The results of the Church Life Survey for St Paul’s Papanui are in by now. The wider national survey is not yet complete, but we’ll know more by the end of the year. The people who completed the survey overall seem to especially value the music at St Paul’s, even more so than the preaching.…

In 1972 the World Heritage Convention was signed, with New Zealand ratifying it in 1984. One of the significant features of the Convention is that it links together the concepts of nature conservation and the preservation of cultural properties. The Convention recognizes the way in which people interact with nature, and the fundamental need to…

A while ago I went to catch the Number 27 bus. I thought I had still some time, but as I got to Harewood Road,I saw the bus approaching in the distance. I realised I needed to get to the bus stop fast, so broke into a fast jog to get there. As I started…

Some work has gone into possible funding and legal arrangements for a hall refurbishment project. Te Papanui Trust has spoken with several funders and things are looking good: they could probably access several hundred thousand Dollars. However, most funders do require parties to such a project to partly commit finances themselves. That’s one of the…

Synod 2022 set up a Biblical Literacy Task Group to examine the state of Biblical Literacy in the Diocese of Christchurch. This group reported back to Synod this year. It recommended the following: The Diocese has already recommended some of the resources referred to. You will hear more about them in due course. I thought…

Earlier this week I tried out the new bus routes in Christchurch by walking between them across the port hills. It wasn’t the nicest day. At one stage it rained, or at least it was something between rain and drizzle. As Lyttelton came into view I saw a ship berthed at one of the wharves.…

Last week we went on a walk in the Craigieburn Ranges with our children. Most of the walk was through bush on a fairly gentle track. In the higher reaches we got into snow and the children enjoyed playing in it. With boots and clothes so wet, we decided to take the quickest way back…

Parish Mission Impact Review A few weeks ago, the Diocese conducted a parish mission impact review of St Paul’s. The review team presented after the 10am service on 23 July 2023. By now the review has been finalised. There were many aspects of congregational life to celebrate. Among these were: 1.      High levels of involvement…

I regularly read a blog, which provides really good insights on some topics and reinforces my own opinions. But on other topics…well, let’s just say I disagree quite vehemently with the author. In our society we may work quite closely with some people in some areas of life, share a similar outlook and similar goals,…

A while ago I read parts of a book on the parish of St Mary’s in Timaru, called “Love and Faithfulness”. There are some inspirational stories of faithful people in the book, but also aspects of the Parish’s history that show only too plainly human failings. In fact, ecclesiastical matters did not start off well…