fr Prendeville says he is noticing an escalating demand on the parish's social outreach programmes.

"We've a lot going on in the parish to help, and we've noticed a marked increase in the call on our family services, food parcels and counseling.

"Our parish branch of St Vincent de Paul is also reporting increased activity," Fr Prendeville said.

Fr Prendeville said that some have used the excuse of the economic recession to benefit themselves.

"Pacificans need to be paid a just and comparable wage", he said.

It is a story echoed by the Auckland Diocese's Catholic Caring Foundation.

Clare Wade, General Manager says that this year the Foundation received a record level of grant applications and it has a huge challenge allocating $650,000 towards families in chronic hardship.

"We have seen a massive jump in requests for help with food-parcels, budget advice, emergency housing and problem gambling.

"Pacific Island families without homes or incomes are the group most affected by poverty in Auckland," Wade said.

Salvation Army urges NZ Government action

The Salvation Army is urging the Government to revive its Pacific Wave unit of work brokers and extend Pacific youth training schemes.

The report's authors say that unless something is done to reduce unemployment and lift Pacifican income, Pacificans will need more handouts and debt to loan sharks will only get worse.

Finance Minister Bill English says the Budget 2013 will help the most vulnerable people in society "who the Government has served very poorly in the past".

Mr English told TVNZ's Q+A programme, Sunday, "Closing that gap is a pretty big challenge."

Pope urges Catholics to seek out those needing help

Speaking, Sunday, from the steps of St Peter's Basilica, Pope Francis lamented a world where homelessness and hunger was not news.

"If we step outside of ourselves, we will find poverty," he said, repeating his call for Catholics to do more to seek out those on the fringes of society who need help the most.

"We cannot become starched Christians, too polite, who speak of theology calmly over tea. We have to become courageous Christians and seek out those (who need help most)," he said.

Sources

• Radio New Zealand
• NZ Herald
• Huffington Post
• Image: Bay of Plenty Times

The Social Housing Reform (Housing Restructuring and Tenancy Matters Amendment Bill) allows private sector groups to be allowed to replace Housing New Zealand as providers of social housing.

However, Catholic social justice agency Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand warns that rushing legislation to implement new housing policy could actually undermine promising new housing initiatives in the 2013 Budget.

Caritas Director Julianne Hickey welcomes the recognition in the Budget of the need to address crucial issues affecting the wellbeing of New Zealanders, including housing and child poverty.

‘We particularly welcome the new spending on rheumatic fever, home insulation and the extension of Income Related Rent subsidies as an acknowledgement that the Government has listened to the Children's Commissioner Expert Advisory Group,' says Mrs Hickey. ‘However, we will continue to debate the scale and detail of particular policy initiatives - much more can and needs to be done.'

In particular, Caritas is deeply concerned that two new housing initiatives are being fast-tracked through the legislative process. Turn-around times of two weeks and six weeks for each of the new housing bills at Select Committee means a reduced time available for public submissions.

‘The housing situation is serious,' says Mrs Hickey, ‘and it is affecting the wellbeing of many New Zealand families. However, we have serious concerns that fast-tracking both Parliamentary legislative and Council resource consent processes will not deliver good outcomes either.

‘Homes are more than just walls and buildings. They are about people living together as families and as communities. Good planning results in quality, stable homes and communities. Decision-makers must consider the environmental impact of housing, and the adequate availability of services such as public transport, schooling and health services to ensure a good quality of life of all families who live in new homes.'

Inadequate planning and monitoring have previously resulted in leaky homes, or homes built on land subject to liquefaction or other environmental disasters, says Mrs Hickey. ‘Protecting the environment and protecting our most vulnerable citizens requires consideration of the needs of the earth and the people who live on the earth.'

‘We also find it strange that in a year where housing features prominently in the Budget, and where new housing policy is being implemented, that the Budget drops funding for housing policy advice from $8 million to $6.8 million.'

Source

• Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand
• New Zealand Herald
• Image: Media2.aponline

While the Government is moving towards implementation of some recommendations of the advisory group on Solutions to Child Poverty, there is little in the Budget that shows real commitment to change . Despite pre-Budget announcements, the outcomes of work undertaken by the Ministerial Committee on Poverty since its establishment also remain unclear.

We endorse the support provided to the most vulnerable New Zealanders through the Warm Up New Zealand and rheumatic fever programmes but other spending decisions are more difficult to reconcile.

In particular:

• a food-in-schools programme is missing in action and looks set to have passive Government involvement although further announcements are promised
• a whiteware procurement programme and pilot partnership for low cost loans get the green light but are somewhat underwhelming to address the needs of vulnerable New Zealanders.

The Budget speaks of investment and wrap around, but the broader focus appears to be on welfare reform targeted at financial accountability rather than adequate support for the most vulnerable. Accountability has its place but we are concerned that greater cost savings for the Government rather than real change for those most in need will result.

Housing provision catch-up

The Commission welcomes the positive initiatives to enlarge state houses and increase the stock after several years without any provision for new state houses. However the demand for affordable state rental housing is such that 500 new homes over two to three years must be seen as a minimum number.

The number of vacant state houses has been the subject of publicity recently, especially in South Auckland. The immediate renovation and re-letting of vacant houses should be undertaken to help ease the urgent demand while the new initiatives are being actioned. Even if they are not of the ideal size they would provide much better accommodation than is afforded by garages or overcrowded houses.

Improving housing affordability

The Government's acceptance of the Productivity Commission's recommendations is also a positive step to tackle long-term housing inaffordability. The implementation will require sustained effort by Government and the Auckland Council. However this is unlikely to be the full answer after years of rampant increase of house values. Unless Government is prepared to impose specific restrictions, owning a house will continue to be beyond the reach of an increasing number of New Zealanders. An example would be a requirement that property developers must include a proportion of lower cost housing in every development above a certain size.

For further comment contact

Norman Elliot

Deputy Chair, Justice & Peace Commission, Catholic Diocese of Auckland

Phone 575 4943 (hm), 623 0402 (wk) mobile: 021 040 4102

Image: cdn.3New.co.nz

The plan, based on an extensive two-year review, was recently presented to parish priests, parish leaders and school principals at meetings held at Viard College in Porirua and in Nelson.

These meetings are part of a process of consultation in which Dew is inviting parish communities to discuss and reflect on the proposals and provide him with constructive ideas and feedback.

Under the proposal, two or more parishes in each pastoral area would combine to create a completely new parish, with one shared council and finance committee. The administration would be set up in one building, with most existing churches retained as 'mass centres', Archbishop Dew said.

Source

• Stuff.co.nz

Speaking at the investiture, Bishop Patrick Dunn said that prior to his resignation, Pope Benedict XVI named Mrs Bayer a Dame in recognition of her pro-life work with mothers and babies in New Zealand.

Mrs Bayer established Family Life International NZ in 1992.

Inspired by the late Fr Paul Marx (the great Apostle of Life) she realised the need in New Zealand for a pro-life, pro-family organisation which addressed all the life issues from natural conception through to natural death.

The organisation is unashamedly Catholic, and offers help to every pregnant mother facing a crisis pregnancy, as well as the sick, disabled and the at-risk elderly.

They also advocate for life, faith and family in the New Zealand media from their Auckland office.

Thanks to generous supporters they have chapters in many parts of New Zealand running crisis-pregnancy centres providing education, formation, and post-abortion help, as well as training in Natural Fertility Regulation.

Colleen has been married to her husband Terry for 40 years. They have five children (four adopted, three of whom have special needs), and ten grandchildren. For many years Colleen and Terry have fostered and provided respite for 27 children with various special needs, opening their hearts and their home to those who are most vulnerable in society today.

Source

• A Culture of Life
• Image: EucharisticConvention.com

Patriarch Sako, who is based in Bagdhad, Iraq, was accompanied by a number of prelates of the Chaldean Church from around the world, including the Archbishop of Australia and New Zealand, the Most Reverend Jibrael Kassab.

On Friday morning Patriarch Sako and the bishops who are travelling with him met with Bishop Pat Dunn of Auckland and members of the Auckland diocesan Council of Priests at the diocesan headquarters, Pompallier Centre, and were joined by members of the Chaldean community.

His Beatitude addressed the gathering and thanked Bishop Dunn for his support.

They later travelled to Hamilton to celebrate Mass at St Columba's Church and celebrated a solemn Mass at St Patrick's Cathedral on Saturday afternoon.

There are over 3,000 Chaldean Catholics in New Zealand, mainly in Auckland, but also in Hamilton and Wellington and His Beatitude's visit was timed to observe the 10th anniversary of the establishment of St Addai's Chaldean Catholic church in South Auckland.

While in Rome for Pope Francis' inaugural Mass in March he had an audience with the pope. "He asked me to pray for him," His Beatitude explained. "And I invited him to visit us in Iraq. The pontiff said he looks forward to visiting our country, which is also where Abraham began his journey. His visit would inspire us with courage and hope."

It is reported that Patriarch Sako is "struck by the pope's simplicity and spontaneity".

Image: NZ Catholic - used with permission.