Sunday, April 7, 2002

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DIVINE MERCY SUNDAY.
WORLD DAY OF PRAYER FOR PEACE IN THE HOLY LAND.

"What could be a more suitable occasion to raise to heaven a choral invocation of pardon and mercy that implores the Heart of God for a special intervention ..." (Pope John Paul)

Please join in today's worldwide prayers for a special intervention to bring relief to the suffering populations of Jesus' homeland.

You can follow events there through first-hand reports from the Catholic news agencies, via the 'News' link at http://www.catholic.org.nz and from the Misna News Agency at: http://www.misna.org/eng/default.htm Both Misna and Fides have contacts in the affected areas whose telephopned reports appear on the respective Websites almost immediately.

For the background to Divine Mercy Sunday and the devotion that inspires it, please visit http://www.homebusinesslink.com/divinemercyNZ.html

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FROM THE CATHOLIC PRESS

NZ Catholic No 134, April 7, 2002 http://catholic.org.nz/cathcom/press/nzc/front.html

"Hui Gives Boost to Restorative Justice Effort " More than 100 people from all over New Zealand gathered at Te Piringa Taha o Te Maungaronga Marae in west Auckland last month for the national restorative justice hui.... [Links: Courts of New Zealand: Information on court-referred restorative justice ... Father Jim Consedine. "Restorative Justice- the Christian Option " ]

"Students survive giving up luxuries " "What, no ice in the cordial!" was just one of the reality checks for St Peter's College students who "survived a slum" in the school courtyard... [Link: St Peter's College]

"Pregnant Despite Family Planning " A domestic violence survey of women at an abortion clinic suggests contraception has little chance of reducing the abortion rate... [Link: Waikato District Health Board ]

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FROM THE SECULAR PRESS

"Speaking shield regained " The Christchurch Press - New Zealand; Apr 2, 2002 http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=020402008390&query=cat\ holic+and+zealand After a close fight, St Bede's College has regained the Bishop Lyons Shield for public speaking. The shield, awarded annually since 1947, was contested by seven Catholic schools from Timaru to the West Coast....

"The danger of (not) doing it Jim's way " The Christchurch Press Apr 4, 2002 http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=020404008685&query=cat\ holic+and+zealand Jim Anderton has long made a habit of turning his friends into enemies. >From the Catholic Church, through the Labour Party, the Greens, and now the Alliance, he has left division and disillusionment in his wake......

"Traditional touch to service " The Christchurch Press Mar 30, 2002 http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=020330007007&query=cat\ holic+and+zealand Traditional choral music and the words of New Zealand writers combined in a Christchurch Easter service that aimed to make Jesus' crucifixion relevant to the experiences of contemporary New Zealanders....

"Coast took 'em young : Digging for the stories behind our historic headstones" The Christchurch Press Mar 30, 2002 http://globalarchive.ft.com/globalarchive/article.html?id=020330007145&query=cat\ holic+and+zealand Cemetery headstones are a vivid reminder of the perils awaiting people in a land of rapidly rising rivers, landslips, and mine explosions... At Karoro Cemetery towards the south of Greymouth, the largest plot dates from the pre- feminist era. It features elaborate headstones for six priests and a brother, while the final resting places of 19 nuns are marked with simple white crosses....

"Enduring the cross of human frailty" Otago Daily Times, Saturday, 6-April 2002 http://www.odt.co.nz/cgi-bin/search-display-story-online-new?date=04Apr2002&obje\ ct=G3A25E2602EP&type=html&WORDS=catholic&DB=Editorial As John Paul II, he may be seen by millions as God's representative on Earth but, as Karol Wojtyla, he is a man trapped in an increasingly frail body. So will he be the first Pope in more than 700 years to step down?......

"The Pros and cons of letting hatred go" Otago Daily Times, Saturday, 6-April 2002 http://www.odt.co.nz/cgi-bin/search-display-story-online-new?date=06Apr2002&obje\ ct=G394575591RT&type=html&WORDS=catholic&DB=Editorial For centuries, the subject of forgiveness has fascinated and vexed moral men and women. It pits Old Testament judgment against New Testament mercy, rage against compassion, instinct against intellect. Now there's a new, practical take on the subject, where spirit meets self-interest. Several new books and medical studies conclude that people who forgive live longer, healthier and happier lives....

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CATHOLICTV.NET http://www.catholictv.net (Produced by the Wellington Archdiocesan Media Office)

Theme of the month: Work This week: Fr Peter Roe talks to accountancy firm partner Mike Curtis about finding the balance between work, family and leisure.

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EVENTS

April 19-21 2002 Catholic Network of Marriage Educators Conference, Napier Details from Oncall Conference Management, 20 Cambridge Terrace, Taradale, Napier. Tel: 06 844 9956 e-mail: c-moore@clear.net.nz

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EMPLOYMENT

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

Catholic Social Services, Dunedin. Diocesan Outreach Facilitator To develop a Catholic social support network across the Otago-southland diocese. Further details in 'NZ Catholic' newspaper 24 March 2002 and from CSS Board of Directors, PO Box 263, dunedin. Applications close Friday 12 April.

Qualified Early Childhood staff member, Marian Early Childhood Centre, Panmure Details in NZ Catholic April 7 2002 p.21. Applications close 18 April 2002

Regional Youth Worker (Tauranga), Hamilton Diocese To develop youth ministries in the Bay of Plenty region. Detyails in 'NZ Catholic' April 7 2002 p.21 and from Naomi McGowan tel 07 838 2079; e-mail: naomim@mlc.co.nz Applications close Friday 19 April 2002