Tag Archive for ‘religion’
‘The Missionary Race’
The Poyntons of New Zealand In December 1931, the Marist Messenger carried an article about Mary and John Poynton, who came to New Zealand from Australia in 1828. It is re-printed here, adapted and abridged. ‘The Missionary Race’ refers to people exiled from Ireland. Sydney, 1828 Among the close-knit Irish Catholics of Sydney in 1828, […]
Thursday 16 May
Acts 13:13-25; Psalm 89; John 13:16-20 Being catholic “Ask anything of the Father in my name …” What a promise. We often turn to God. Frequently it's part of daily life. "Thanks, God, for the parking space”. “O Lord, we do need rain”. A friend pointed out that Catholicism is part of our culture, not […]
Wednesday 8 June
1 Kings 18:20-39; Ps. 16; Matthew 5:17-19 Return to the Lord On Mount Carmel Elijah reveals to the people of Israel the living God and, so, wins them back to the ways of the God of their ancestors. In the Gospel reading Jesus makes it clear: he is not setting up a new religion. Like […]
How the Catholic Faith came to Pukapuka
Pukapuka is a small isolated island in the northern group of the Cook Islands. I find the story of how the Faith came to this island especially moving because it involves some of our sisters who worked in Samoa early last century. In 1913 a young man called Tangi-te Yua went from Pukapuka to work […]
Jewish-Catholic Relationships
Recently the New Zealand Catholic Bishops Committee for Interfaith Relationships invited Rabbi Fred Morgan, a senior Rabbi of the Temple Beth Israel, Melbourne, to New Zealand. He gave a series of lectures in various centres throughout the country. The springboard for this invitation was to celebrate the fifty years since the document “Nostra Aetate” was […]
July
A former top UK judge has likened efforts to oust expression of religion from the public square to Tudor-era persecutions. Sir Michael Tegendhat said soaring numbers of lawsuits involving religion pointed to an increasing denial of human rights. Sir Michael was the UK’s top libel and media judge until he retired last year. His comments […]
Tuesday 11 February
Our Lady of Lourdes World Day of Prayer for the Sick 1 Kings 8:22, 23, 27-30; Ps 84; Mark 7:1-13 Rules, regulations and the Holy Spirit The Gospel reveals the conflict between religion as a set of rules, and religion as loving God and neighbor. True religion can never be the product of the mind […]
Saturday 7 December
Saint Ambrose, Bishop, Doctor, Martyr Is 30:19-21, 23-26, Ps 146:1-6, Matthew 9:35-10:1, 5a, 6-8 Excuses, excuses! Jesus asks us all to be his missionaries. Sorry, Lord, but we can’t because: — Kiwis don’t like talking about religion. — I don’t want people to think I’m a religious fanatic. — I don’t know enough about my […]
Scripture Reflection: Nicodemus John 3:1-21
He came to Jesus by night, stealthily, furtively almost, careful not to be seen by his fellow Pharisees. He was an intelligent man this Nicodemus and Jesus treated him as such. He puts forward the argument that Jesus has done miracles so he must be from God. He butters him up a bit. In fact […]
Through My Most Grievous Fault
The Confiteor is one of the “younger” parts of the mass; it has been there only for about a thousand years. The probable origin is in a private prayer of the priest as he prepared in the sacristy. It is one of the few prayers of the mass that uses the first person singular, “I” […]
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