Fr Mark Field – NZ Catholic Newspaper

Rotorua gathering for diocese priests

Michael Otto — Mon, 15 Aug 2016 23:42:55 +0000

Priests from Hamilton diocese have been revisiting one of the most important aspects of their ministry — their own human formation. The annual priests’ gathering for the diocese — formerly known as the “clergy school” — was held in Rotorua this month. Psychologist Pauline Griffiths from Wellington worked with the clergy. In welcoming her, Bishop Stephen Lowe referred to the words of St John Paul II

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New church and primary school up soon

Michael Otto — Thu, 02 Jun 2016 23:27:43 +0000

Hamilton diocese, in conjunction with St Thomas Aquinas parish in Tauranga, has bought a one hectare property adjacent to Aquinas College for $2.25 million. The property is to be the location of a new Catholic primary school and church. The settlement date for the purchase will be in August, NZ Catholic has been told. It is planned that the cost will be met equally

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Parish goes high tech with new app

Michael Otto — Tue, 26 Apr 2016 22:28:06 +0000

by MICHAEL OTTO What could well be the first smartphone or tablet parish “app” in New Zealand has been developed for St Thomas Aquinas parish in Tauranga. Parish administrative officer Margie Cooper was one of the driving forces behind developing the app, which she describes as “a quick and easy reference point to inform, promote,

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Primary principals gather to ‘ignite the spirit’

Michael Otto — Sun, 03 Aug 2014 21:27:18 +0000

by ZITA SMITH WELLINGTON — The first NZ Catholic Primary Principals’ Conference in almost 20 years was held in Wellington in June. One hundred Catholic primary school principals gathered from June 26-27 for a conference called “Igniting the Spirit of Catholic Leadership”. The conference was the brainchild of outgoing NZ Catholic Primary Principals’ Association president

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Hamilton priests gather and recharge in South Waikato

Michael Otto — Mon, 28 Jul 2014 22:00:33 +0000

by PETER GRACE
OKOROIRE — Hamilton diocese priests got high quality input on Vatican II in the first week
of July. About 30 priests, several seminarians and Bishop Browne heard a number of presentations from Fr Gerald O’Collins, SJ, author, academic and
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Parish changes on track for Hamilton diocese

Michael Otto — Thu, 17 Jul 2014 00:26:41 +0000

by PETER GRACE HAMILTON — The timetable for merging Hamilton diocese parishes is on track despite a message in a parish newsletter, says diocese general manager Greg Scmidt. In the June 22 newsletter for the parish of St Mary Immaculate Tauranga, parish priest Msgr Frank Eggleton stated that Bishop Denis Browne had asked him to

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Many Hamilton Catholics want to know more about merger plan

Michael Otto — Mon, 09 Jun 2014 22:00:48 +0000

by JULIE SOUTH HAMILTON — Many Hamilton diocese Catholics say they would like more information before commenting on the plan to reduce the number of parishes. As reported in NZ Catholic in April, Bishop Denis Browne published a letter, “Who is My Neighbour”, outlining the strategic plan for the diocese. When NZ Catholic approached Hamilton

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Hamilton to halve number of parishes

Rowena Orejana — Tue, 22 Apr 2014 21:43:33 +0000

by ROWENA OREJANA
HAMILTON — Hamilton Bishop Denis Browne has announced a drastic reduction in the number of parishes in the diocese from 36 to 17, after a round of amalgamations.
This is one of the measures in the Hamilton Diocesan Strategic Plan 2014-2015 entitled Who is My Neighbour?, which the bishop and the Hamilton priests’ council approved in principle at their meeting on February 11.
In a pastoral letter dated February 25, Bishop Browne explained that the diocese had made a deliberate decision not to invite seminarians from other countries and from vastly different cultural backgrounds to complete their training for the priesthood here.
“The Hamilton diocese has also decided to maintain a balance in its
presbyterate between the number of New Zealand priests and the number of those from overseas.
“These decisions mean that our diocese has to look at a radical rethinking of the ways in which we offer spiritual and pastoral care to our people, and to look at smarter and more efficient ways in which we deploy our priests and deacons,” he said.
The strategic plan also called for the disestablishment of the three deaneries and the establishment of nine new collegial areas, as well as the deployment of personnel “so that all but one of the new
collegial areas can provide, from within its own number, for priests’ holidays, as well as supply in the case of absences,
sicknesses or other unforeseen circumstances,” he said.
In December 2013, Bishop Browne appointed Msgr Trevor Murray and Fr
Darren McFarlane as the coordinators of the Hamilton Diocesan Strategic Planning Committee. He later invited Carole Fleming, the chairperson of the diocesan pastoral council, to join them.
Bishop Browne wrote that the committee reviewed past proposals and initiatives of successive priests’ councils, different committees, groups and individuals that form part of the diocese.
The aim is to have the pastoral plan in place in all collegial areas by the end of the year.
A tight timeline envisaged presentations to priests, the diocesan pastoral council, parish and school leadership, as well as further consultation and discussions “at the level of the collegial
area and parish”.
“My hope is that Who is My Neighbour? — The Hamilton Diocesan Strategic Plan 2014-2015 becomes not another network of words, but of people,” Bishop Browne said.
The strategic plan has a focus on the teaching of Pope Francis, especially his call for a return to the Spirit of Vatican II, the bishop wrote.
■ St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, Rotorua, parish priest Fr Mark Field assured his parishioners that they are prepared for the changes that the bishop announced.
“The process that Bishop Denis outlines is the logical ‘next step’ for us, and will see little change in the way parish life operates from day-to-day,” he said on his parish’s website.
He said representatives of the parish staff, parish council, fi nance committee and the schools will go to Taupo on May 14 for a meeting with representatives from Taupo and Turangi to work
towards being a collegial area.

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