NZCEO

At the Heart of It All - Ireland:
An Irish Pilgrimage into the Story of Catholic Education in Australia and New Zealand.

Here is the digital itinerary link:
https://wetu.com/Itinerary/Landing/a273f01e-4f28-4d9b-9e33-4a0c106a08b0

This signature pilgrimage offers more than a journey through Ireland's sacred places; it is an opportunity to travel alongside like-minded people who share a curiosity about faith, heritage and the stories that have shaped our communities.

At the Heart of it All (Ireland 2027 Pilgrimage)

Magnifica Humanitas for schools, Jules Hickey will be running a free 45-minute webinar (with Michael Stewart) on Thursday at 5.30pm.
Link below:
8f0e9872-dcdb-4dc2-bf83-7dfe263302b9@eb0bc547-d1e0-4cd8-b61f-191e98bdb8cc" rel="ugc" target="_blank">https://events.teams.microsoft.com/event/8f0e9872-dcdb-4dc2-bf83-7dfe263302b9@eb0bc547-d1e0-4cd8-b61f-191e98bdb8cc

Since the release of the encyclical, there has been the opportunity to comment on:

Nine to Noon: https://www.rnz.co.nz/national/programmes/ninetonoon/audio/2019037105/the-pope-calls-for-the-disarming-of-ai

CathNews:

https://cathnewsnz.com/2026/06/05/catholic-ai-advisor-calls-for-transparency-in-military-use/

AI Ready women podcast:

https://open.spotify.com/episode/7uBQ90Vdl5GqbLOVYQSISB?si=e47afd5bb8784cce&nd=1&dlsi=36f40f4b44584ac2

The Pope's AI Warning, and Why Women Need to Reclaim Their Agency | Julianne Hickey AI Ready Women · Episode

The Liturgy Centre is excited to announce Fr Paul Turner will be holding a workshop on Saturday 25th July 2026 called Ars Celebrandi, details below.

Job Vacancy - CEO Position at NZCEO, link to SEEK job advertisement is here:

Chief Executive Office Job in Wellington Central, Wellington - SEEK The CEO of NZCEO and APIS will be a leader who can influence policy and maintain relationships with key sectors.

Fambirai Webinar - AI in Catholic Schools (leading with wisdom)

Workshops start next term tailored for teachers at Catholic schools in Aotearoa.
Join online after school for a one-hour weekly session facilitated by Michael Stewart:
Stream 1 - Tuesdays 3:30pm-4:30pm (starting Apr 28 and finishing on Jun 23 – 9 sessions)
Stream 2 - Wednesdays 3:30pm-4:30pm (starting Apr 29 and finishing on Jun 24 – 9 sessions)

Sign up now to show your expression of interest and save 45% as part of the special introductory offer.

Further discounts are available for multiple teachers per school or whole school licenses.

The expression of interest link for both the self-paced course and the workshops is: https://forms.office.com/r/a0cpLqL9uj

Celebrations at Hiruhārama / Jerusalem ahead of re-opening in April

Following renovations to the Old Convent and St Joseph’s Church, the Sisters of Compassion, in partnership with Ngāti Hau, hosted a blessing and service at the historic settlement of Hiruhārama / Jerusalem on Thursday 19 March.

Over a hundred people with links to Hiruhārama joined the celebrations. The day began with a Pōhiri on to Patiarero Marae, followed by formal speeches and welcome on the Hiruhārama grounds. Bishop John Adams of Palmerston North conducted a blessing of the convent and church and led the Mass at the restored St Jospeh’s Church.

Representing the Sisters of Compassion, Sister Margaret-Anne Mills and ‘Alisi Tu’ipulotu planted a tree in honour of the legacy of Venerable Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert.

Reflecting on the special day, Sister Margaret Anne said ,“This is the place that inspired Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert to build a community of women, Sisters of Compassion, to share in the call to live the Gospel. Today so many of you have embraced the call to share in the spirituality and example of Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert. She is smiling upon us.”
Ron Hough of Ngāti Hau, and a Trustee of the Sisters of Compassion Group, wove together the shared histories of his tūpuna and Mother Aubert in his whaikōrero, grounded in manaakitanga. His words affirmed a legacy of care and service, carried on by his mokopuna and wider whānau through their stewardship of the Old Convent and Church, where mīha continues and the spirit of Pūaroha Compassion lives on at Hiruhārama.
Hiruhārama officially reopens to the public next month, taking bookings from 1 April.

Hiruhārama and the Legacy of Suzanne Aubert

Hiruhārama was named after the Biblical Jerusalem. In the 1840s it was one of the largest settlements on the Whanganui River, home to several hundred Ngāti Hau of Te Āti Haunui-a-Pāpārangi.

A Roman Catholic mission was established there in 1854, and the community grew into a centre of faith, culture, and service. The current church replaced the original building, which was destroyed by fire in 1888.

In 1883, Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert travelled to Jerusalem with two Sisters of St Joseph of Nazareth at the invitation of local Māori, seeking to revitalise the Catholic mission.

In May 1892, Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert founded the Daughters of Our Lady of Compassion at Hiruhārama, establishing what would become one of Aotearoa New Zealand’s most respected and enduring charitable orders. Fluent in Te Reo Māori, Suzanne Aubert built deep relationships with Māori communities.

In 1899 she expanded her mission to Wellington, where she established St Joseph’s Home for Incurables and Our Lady’s Home of Compassion in Island Bay. The Compassion Soup Kitchen she started in Wellington in 1901 endures to this day, celebrating 125 years of service this year.

By her death in 1926, Mother Aubert was revered across the motu. Her funeral was reported as the largest ever held for a woman in Aotearoa New Zealand. In 2016, she was declared Venerable by Pope Francis. The Cause to have Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert recognised as a saint continues in Rome.

Sacred Heart College, Auckland officially opened the new Fergus Science Centre and Archives on 5 March 2026, featuring a blessing by Father Berecz, Brother Dareen Bruge and Brother John.

Compassion Whanau are pleased to be exhibiting 22 pieces of Margaret Hansen's art at the Home of Compassion from 26 March.
The images honour Margaret's two aunties, both of whom were Catholic nuns. The art explores the rich stories of their lives and their influence, as well as that of the Catholic Church, on Margaret's family’s history and her personal life.

Centenary celebrations for Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert
This year marks the centenary of the passing of Venerable Meri Hōhepa (Mary Joseph) Suzanne Aubert. When she died in Wellington, aged 91, October 1, 1926, she was widely acclaimed as a holy woman who for over 60 years worked tirelessly among people in need.

The founder in 1892 of New Zealand’s Congregation of the Daughters of Our Lady of Compassion – known as the Sisters of Compassion – was a remarkable woman who was deeply committed to social justice. She dedicated her life to caring for the most vulnerable people – the homeless, the sick, abandoned children. For Suzanne, Christ was in everyone, ‘all creeds or none’.

Her funeral was the largest ever held for a woman in New Zealand. She is a towering figure in the history of our church and country.

Throughout 2026, the Compassion Whānau has a programme of events to celebrate the memory of Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert’s life and to inspire us in living out our own faith.

Rau Tau Pūaroha l Celebrate Compassion 2026 began in January with the blessing of a Centennial Candle at the annual Tōtara Point Mass in the Hokianga, in the Far North of the North Island. This Mass commemorates the first Catholic Mass celebrated in New Zealand in 1838 by Bishop Jean Baptiste François Pompallier at the home of Irish settlers, Thomas and Mary Poynton. It was Bishop Pompallier who in 1859 invited a young Suzanne Aubert to travel from Lyon in France to join his Auckland Diocese mission.

On February 6, Celebrate Compassion 2026 was included at the annual Waitangi Day Mass celebrations at St Mary of the Angels Church in Wellington, with the Sisters of Compassion Processing the Centenary Candle. Each year the Mass, which honours the Te Tiriti o Waitangi – the Treaty of Waitangi signed in 1840, is jointly hosted by St Mary of the Angels Parish and Te Pariha o Te Ngākau Tapu, the personal parish for Māori in the Archdiocese of Wellington.

In March, Hiruhārama | Jerusalem, on the banks of the Whanganui River, Suzanne Aubert’s base from 1883 to 1899 and the ‘Cradle of her Congregation’, will be officially re-opened, following renovations at the convent and St Joseph’s Church site.

Other events planned include a celebration of the work of Wellington’s Compassion Soup Kitchen in June, commemorating 125 years of service to the disadvantaged and vulnerable; a celebration of Suzanne Aubert’s phrase book and prayer book in conjunction with Te Reo Māori Language Week in September; a special prayer book for the Month of the Rosary in October; and hīkoi connecting Māori Eucharistic Communities and their Meri Hōhepa links.

The year will culminate with a 100-year Memorial Mass at St Mary of the Angels Church, Wellington in October.

A variety of other events, including pilgrimages, retreats, talks by award-winning Suzanne Aubert biographer Jessie Munro and visits to Suzanne Aubert sites, will engage many more people in this year of celebration.

Meri Hōhepa Suzanne Aubert was many things. She was a visionary, a holy woman, a multi-lingual missionary to Māori people, a teacher, a nurse, a healer, a herbalist knowledgeable in traditional Māori remedies, a woman of courage ready to stand up to church authorities, a woman of prayer and compassion.

Deeply committed to social justice, she dedicated her life to caring for the most vulnerable people – the homeless, the sick, abandoned children. For Suzanne, Christ was in everyone, “all creeds or none”.

Where did her heart for the vulnerable come from, her great empathy and solidarity with the suffering?

A clue may lie in her early years. She was born on 19 June 1835 in St Symphorien-de-Lay, near Lyon, France. Her brother suffered from hydrocephalus and died young. She herself fell through a frozen pond at the age of two, causing injuries that left her temporarily crippled and blind, with a lasting, permanent cast in one eye. These childhood challenges, requiring her to wear splints until age five, made her the subject of ridicule. In the spiritual realm however, these setbacks developed in her an enduring empathy for the disabled and vulnerable.

These early experiences coupled with a profound faith made her indomitable. Her energy was tireless and her faith and imagination knew no limits. She left her Sisters a treasure-house of spiritual insights that reflect her deep faith – a selection of her sayings was published in 2015 in Suzanne Aubert’s Spiritual Tonics.

In her own words: “Charity never says ‘it is enough’.”

And again, “Let us have a heart like an artichoke, and such a big one that everyone can have a leaf of it.”

More information about Celebrate Compassion 2026 is available on compassion.org.nz and facebook.com/sistersofcompassion

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ck18-2gQLLE

Catholic Kiwi Podcast: Season 2, Episode 1– Manuel Beazley As Season 2 of the Catholic Kiwi Podcast commences, we welcome the Diocese of Auckland's Vicar for Māori -- or, as he calls himself, the "Chief Cup of Tea Dr...