Any Catholic Kiwis?

[Christus Rex]

Just wondering where all the New Zealanders are - I'm moving there when I'm 18 I'd like to know more about which are the good dioceses/traditional churches.

[Eileen T]

I'm in Auckland and the parish where I attend Mass has two really great priests. The younger one is so good that liberals write letters of complaint about him to the Bishop.

During his homilies there is silence in the Church. He gives us meat, not baby food.

[Christus Rex]

Wow! It sounds great... and Auckland Uni is supposed to be #1 in NZ

Does your parish have a website?

[Eileen T]

No, but I am a website developer and when our PP gets back for Ireland I intend to offer him one as a freebie.

What are you planning on taking at Uni?

[AquinaSavio]

I didn't know that a fruit could be Catholic...

Oh, you meant New Zealanders.

[Christus Rex]

Originally Posted by Eileen T

What are you planning on taking at Uni?

I want to be a history teacher, and on a New Zealand emigration site, a lady told me this:

"If you want to teach history there are two routes you can follow to qualify; either take an arts degree, with a major in history, followed by a one year education course. Or, alternatively take an education degree, with a specialisation in history."

So it'll be one of those two I'm still looking at other unis but Auckland looks good.

[Christus Rex]

Originally Posted by AquinaSavio

I didn't know that a fruit could be Catholic...

Oh, you meant New Zealanders.

[Tonks40]

I knew one many years ago. He was a foreign exchange student to my high-school, and he wandered into our parish one day and joined our folk group for Mass. I understand he's a teacher there now, and has 5 kids (last we heard).

If I can manage to get his contact info, I'll see if I can PM you with it.

[LilyM]

Originally Posted by AquinaSavio

I didn't know that a fruit could be Catholic...

Oh, you meant New Zealanders.

Of course a fruit can be Catholic - just look at the Junkies thread

[ATeNumquam]

I'm a Kiwi Catholic from Christchurch, NZ. This is the largest city in the South Island, with a population of about 380,000, and a good university. if you are into skiiing, the Southern Alps are very close at hand, and other adventure sports are available in abundance in the South Island. Less populated than the North Island. Auckland is by far the largest city.
There's a bit of friendly banter/rivalry between the North & the South!!
Christchurch is large enough to have everything you want, plus four distinct seasons (i.e. a colder winter than Auckland!) and it is a lot drier all year round (esp. summer).
As for the Church - well, the cathedral parish is fairly traditional, and the only place in Christchurch where you'd get a Latin Mass if that's what you like (and then only on a Sunday afternoon - no other Latin masses available at all here than I know of). Most parishes are neither liberal nor very traditional. My parish of Sacred Heart has regular day long exposition (but not 24 hour) and other devotions. A pretty serious lack of vocations means that many of the clergy are elderly.
How about becoming a priest in this fair land, Christus Rex??
New Zealand is probably as secular a country as Britain and certainly more secular than the U.S.
Anyway, a thousand welcomes in advance!!

[Christus Rex]

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

I'm a Kiwi Catholic from Christchurch, NZ.

YAY! Christchurch is my #1 choice at the moment!

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

This is the largest city in the South Island, with a population of about 380,000, and a good university... Less populated than the North Island. Auckland is by far the largest city.

Well Nottingham has almost 700,000 and one of my main reasons for leaving is the overpopulation so thats great!

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

if you are into skiiing, the Southern Alps are very close at hand, and other adventure sports are available in abundance in the South Island.

WOO! I love skiing

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

There's a bit of friendly banter/rivalry between the North & the South!!

hehehe my dad and uncle told me that

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

Christchurch is large enough to have everything you want, plus four distinct seasons (i.e. a colder winter than Auckland!) and it is a lot drier all year round (esp. summer).

That's good, one of the things that's putting me off Auckland is their hot sticky summers - and I love winter

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

As for the Church - well, the cathedral parish is fairly traditional, and the only place in Christchurch where you'd get a Latin Mass if that's what you like (and then only on a Sunday afternoon - no other Latin masses available at all here than I know of). Most parishes are neither liberal nor very traditional. My parish of Sacred Heart has regular day long exposition (but not 24 hour) and other devotions. A pretty serious lack of vocations means that many of the clergy are elderly.

I'm sure I'll find a parish that suits me unfortunately it seems to be the case everywhere that young priests and good churches are few

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

How about becoming a priest in this fair land, Christus Rex??

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

Anyway, a thousand welcomes in advance!!

Thank you! I can't wait!

[ATeNumquam]

Sounds like you have relatives here, Christus Rex (dad? uncle?).

Christchurch is SAID to be the most English of NZ cities - not sure if that is true!
The Avon river flows through the city and has weeping willows along its banks (fairly English!?) and tourists can be taken down the river on a punt, steered by a man with a pole and a boater hat. We have lots of parks and green spaces and public gardens. Chch is called "The Garden City" because many people have lovely private gardens.
Auckland is overall warmer - more of a subtropical, humid climate, and if sailing/yachting is your thing, it is called "The City of Sails" and has a beautiful harbour. Population is about 1.5 million - main problem seems to be gridlock traffic, which they are constantly trying to find ways of solving!! .

You can visit Christchurch's Catholic Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament (a basilica) here:
www.christchurchcathedral.org.nz

and visit any of Christchurch's parishes (and other organisations) here:
www.chch.catholic.org.nz

It is spring here right now - lots of blossom, daffodils, and beyond the city, lots of lambs! (You will probably know that NZ has about 50 million sheep and 4 million people, and that we are the butt of a lot of "sheep jokes" by Australians, who live "across the ditch" (Tasman Sea)

[Christus Rex]

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

Sounds like you have relatives here, Christus Rex (dad? uncle?).

my uncle and aunt live in Picton, and cousins in Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

Christchurch is SAID to be the most English of NZ cities - not sure if that is true!
The Avon river flows through the city and has weeping willows along its banks (fairly English!?) and tourists can be taken down the river on a punt, steered by a man with a pole and a boater hat. We have lots of parks and green spaces and public gardens. Chch is called "The Garden City" because many people have lovely private gardens.

haha Nottingham used to be called "The Garden City" too because planning regulations conserved a lot of green land etc... no more due to overpopulation meaning the land was urbanized

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

Auckland is overall warmer - more of a subtropical, humid climate, and if sailing/yachting is your thing, it is called "The City of Sails" and has a beautiful harbour. Population is about 1.5 million - main problem seems to be gridlock traffic, which they are constantly trying to find ways of solving!! .

Nope doesn't really sound my thing! (The harbour sounds nice though!)

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

You can visit Christchurch's Catholic Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament (a basilica) here:
www.christchurchcathedral.org.nz
and visit any of Christchurch's parishes (and other organisations) here:
www.chch.catholic.org.nz

hahaha one step ahead of you! I've already been looking on those sites!

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

It is spring here right now - lots of blossom, daffodils, and beyond the city, lots of lambs! (You will probably know that NZ has about 50 million sheep and 4 million people, and that we are the butt of a lot of "sheep jokes" by Australians, who live "across the ditch" (Tasman Sea)

sounds lovely hehehe care to enlighten me to the sheep jokes?

[ATeNumquam]

Originally Posted by Christus Rex

my uncle and aunt live in Picton, and cousins in Wellington, Christchurch and Dunedin.


I spent the first half of my life in Dunedin. Went to university there! NZ's oldest. Lots of cool "old" buildings there (by our standards of "old" - not yours!!!!!)



hahaha one step ahead of you! I've already been looking on those sites!




sounds lovely hehehe care to enlighten me to the sheep jokes?

Ahem ... lots of them are not suitable for this forum!
Those Aussies ....!
About unnatural relations between farmers and sheep in many cases!
But there are many, many clean ones - only I can't find them or remember them!
Here's a lame one:

There are 50 million sheep in New Zealand - 4 million of them think they are people!

[Christus Rex]

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

Ahem ... lots of them are not suitable for this forum!
Those Aussies ....!
About unnatural relations between farmers and sheep in many cases!

I thought so!

Originally Posted by ATeNumquam

But there are many, many clean ones - only I can't find them or remember them!
Here's a lame one:
There are 50 million sheep in New Zealand - 4 million of them think they are people!