Sunday, December 9, 2018

*******************

FROM THE SECULAR PRESS 

************
Christmas 2018
************

Schools help make Christmas better for families in need
Nelson Mail 1 Dec 2018
Richmond Catholic schools St Paul's and Garin College are collecting donations for the St Vincent de Paul's Christmas appeal. 

Big man brings sunshine to parade (text, video with brief glimpses of Nativity scenes)
A dose of seasonal good cheer helped dispel memories of recent flooding in South Otago on Saturday. Following some of the most severe flooding in 20 years in Balclutha late last month, Santa brought the perfect sunshine tonic with him to his annual parade and street market in the town.

RNZ. Pre-Christmas pamper for those in need
A group of volunteers at St Joseph's Church New Plymouth washed hair, painted nails and gave massages to people unable to afford the full salon treatment ahead of the big day.

Hundreds of meals for St Vincent foodbank 
Photo caption: Volunteer Vince Jones scoops cottage pie filling from a huge pot yesterday to create hundreds of meals for the Dunedin St Vincent de Paul foodbank.

*******************

RNZ. Checkpoint. Iraqi priest in NZ: 'Please save our people' (audio)
Auckland-based Catholic priest Fr Douglas Al-Bazi was tortured by terrorists in Iraq and sheltered thousands of people fleeing from Islamic State. He tells Alex Perrottet his harrowing story and says New Zealand should be taking more refugees suffering genocide in the Middle East.

Gordon Whiting: A life defined by enduring principles
Obituary of Gordon Whiting, former Environment Court judge: b March 16, 1942; d November 6, 2018

Hundreds of pro-life advocates take to Wellington's streets in opposition of abortion reform (text, video)
Several pro-life organisations have joined forces to ensure their voices are heard when it comes to the hot-button topic of abortion. Organised by five groups, the March for Life – touted as a counter-protest to a similar pro-choice event earlier in the week – drew a large crowd to Wellington's Te Ngakau Civic Square on Saturday.

Abuse survivor complained to school and was told to leave or be expelled
An abuse survivor molested at a Catholic college says when he alerted the school, he was given five days to leave or be expelled.
St Joseph's Catholic church in Hawera celebrates its 25th year anniversary
A South Taranaki church with a 143-year history is celebrating a milestone anniversary.

More than a moral dilemma: The religious and community views on euthanasia
Just over 12 per cent of the New Zealand population identify as Catholic and yet their view has been one of the most prominent – and well-covered in the media – when it comes to the euthanasia debate.

St Peter's golden generation proud to do it their way, as well as the honourable way
Someone, somewhere was looking down on St Peter's College first XV this year as they negotiated a precipitous path to the national schools rugby title. St Peter's, in many ways, stands as the shining example for the right way – the honourable way – to achieve success in first XV rugby at a time when the spotlight on the schools game has never shone brighter. 

****************************************

INSPIRED WORD 

Luke 3:1-6 The preaching of John the Baptist
A reading and commentary with Canon Deborah Broome and Rev. Alister Hendery at St Paul's Cathdral, Wellington.

******************************************

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


Why a 14th-century mystic appeals to today's 'spiritual but not religious' Americans

The history of organized religion is full of schisms, heresies and other breakaways. What is different at this time is a seemingly indiscriminate mixing of diverse religious traditions to form a personalized spirituality, often referred to as "cafeteria spirituality." At the heart of this trend is the general conviction that all world religions share a fundamental, common basis, a belief known as "perennialism." And this is where the unlikely figure of Meister Eckhart, a 14th-century Dominican friar, famous for his popular sermons on the direct experience of God, is finding popular appeal...

******************************************************

NEW ZEALAND CATHOLIC PERIODICALS & NEWSLETTERS 

'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' http://www.chch.catholic.org.nz/?sid=25

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  http://www.nzceo.org.nz/news/ 

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


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

*******************************************

NEW ZEALAND COMMENTARIES ON THE SUNDAY READINGS

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/category/features/

********************************************

FACEBOOK

The Catholic Church in Aotearoa New Zealand

'NZ Catholic' newspaper

Caritas Aotearoa New Zealand

Holy Cross Seminary

Marist Seminary, Auckland NZ

*****************************************

NEWS OF THE CHURCH IN NZ AND THE WORLD







*************************************************

EMPLOYMENT 

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

Vacancies in the Catholic Overseas Volunteer programme, contact: volunteers@caritas.org.nz 

Job vacancies in the Catholic dioceses of Auckland: http://www.aucklandcatholic.org.nz/category/vacancies/