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WelCom Office
WelCom November 2024
The 2024 Advent Calendar and the November edition of WelCom are available here.
Pukekaraka leads World Rosary Day
Pope Francis called for all Catholics to take part in this year’s World Rosary Day on 7 October, the Feast of the Holy Rosary, by coming together at their local time of 7pm to recite the Rosary at shrines, in community settings or at home.
Archbishop Pintér arrives as Pope’s new ambassador
Pope Francis’ new ambassador to New Zealand and the Pacific has formally presented his credentials to Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro, formalising his latest posting as a member of the Vatican’s diplomatic service.
‘He Loved Us’: Pope Francis’ new encyclical on the Sacred Heart of Jesus
Pope Francis has published a new encyclical focusing on the Sacred Heart of Jesus, in the context of a world ‘which seems to have lost its heart’.
‘Dilexit nos’ (He Loved Us), released on 24 October, is Pope Francis’ fourth encyclical, and comes at a time of profound global challenges.
World Day of the Poor: A Call to Prayer and Action in the Pacific
Pope Francis has declared Sunday 17 November 2024 to be the eighth World Day of the Poor, with the motto ‘The prayer of the poor rises up to God’.
Poverty is driven by many factors – a lot of them structural inequalities that have existed for decades. People can fall into poverty at any time.
News
Bringing hope to communities since 1960s
Wellington Catholic Social Services’ Hope Appeal, from 1 to 30 November, asks for the community’s continued support for their ‘important work’, bringing ‘hope to individuals and families’, says Chris Ward, Director of Catholic Social Services. CSS is the Archdiocese of Wellington’s social outreach agency.
Pope: The Synod Document is a gift to the People of God
Pope Francis, seated centre, is pictured with all the Synod participants at the conclusion of the work of the General Assembly. In his final address at the Synod Assembly on Saturday evening, 26 October, Pope Francis presented the Synod’s Final Document as a ‘threefold gift’.
The synod and a hui are nearly the same
Taking part in the Synod on Synodality is much like participating in a hui says Manuel Beazley, who was in Rome last month as a New Zealand member of the Synod.
International News
‘Shameful inability’ to stop Israel-Hamas war
Pope Francis has strongly criticised what he called the ‘shameful inability’ of the international community to end the war in the Middle East, one year after Hamas’ devastating attack on Israel, 7 October 2023.
Synod’s grand finale
After three years of discussion, debate and, at times, division, the concluding act of Pope Francis’ Synod of Bishops on Synodality took place in October (2–27). A total of 368…
‘Solidarity Martyr’ still influential today
Forty years after the murder of Blessed Jerzy Popieluszko, Polish Catholics are urging people everywhere to revisit and learn from his heroic testimony.
Diocesan News
Jubilarians’ Mass celebrated at Palmerston North Cathedral
The Diocese of Palmerston North’s annual Jubilarian Mass of priestly ordination was celebrated at the 12.05 Mass on Tuesday 29 October, in the Cathedral of the Holy Spirit, with Bishop John Adams presiding.
Photographic exhibition of Whanganui churches
‘Our places of Worship’ was the title for Whanganui Camera Club’s annual members’ week-long exhibition, which this year featured churches around the city. Local clergy, guests and photographers came together for the official opening on 6 October.
A discerning hui
When seventy people gathered at the ‘Ko Te Tiriti Mai Rāno: The Treaty Is Always speaking. A Covenant for the Generations’ hui in July they were asked to reflect on aspects of Te Tiriti from moral and religious perspectives.
Features
Crisis or opportunity?
‘Genuine renewal of the Church will not be generated at the desks of bishops or in councils…; it requires powerful spiritual impulses, through theological reflection, and the courage to experiment.’
This strong opinion expresses the heart of a new book by a Czech priest, theologian, scholar and pastor, Tomáš Halík, The Afternoon of Christianity, which he dedicates to Pope Francis.
A wider discussion
Oversimplified headlines have been giving the impression that Pope Francis has spoken definitively on the matter of women deacons. That is not my understanding. I understand that wider possibilities for the sacrament of Holy Orders need to be explored first, and simply latching on to the existing structures could further delay the wider discussion that needs to take place. We may lament the time this takes, but we can hardly dispute the need.
Hallmark compassion and authenticity
Fr Denis O’Hagan sm made a life’s work out of companionship and compassion, said Fr Tim Duckworth sm in his homily at the Requiem Mass for Denis in August.
Reflections
Synod: Learning to listen to one another and the Holy Spirit on our missionary path
Dear Brothers and Sisters in Christ
I am writing this at the end of the first day of the third week of the Synod here in Rome. We have just completed the third section of the document that we are working through. It is entitled ‘Pathways’ and it laid out possible ways that we might move into the future as a Church.
Gospel Reading: Sunday 6 November 2024
28 One of the scribes came to Jesus and asked him, ‘Which is the first of all the commandments?
29 Jesus replied, ‘The first is this: Listen, Israel! The Lord our God is the one only Lord! 30 You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.
Questioning the King
What would you like to ask God? I put that question to some under ten-year olds at one of our schools. They were given time to think about it. Here are some of the results.
Young Church
‘Our History, Our Voice, Our Spirit’
Past and present students, parish priests, whanau, members of the parish community and guests, including Archbishop Paul Martin sm and representatives from the Archdiocese of Wellington, gathered at St Theresa’s Catholic School in Plimmerton on Thursday 12 September to celebrate the 75th Jubilee of their kura.
New principal welcomed to Titahi Bay school
St Pius X School in Titahi Bay is delighted to have Dr John Young join the school as its new principal. John was welcomed to school with a pōwhiri in August.
St Marcellin School, Whanganui, honours teacher aide’s 25 years of service
St Marcellin School honoured teacher aide of 25 years, Selina Wilks, in August, with a special liturgy service with students singing and presenting gifts of appreciation.
What's on
Invitation to learn about traditional Māori musical instruments
Henare Walmsley, a parishioner of Te Ngakau Tapu Church in Porirua, is an exponent of Taonga Pūoro and wants to share his knowledge of Māori musical instruments with you.
Sarah and Hajjar/Hagar:Our Abrahamic Matriarchs
Abraham is the father of Isaac and grandfather of Jacob, who is renamed Israel and whose 12 sons represent the tribes of Israel. Abraham is the esteemed patriarch of Jews and Arabs and is seen as ‘father of faith’ for Christians.
The Wellington Abrahamic Council invites you to this second of their discussion events in November.
Young People in Faith
The Wellington Abrahamic Council in conjunction with Pearl of the Islands Foundation invites you to an inspiring evening of dialogue, connection and exploration about challenges and aspirations of young religious people in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam today.