As I come into land from a remarkably busy season I wanted to highlight for our Diocese one decision in particular made at the recent General Synod Te Hīnota Whānui (GSTHW), which took place in the Kingdom of Tonga over 15-21 August. 

A major flash flood has torn through Nepal, killing hundreds and leaving many more missing.

Anglican Missions are responding through trusted partners on the ground, and will direct your gifts to where it’s most needed. As assessments continue, we are working out how best to channel New Zealanders’ generosity to the communities worst affected.

Over six weeks, St Tom’s Anglican Church in Newtown became a place of thoughtful conversation, learning and reflection as more than 60 people gathered across two weekly groups to take part in Thriving in this Land, a workshop series developed by Common Grace Aotearoa.

There was a strong sense of hope, unity and gratitude among Wellington Diocese representatives returning from General Synod in Tonga, where Anglicans from across Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia gathered for a week that many described as both historic and deeply moving.

Our theme for this General Synod / Te Hīnota Whānui is “One Mission, One Ocean, One Vaka.”

This Synod, we take the next step on that journey. Hope, if it is real, must set sail. It must leave the shore. The vaka is hope made seaworthy.

Around 65 people gathered at St John's Featherston on Sunday 4 August for the blessing of three new homes built on the parish's own land.

After seven years of pouring her whole, bubbly self into just about every corner of the Anglican Centre, Ella Brown is hanging up her many hats as Whānau Discipleship Enabler and heading off to a new chapter as school librarian at Wairarapa College.

What if we put on an 80s party for our neighbourhoods in the middle of Winter this year? It’s the gloomiest time of year and people need some fun and laughter – and what’s more fun than the 80s?!

After fifteen years at the Anglican Centre and nearly six years at the heart of the Bishops' Office, Paul Carey is stepping back from full-time ministry supporting Bishops Justin and Anashuya.

From 15 to 22 August, representatives from across the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia will gather in Tonga for the 67th General Synod Te Hīnota Whānui.

Parish administrators, treasurers and wardens from across the Diocese gathered at the Anglican Centre on 28 July for the annual Orientation Day, an opportunity to learn more about the people and resources that support parish life throughout the Diocese.

From 11.30am on Sunday 19 July until 2.30am on Thursday 23 July, 37 people from seven churches took turns reading every word of the Bible on the Cathedral steps. Together they covered all 88 hours, from Genesis to Revelation.

Leaving Well was a five-week community conversation series hosted by St Alban's Eastbourne throughout July. The series invited people from across the community to explore death and dying through kōrero, practical information, poetry, music, reflection and shared kai.

Held following Sunday morning’s service, the Joyrun involved up to 30 tamariki aged from age three to twelve (and a few enthusiastic adults).

For many delegates, what mattered most was not winning an argument but remaining connected. There was a genuine desire to stay together, even where deep disagreements remain. That commitment to relationship felt profoundly hopeful.

Hosted by Anglican Missions and made possible by Aotearoa Christians for Peace in Palestine, the Bearing Witness tour brought Dr. Lamma Mansour and Dr. Yousef Khoury to Wellington to share their stories and to invite us into a deeper conversation about what it means to follow Jesus in a broken world.

A Bishops’ Medal is awarded for a lay person’s long-standing, faithful service to a Parish, Mission Unit or to the Diocese at large. It is a way of honouring outstanding commitment to Christ and His Church.

Our Bishops’ Justin and Anashuya will make a combined oral submission on Tuesday night and earlier Common Grace Aotearoa will make theirs.

The Church of England's General Synod has voted to hear Palestinian Christian testimony on Gaza, as famine spreads across the Holy Land.

A contested debate in York, a worsening crisis on the ground, and one small Anglican hospital still treating the wounded.

Every year, up to 200 people arrive in Wellington as part of Aotearoa New Zealand’s official refugee quota programme. They come from many different countries and circumstances, and with the desire to build a new life in a safe community.