Festival of New Life date announced

The sixth Sunday of Easter, which falls on May 5 this year, has been designated by the New Zealand Bishops Conference and the Lutheran Dialogue group as the “Festival of New Life”, an occasion meant to signal hope and confidence in the move towards Christian unity.

This was an initiative of the Roman Catholic/Lutheran Dialogue, who in a statement stressed, “we have all been baptised in Christ and, realising this provides a starting point for the seeds of unity to take root”.

RC/Lutheran dialogue member Fr James Lyons told NZ Catholic that the NZCBC agreed to the initiative last year, but the Lutheran dialogue group only complete their arrangements last month.

The other members of the dialogue are Sr Kathleen Rushton rsm, Fr Tom Rouse ssc, Rev Mark Whitfield, Mr Petrus Simons and Mr Jim McAloon.

In the statement, the dialogue said the first disciples were urged by Jesus to remain in his love, commanding them to “Love one another as I have loved you” (Jn 15). This is also the Gospel reading on May 5.

“No Christian community has consistently lived that commandment, but in our own time, we are witnessing hearts changing, prejudices disappearing and good will coming to the fore.

“By designating the Sixth Sunday of Easter as a Festival of New Life, our bishops signal both hope and confidence in the movement towards Christian unity,” the group said.

The dialogue’s statement invited parishes to “appreciate the gift of faith through baptism”.

“Baptism is the sacrament that unites Christians in the Body of Christ, the People of God,” the dialogue said in their statement.

“Whether or not there is a parish celebration, we can each make the Sixth Sunday a personal ‘Festival’, giving thanks for the amazing gift of faith and sincerely praying for all who share faith with us,” they added.

This is the first time a Catholic/Lutheran initiative is offered to all New Zealand parishes according to the statement.

The dialogue explained in its statement that for the last 500 years, the Church of Jesus “looked and acted as very divided” with many sects and denomination.

However, over the last century, there was a desire among the different Christian churches to restore unity.

“Just as every new life signals a new beginning, may this Festival of New Life become a sure stepping stone on our journey to unity,” they said.