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FROM THE SECULAR PRESS

"League celebrates 200 years of service " The Marlborough Express 18 October 2002 http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/marlboroughexpress/0,2106,2084515a6563,00.html Marlborough's Catholic Women's League is celebrating more than 200 years of dedicated service. That's four lifetimes of meetings, fundraising and mission support....

"Catholics to review sex abuse claims " The Dominion Post, 19 October 2002 http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,2084645a11,00.html All sex-abuse claims against the Catholic Church in New Zealand will be reviewed to see how future allegations can be better handled. The Church is also looking at ways of standardising its responses to abuse claims instead of leaving it to individual orders of priests or nuns. In a statement yesterday, the Church's bishops said they had an obligation to learn from their experience of the issue and be open to improvements..... [Full text of the statement: http://www.catholic.org.nz/newsF.htm ]

"Priest steps down amid claims of sexual misconduct " The Press (Chch) 19 October 2002 http://www.stuff.co.nz/stuff/0,2106,2084659a11,00.html High-profile Catholic priest and justice campaigner Jim Consedine has stood down as Lyttelton parish priest amid allegations of sexual misconduct against women. The former prison chaplain, champion of the underdog and leading advocate of restorative justice has left his parish of 17 years to undergo therapy in a programme in Sydney which specialises in treating clergy for violation of professional boundaries, sexual disorders and abuse....

Related text and video reports:

"Misconduct Claims Surround Cleric" Xtra MSN/IRN/TV 3 http://xtramsn.co.nz/news/0,,3882-1856401,00.html

"Priest admits sexual misconduct" TVNZ http://onenews.nzoom.com/onenews_detail/0,1227,140173-1-7,00.html

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EDUCATION

"Lighting New Fires" September 2002 A newsletter from the NZ Catholic Education Office

http://www.catholic.org.nz/nzceo/lnf/lnfsept02.htm

In this issue: Editorial: education in leadership ... History of integrated schools ... 'Values summit meeting' ... Ministry of Education resource on safety and education outside the classroom ... International conference : "The future of Christianity in the West" ... Planning for 2003: international year of the mountains. United Nations literacy decade ... Supporting the education of gifted and talented children ... Achievements of Catholic schools throughout New Zealand ... International PISA tests of literacy scores ... Kohanga Reo (maori language children's' classes) 20th anniversary ... Education Review Office report on drug education in schools ... Internet monitoring tool available free to schools ... Items from the 2001 census ... Some interesting Websites ... School leavers' qualifications statistics ... Improving education in Mangere and Otara .... Australian science competitions

"Lighting New Fires". Catholic Schools' Supplement http://www.catholic.org.nz/nzceo/lnf/lnfsept02sup.htm

Editorial: ethics in business ... Review and development of the special character of Catholic schools ... Maximum roll increases ... Group electricity purchase proposal ... Reminders: Catholic Schools' Day, 2 April, 2003. New Zealand Catholic Schools' Convention, 14-16 August, 2003 ... Laureate awards to honour outstanding Catholic educators ... Manual for Catholic schools on international students ... (More) achievements of NZ Catholic schools ... New information on NZCEO Website... Poster campaign encourages young people to teach in Catholic schools ... Congratulations

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NEW WEB SITE

Catholic Maori Mission http://millhill.co.nz/

Mill Hill Fathers and Brothers have been Maori Missioners in New Zealand since 1886. Besides historical information and contact details, the site has an extensive library of hymns in Maori. The music is in the .NWC (Noteworthy Composer) file format which both displays the lyrics and plays the score (though the lyrics can also be read using a simple text editor). A free copy of the software for playing the saved files can be downloaded from here: http://download.com.com/3000-2170-10005436.html?legacy=cnet

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APOSTOLIC LETTER "ROSARIUM VIRGINIS MARIAE"

With his latest Apostolic Letter, Pope John Paul hopes to inspire a revival of the Rosary, the centuries-old distinctively Catholic contemplative prayer. To that end, the Pope has declared October 2002 to October 2003 the 'Year of the Rosary' as a framework in time for his hoped-for rosary renewal movement and has instituted a new series of "mysteries" (events in the life of Christ for contemplation during the rosary). In addition to the present three - the Joyful, Sorrowful and Glorious mysteries - we now have the Luminous mysteries (or "Mysteries of Light") : Jesus' baptism in the Jordan; the first public miracle at Cana; the commencement of his public ministry, proclaiming the Kingdom of God and calling to conversion (Mk 1:15); his Transfiguration on Mt.Tabor; and his institution of the Eucharist.

John Paul also wants to encourage a renewal of the way in which the rosary is prayed, reminding that it is intended to be a contemplative prayer - not a racing commentary - and that with some creative preparation it can be a deeply satisfying source of spiritual nourishment for the journey of life.

As usual, the Apostolic Letter is long (43 sections) and densely packed with spiritual insights, historical references, recollections and recommendations. I have listed the titles of the principal subsections of the Letter below in the hope that one or two will catch the eye of some of our readers, and that they will at least read those sections of the Apostolic Letter which interest them and be rewarded accordingly.

God bless, Mike Leon

Apostolic Letter "Rosarium Virginis Mariae" (the Rosary of the Virgin Mary). Full text: http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_letters/documents/hf_jp-ii_\ apl_20021016_rosarium-virginis-mariae_en.html

Introduction 2. The Popes and the Rosary ... 3. October 2002 - October 2003: The Year of the Rosary ... 4. Objections to the Rosary .... 5. A path of contemplation ... 6. Prayer for peace and for the family 7. ... "Behold, your Mother!" (Jn 19:27) ... 8. Following the witnesses

Chapter I Contemplating Christ With Mary 9. A face radiant as the sun .... 10. Mary, model of contemplation ... 11. Mary's memories ... 12. The Rosary, a contemplative prayer ... 13. Remembering Christ with Mary ... 14. Learning Christ from Mary ... 15. Being conformed to Christ with Mary ... 16. Praying to Christ with Mary... 17. Proclaiming Christ with Mary

Chapter II Mysteries Of Christ - Mysteries Of His Mother 18. The Rosary, "a compendium of the Gospel" ... 19. A proposed addition to the traditional pattern ... 20. The Joyful Mysteries ... 21. The Mysteries of Light ... 22. The Sorrowful Mysteries ... 23. The Glorious Mysteries ... 24. From "mysteries" to the "Mystery": Mary's way ... 25. Mystery of Christ, mystery of man

Chapter III "For me, to live is Christ" 26. The Rosary, a way of assimilating the mystery ... 27. A valid method... 28. ... which can nevertheless be improved ... 29. Announcing each mystery ... 30. Listening to the Word of God ... 31. Silence ... 32. The "Our Father" ... 33. The ten "Hail Marys" ... 34. The "Gloria"... 35. The concluding short prayer ... 36. The Rosary beads ... 37. The opening and closing ... 38. Distribution over time

Conclusion 39. "Blessed Rosary of Mary, sweet chain linking us to God" ... 40. Peace ... 41. The family: parents... 42. ... and children ... 43. The Rosary, a treasure to be rediscovered

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