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Dear readers of Kiwicath News & Notes:  This is the final 'News & Notes' for 2019.  I will restart the newsletter in January, as soon as there is something to report.

Happy Christmas,
Mike Leon.

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NZ CATHOLIC BISHOPS' CONFERENCE

http://www.catholic.org.nz

NZ Catholic Church welcomes declaration from Pope Francis on abuse secrecy (18 Dec 2019)
https://www.catholic.org.nz/news/media-releases/nz-catholic-church-welcomes-declaration/
The Catholic Church of Aotearoa/New Zealand welcomes the declaration by Pope Francis that the 2001 Church rule of "Pontifical Secrecy" no longer applies in cases of the sexual abuse of minors, says Cardinal John Dew, Metropolitan Archbishop of New Zealand ...

NZCBC on Facebook
https://www.facebook.com/pg/CatholicNZ/posts/

** Statement on the Pontifical Secret (18 December)

** Senior Catholic Prison Chaplain Sister Veronica Casey met Pope Francis (17 December)

** Interfaith prayer for the victims of the Whaari/White Island tragedy (17 December)

** Students of St Mary MacKillop Catholic School in Mangere wrote 'Where I Live', a book of their personal experiences of everyday life in South Auckland (16 December)

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'NZ CATHOLIC'

Website: http://www.nzcatholic.org.nz
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/pages/NZ-Catholic/262886647205656
Full text articles: https://www.nzcatholic.org.nz/2019/

In issue no. 580, December 15 2019 - January 25 2020: Bishop Pat Dunn: Who is Jesus? ... $126m Catholic precinct for Chch ... NZ Catholics challenged to help end slavery ...Naomi's moving abortion story told at March for Life ... Maria Kennedy: Finding Christmas peace ... Dr Rocio Figueiroa: Protection from spiritual abuse need in safeguarding ... Bernard Moran: Born alive rule and antiquity ... New Zealand year in review (double-page photo feature ... Outstanding community contributions honoured ... Top scholars 2019 ... Otama flag centre of Armistice Day service ... Tongan Catholics clear up close to home.

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FROM THE SECULAR PRESS

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Christmas 2019
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Auckland church leaders Christmas message: Christmas in the Rough
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/news/article.cfm?c_id=1&objectid=12295276
The Christmas season can be a great magnifier. While it magnifies what is good, it also magnifies the pain. Yet Christmas is a time when we hear carols like Joy to the World. We pause to think about what is good and worthy of joy. This is the strange tension in the Christmas season: between the stresses and the celebrations. How do we walk this fine line and find balance between them? ...

Plenty of opportunity for spirit of giving
https://www.odt.co.nz/news/dunedin/plenty-opportunity-spirit-giving
The expectations to provide presents and elaborate dinners during the Christmas holiday period can put pressure on already struggling families. Luckily, Dunedin's social agencies have made it easy for residents to give them a hand. The third major drive is the Dunedin Christian Helping Agencies Group's Christmas hampers. The group is made of Salvation Army, Presbyterian Support Otago, Methodist Mission, Catholic Social Services, and Anglican Family Care.

Palmerston North schoolchildren get into giving spirit of Christmas
https://www.stuff.co.nz/manawatu-standard/news/118354538/palmerston-north-schoolchildren-get-into-giving-spirit-of-christmas
A school holiday programme in Palmerston North is getting into the giving spirit of Christmas. Holiday programme provider Nippers held a disco at St James' Catholic School on Friday. But instead of a standard gold coin entry, children were asked to donate an item of food for the Methodist Social Services and St Vincent de Paul for families in need.

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Pope Francis to decide Bishop Charles Drennan's future after sexual complaints
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/118322356/pope-francis-to-decide-bishop-charles-drennans-future
Charles Drennan, the former bishop of the Palmerston North diocese, is now back in Palmerston North and his uncertain future will be decided the Pope. Stuff visited Drennan's Palmerston North home on Thursday and he said he had just returned from doing voluntary work in India. He said he didn't know what he would do next and declined to comment further.

Invercargill business leader John Prendergast moving north
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/118239790/invercargill-business-leader-john-prendergast-moving-north
Invercargill business leader John Prendergast is moving to Wellington to take on a new challenge. Prendergast, the chief executive of the Community Trust of Southland for 20 years until his controversial departure in 2017, said the timing was right to move on. When Prendergast left the Community Trust he took on a job as chief executive of the Southland Presbyterian Support which he has held for the past 18 months. But he has resigned and will start a new job as general manager of the Catholic Archdiocese of Wellington in February.

Southern landscape formed by largest-known landslide of its type
https://www.stuff.co.nz/southland-times/culture/118309683/southern-landscape-formed-by-largestknown-landslide-of-its-type
Early Catholics in Southland: The Roman Catholic Church made an appearance in the south in November 1840. Bishop Jean Baptiste Pompallier arrived at Otakou on his ship Sancta Maria with several priests but departed disappointed ten days later after finding the Maori population sparse and already committed Protestants ...

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NEWS OF THE SCHOOLS

Catholic Cathedral College: Teenager killed in fatal rural Canterbury crash 'a talented and respectful boy'
https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/118336433/teenager-killed-in-fatal-crash-rural-canterbury-named
A young boy killed in a rural Canterbury crash was "a good kid, who loved to play piano and sing with his dad", a family friend says. Jyren Estrella, 13, of Christchurch was killed in a crash at the intersection of Ellesmere and Tancreds roads, near Lincoln about 4.30pm on Saturday.

St James', Palmerston North: See above: 'Palmerston North schoolchildren get into giving spirit of Christmas'

St Mary McKillop: South Auckland kids write book to challenge negative stereotypes about their community (text, video, audio)
https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/first-up/audio/2018727075/south-auckland-kids-write-book-to-challenge-negative-stereotypes-about-their-community
After being fed up with stories about multiple shootings, street fights and crime in South Auckland, 11 local school kids decided they wanted to tell a different story about their community. So they banded together, wrote and published a book called Where I Live and filled it with personal stories about their everyday experiences in South Auckland. Pockets of the area have some of the highest crime rates in the country and are ranked in the highest deprivation bracket but the 11 students - now published authors - of St Mary MacKillop Catholic School say there's more to South Auckland than that.

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INSPIRED WORD

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCW3-dG1A3neGPJ041T9vjVw  (Under: Created playlists)

Matthew 1:18-24 The ancestors of Jesus Christ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M-PtUQxJxgM&list=PLeDNiKpHSQBCBkgGtJ8PkooBg6ajG0C--&index=1
A reading and commentary by Sister Stephanie Kitching.

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STATION XV

http://station15.co.nz/

Station XV: Episode 145 — Sorrow, settlement, synod, Scripture (December 17, 2019)

It's truly a bumper episode of The 15th Station for our Christmas episode, as the panel considers some of the big stories from home and abroad. The White Island volcano tragedy leads the show, as New Zealand tries to deal with another disaster. In Australia, one debate over religious freedom has concluded, with a rugby player and his employers reaching a settlement over a social media post paraphrasing Scripture. In Germany, the Church has embarked on a "synodal journey" that is offering both hope and concern, depending on who you ask. And back in NZ, plans are coming together for the construction of a new Catholic cathedral in Christchurch. From the 15th Station family (Anna, Donald, James and Gavin) to you and yours, we wish you a happy and holy Christmas.

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CRUX - Edited by John L. Allen Jr. and Inés San Martin

http://cruxnow.com

** Survivors, experts agree: End of pontifical secrecy a step toward transparency
https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2019/12/survivors-experts-agree-end-of-pontifical-secrecy-a-step-toward-transparency/

** Pope says 'rigidity, self-preservation' must not impede reform of the Roman Curia
https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2019/12/pope-says-rigidity-self-preservation-must-not-impede-reform-of-the-roman-curia/

** Why Greta, not Boris, may be the right way to assess Francis's political impact
https://cruxnow.com/news-analysis/2019/12/why-greta-not-boris-may-be-the-right-way-to-assess-franciss-political-impact/

** Top Vatican official says celibacy, homosexuality not cause of abuse crisis
https://cruxnow.com/vatican/2019/12/top-vatican-official-says-celibacy-homosexuality-not-cause-of-abuse-crisis/

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EMPLOYMENT
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National Treasurer, Society of St Vincent de Paul NZ
https://www.svdp.org.nz/
Details from national@svdp.org.nz

Teaching vacancies in New Zealand Catholic schools are advertised on the Website of the Education Gazette: https://gazette.education.govt.nz/vacancies/?Keywords=catholic#results

Vacancies in the Catholic Overseas Volunteer programme:
https://www.caritas.org.nz/get-involved/catholic-volunteers-overseas

Job vacancies in the Catholic dioceses of ...

** Auckland: https://www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz/administration/staff-vacancies/
** Wellington: https://www.wn.catholic.org.nz/archdiocesan-offices/jobs/
** Dunedin: https://www.cdd.org.nz/employment-opportunities

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THE CATHOLIC CHURCH IN AOTEAROA NEW ZEALAND

https://www.catholic.org.nz/

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New Zealand Commentaries
on the Sunday Readings
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Fr Frank Bird sm. Living the Word: Sundays of the Year: Discussion Guide - http://livingtheword.org.nz

Marist Messenger. Daily Reflections https://www.maristmessenger.co.nz/

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New Zealand Catholic
Periodicals & Newsletters
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'NZ Catholic' is a national newspaper published by the Catholic Bishop of Auckland. http://www.nzcatholic.org.nz

Catholic Diocese of Hamilton. 'Kete Korero'. https://issuu.com/search?q=%22kete+korero%22

Catholic Dioceses of Palmerston North and Wellington. 'Wel-com'  http://www.welcom.org.nz

Catholic Diocese of Christchurch. 'Inform'  https://chchcatholic.nz/?sid=25 (Latest news - Latest Inform)

Catholic Diocese of Dunedin. 'The Tablet' https://catholic-diocese.squarespace.com/back-issues

The Nathaniel Centre. The New Zealand Catholic Bioethics Centre. 'The Nathaniel Report' http://www.nathaniel.org.nz/

NZ Catholic Education Office. School News Update  https://www.nzceo.org.nz/network-update/

Society of Mary. 'Marist Messenger' http://www.maristmessenger.co.nz

St Columban's Mission Society. 'The Far East' https://www.columban.org.au/media-and-publications/the-far-east-magazine/archive/

Society of Saint Vincent de Paul NZ. News in Brief:  https://bit.ly/2EFXF82

'Tui Motu Interislands'. An independent Catholic magazine. http://www.tuimotu.org/

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Facebook
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NZ Catholic Bishops' Conference
https://www.facebook.com/CatholicNZ/

Catholic Discovery NZ (Catholic Enquiry Centre)
https://www.facebook.com/pg/catholicdiscovery.nz/posts/

'NZ Catholic' newspaper
https://www.facebook.com/NZCatholic/

Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand
https://www.facebook.com/caritasaotearoa/timeline

Holy Cross Seminary
https://www.facebook.com/HolyCrossNZ

Marist Seminary, Auckland NZ
https://www.facebook.com/Marists

Society of St Vincent de Paul NZ
https://www.facebook.com/Society-of-St-Vincent-de-Paul-in-New-Zealand-1065775963583004/

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News of the Church
in NZ and the World
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http://cathnews.co.nz/category/new-zealand/

http://www.nzcatholic.org.nz

http://www.cruxnow.com

http://www.lastampa.it/vaticaninsider/eng

https://www.romereports.com/en/ (video)

Catholic Herald. Morning Catholic Must Reads : https://bit.ly/2TILT2N