Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Wellington (Fides Service) - The first ever National Meeting for Religious in new Zealand opens today 20 January in Kilbirnie, Wellington bringing together members of 43 different religious congregations present in the Pacific area: 26 congregations of women religious and 17 congregations of men religious. The first Catholics to come to New Zealand were among European settlers 170 years ago. Today Catholics serve the country with schools, hospitals and orphanages.
Some 330 delegates from the different congregations are attending the meeting as well as representatives from Australia, Fiji Islands and Tonga. During four days of study, reflection and prayer, former Master General of the Dominican Order, Father Timothy Radcliffe will give a talk on “Bringing hope to religious life and religious vocation”.
During the meeting the men and women Religious “will strive to get to know and support one another, review the situation of consecrated life in New Zealand, strengthen their identity and commitment to respond to third millennium challenges in Oceania”, said the statement sent to Fides.
A major challenge and a central question at the meeting is how to revitalise religious vocations suffering from the phenomenon of secularisation “Many new vocations from the south Pacific area give our religious congregations a multicultural dimension”, the text said.
New Zealand has 202 religious priests, 172 Brothers, 1,030 Sisters and 470,000 Catholics in a population of 3.9 million .
(PA) (Agenzia Fides 20/1/2004 righe 26 parole 261)
