Sunday, December 19, 2004

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Dear readers,

This is the last News & Notes for 2004. The next one will go out on 9 January 2005.

A very happy Christmas and all God's blessings to you and yours.

Mike Leon

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ADVENT / CHRISTMAS 2004

Joining the masses for a festive praise (photo) Waikato Times 18 December 2004 http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/waikatotimes/0,2106,3132102a6578,00.html Lester Thorley talks to Christina Reymer, whose family will be among the faithful Catholics celebrating Midnight Mass this year....

Place a candle in your window. The burning flame on Christmas Eve welcomes Mary, Joseph, Jesus and the weary traveller. Western Catholic Reporter (Canada) December 20, 2004 http://www.wcr.ab.ca/news/2004/1220/candle122004.shtml Himself now off to New Zealand to fill in so one-man parish priests can have Christmas break, Paul Andrews, the Irish Jesuit we hear from at the beginning of this story, gives perhaps the most powerful explanation of what we are saying when we light that candle....

Come, let us adore him, by Gerald O'Collins SJ The Tablet (UK) 18/12/2004 http://www.thetablet.co.uk/cgi-bin/archive_db.cgi/tablet-00962 Carols evoke the extraordinary Christmas story of the baby born in a stable. They also help us understand through their familiar words the tenets of our faith...

Meditating on the Second Coming: Advent's Spiritual Pilgrimage, by Robert E. Webber Christianity Today, December 6 2004 http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/149/52.0.html The birth of Christ is only the final stop when meditating this holiday season....

The crèche is a sign of culture and faith, Pope says Asia News 12 December, 2004 http://www.asianews.it/view.php?l=en&art=2098 Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Speaking before the Angelus, the Pope said that the scene of the Nativity of Jesus was not only "part of our culture and art but also a sign of faith in God who, in Bethlehem, "made his dwelling among us" (John 1:14).....

Israeli Christians to visit Bethlehem this Christmas AsiaNews 17 December, 2004 http://www.asianews.it/view.php?l=en&art=2140 Jerusalem (AsiaNews) - Signs of thaw in the Holy Land after the Israeli government announced that it would not prevent Israeli Christians from visiting Bethlehem for Christmas celebrations....

"Cost of living" in Europe and Iraq: in constant danger Christians in Baghdad and Mosul will spend Christmas behind barred doors http://www.fides.org/eng/news/2004/0412/10_3692.html Baghdad (Fides Service) - Despite an ever higher cost of living in Europe Christmas shopping and present hunting is in full swing while in the Iraqi cities of Baghdad and Mosul the cost of living is another matter and Christians feel ever more threatened....

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WORLD DAY OF PEACE - 1 JANUARY 2005

Pope's Message for 2005 World Day of Peace "Do Not Be Overcome by Evil but Overcome Evil With Good" http://zenit.org/english/visualizza.phtml?sid=63676 Vatican City, Dec. 16, 2004 (Zenit.org).- Here is John Paul II's Message for the World Day of Peace, to be observed Jan. 1. The Vatican press office released it today....

Presentation on Message for World Day of Peace "Right to Peace and to Development" http://zenit.org/english/visualizza.phtml?sid=63677 Vatican City, Dec. 16, 2004 (Zenit.org).- Here is the address delivered today by Cardinal Renato Martino, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, when presenting to the press the message of John Paul II for World Day of Peace 2005....

Between the dangerous threat of preventive war and the sterile noise of pacifism, the Pope chooses to "build" peace. [Commentary on the Message by Fr Bernardo Cevellera] Asia News 16 December, 2004 http://www.asianews.it/view.php?l=en&art=2128

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'NZ CATHOLIC'

http://www.nzcatholic.org.nz

No. 202, December 12-18, 2004

(Issue 203 - on sale this weekend - is the last for 2004. The next issue of 'NZ Catholic' will be published on 30 January 2005)

Award for excellence to Queenstown teacher Queenstown - A teacher from St Joseph's School in Queenstown has received the top award in the 2004 ASG National Excellence in Teaching Awards....

School dispute focuses on "tagged" positions Christchurch - The significance of "tagged" teaching positions in Catholic schools has been highlighted by a dispute involving St Joseph's School at Rangiora....

Religious to gather for the first time Wellington - St Catherine's College in Kilbirnie is the venue for New Zealand's first-ever national conference of religious orders, to be held in January....

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FROM THE SECULAR PRESS

Ingenious and industrious man of the land George Walter Parker, farmer and racing identity (obituary - photo) Otago Daily Times Dec 11, 2004 http://tinyurl.com/6gaeg Walter Parker could fix anything with a piece of string or lacing wire and his trusty pocket knife. The retired Roxburgh farmer, who died recently aged 79, was described as a man who learnt from the hardships of being raised on a farm in the early part of last century. It taught him to make do with whatever was available....

Brash nibbles at tax carrot for insured NZ Herald 16.12.04 http://www.nzherald.co.nz/index.cfm?c_id=3&ObjectID=9003433 "It is not at all clear to me why some New Zealanders should be expected to pay twice for their healthcare and the education of their children - once through their tax and once through health insurance premiums and school fees" [said Don Brash in a speech last Friday].... Coupling the issue with school fees is interesting, however. The Institute of Economic Research, in a 2001 report on the tax treatment of health insurance premiums, cites as a precedent the case of integrated (mainly Catholic) schools....

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FROM THE OVERSEAS CATHOLIC PRESS & NEWS AGENCIES

Survey links happiness with Christianity http://www.cathnews.com/news/412/66.php Christians are happier than atheists, and more generous, according to new findings from the National Church Life Survey titled Spirituality and Wellbeing....

Veteran of the Vatican Information Service. Interview With Joan Lewis Vatican City, Dec. 14, 2004 (zenit.org).- Striking among the aspects of John Paul II's pontificate is his relationship with the media. With this in mind, journalist Joan Lewis of the Vatican Information Service explains how her work has changed over the years. Part 1: http://zenit.org/english/visualizza.phtml?sid=63542 Part 2: http://zenit.org/english/visualizza.phtml?sid=63610

Saudi Christian convert arrested and jailed AsiaNews 17 December, 2004 http://www.asianews.it/view.php?l=en&art=2134 Jeddah (AsiaNews) - A Saudi citizen converted to Christianity has been arrested and jailed. Emad Alaabadi was taken into custody last November 29, at Hofuf, a town in eastern Saudi Arabia. AsiaNews local sources have confirmed the report, and also say that he "is not the only Saudi Christian in jail at the moment: there are also others"....

The Shroud's Second Image New evidence reopens debate about the controversial relic. Christianity Today, December 2004 http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2004/012/32.56.html Two scientists from the University of Padua report in the April edition of the London-based Journal of Optics the discovery of a heretofore-undetected reverse image on the Shroud of Turin....

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MARIST BROTHERS' NEWSLETTERS

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'Marist Champagnat Family Newsletter' Spring Edition 2004 http://www.maristbrothers.org.nz/MFN1Spring2004.htm

Song of Awakening ... A letter from Anicet Lakomy (former Polish child-refugee) ... News from Takuilau College, Tonga ... Brother Chris Poppelwell, East Timor ... Marist Vocation Year ... A Marist Ministry: Brother Ray Harold at the Point Chevalier Forensic Psychiatry service ... Recent Deaths: Colin Rist, Brother Hubert Clifford, Hugh Murphy, Pat Fay, Patricia Chiaroni,Tony Jacobsen, Ray Fitzgerald ... La Valla Old Boys Association ... Appointment of Marist Old Boy Bishop Colin Campbell ... "Blessed are the Peacemakers" ... Humour

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MYAM Notes (Marist Young Adult Ministry)

http://www.myam.org.nz

About the The Grove community of young adults ... Leadership formation programmes.

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'Champagnat News' A Newsletter for Boards of Trustees and Staff of Marist Schools and Schools with Marist Traditions in New Zealand

The Champagnat Newsletter was not published during Term 4 2004, but the previous issue, September 2004 http://www.maristbrothers.org.nz/CNSept20041.htm is packed with interesting articles and well worth a visit if you haven't already seen it. ML.

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CARITAS AOTERAROA NZ

http://www.caritas.org.nz

NEWSROOM

Thousands Homeless after Eruption on Manam Island 14 December , 2004: The continuing volcanic eruptions on Manam Island, off the coast of Papua New Guinea, have seen the evacuation of nearly all of the island's approximately 9500 inhabitants. Since October 2004, the volcano has been spewing ash, lava and large rocks into the air, covering homes and crops with a blanket of thick ash and polluting water supplies, rendering the island uninhabitable and prompting a mass evacuation to the mainland...

Responding to the devastation in the Philippines 10 December , 2004: Following the four consecutive typhoons of Unding, Violeta, Winnie and Yoyong and tropical storms that have hit the Philippines since November 22, Caritas Internationalis has launched a $200,000 USD appeal to provide emergency relief to 3,000 families.......

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PENPAL REQUEST

Nelson Wandis, a 19-year-old seminarian in Papua New Guinea, would like to correspond with NZ Catholic parishioners. His address: St John Vianney Minor Seminary, PO Box 205, Vanimo, Sandaun Province, Papua New Guinea.

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CATHOLICTV.NET

Media Centre of the Wellington Archdiocese

http://www.catholictv.net

Mass of Thanksgiving to mark the 25th anniversary of Cardinal Williams Episcopal ordination (video report) The mass was celebrated in Sacred Heart Cathedral on Monday, Dec 13, 2004. The homily of thanksgiving was given by Coadjutor Archbishop, John Dew, who will succeed Cardinal Williams. Cardinal William's fellow bishops from around New Zealand, and about sixty diocesan priests, family, friends, and national and diocesan work staff attended.

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TUI MOTU INTERISLANDS

http://www.tuimotu.org

From the December 2004 issue ...

No Room At The Inn (full text) The principal elements of the Christmas story are joy and delight: the birth of a child, the protective love of parents, the welcome of shepherds, the hosannas of angels. That's not the whole story. Not all countries are as welcoming, and many spend much of their lives in camps, wanted by nobody....

Also in the December issue ... Infant Jesus, Refugee - Joy Cowley A Creed To Believe - Glyn Cardy Dangerous Passions - Mike Noonan A Young Man In Search Of His Soul - Patricia Williams Smorgasbord Of Delights - Kathleen Doherty reviews books of 2004

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CATHOLIC COMMUNICATIONS NZ

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

http://www.cathcom.org.nz

Pope's Peace Day message that violence can't solve problems Tasmanian Archbishop's plea to accept Monsignor's guilt Vatican delegation astonished by cancellation of meeting with Israel National religious orders Conference for NZ Tasmanian CEO eyes schools expansion Religion, ethics 'essential values for young people' across Asia

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EMPLOYMENT

[Teaching vacancies in New Zealand Catholic schools are advertised in the Education Gazette: http://www.edgazette.govt.nz/vacancies ]

[Vacancies in Catholic Youth Ministry are advertised on the Job Bank page of the National Council for Young Catholics: http://ncyc.org.nz ]

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Catholic Tertiary Chaplaincy vacancies, Diocese of Christchurch 2-3 postions for tertiary co-ordinator and tertiary team workers Details in 'NZ Catholic' December 12-18 p.22, and from Mike Stopforth, Catholic Youth Team, PO Box 4544, Christchurch. Tel: (03) 366-9869; fax: (03) 379-8724; e-mail: mstopforth@chch.catholic.org.nz. Or after 20 December, Fr Michael Doyle, Tertiary priest-chaplain; e-mail: mjdoyle@paradise.net.nz Applications close 17 January 2005

Director, 'Mahitahi', the Project Assistance Agency of the NZ Catholic Bishops' Conference http://www.mahitahi.org/about.php Details in 'NZ Catholic' December 12-18 p.9, at: http://www.cathcom.org.nz/media.php and from: Mahitahi, 30 New Street, Ponsonby, Auckland. E-mail: timw@cda.org.nz Applications close 24 December 2004

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EVENTS

"Hearts Aflame" Catholic Summer School Sacred Heart Hostel, Hamilton, Friday 31st of December 2004 - Sunday January 9th 2005 http://heartsaflame.org.nz The Hearts Aflame Catholic Summer School offers young adults (18-35 years old) an opportunity to learn more about the teachings of the Church, through: A deepening of your spiritual life through personal, communal and liturgical prayer and celebration of the sacraments A discovery of the richness of Catholic spirituality and tradition. An experience of living a common life of prayer, service and recreation An introduction to theology and scripture An examination of some of the many issues facing the Church

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Parachute Music Festival Mystery Creek, Hamilton January 28-31 2005

The annual Christian music festival, takes place on Auckland Anniversary weekend (last weekend of January) at Totara Springs Christian Camp, Matamata.

Parachute Festival Website: http://websites.parachutemusic.com/festival/2005/default_noflash.asp

Catholics@Parachute: The young Catholic presence at Australasia's biggest Christian music festival is growing by the year.. The National Council for Young Catholics coordinates the bulk purchase of tickets and the set-up of a Catholic village on site. Contact Jamie Cox: jamiec@cdh.org.nz

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