Video series highlights New Zealand pilgrimage sites

A new series inspired by the Church’s Jubilee Year theme, Pilgrims of Hope, has been launched to showcase key places of pilgrimage throughout Aotearoa New Zealand.

Produced by the Catholic Enquiry Centre, the videos highlight sites in each diocese that were nominated as local pilgrimage destinations.

“We can often find ourselves looking to the Holy Land or Europe for places of pilgrimage, which we should, but we have our own faith-filled and inspiring stories in our land,” said CEC director Carly Mulqueen.

“We have sites of great significance, like places where Masses were first celebrated, but also some great figures like St Mary of the Cross MacKillop, Meri Hohepa Suzanne Aubert and Bishop Jean-Baptiste Pompallier whose lives we rightly honour.”

Mrs Mulqueen paid tribute to her predecessor, Rebecca Taylor-Hunt, who was the series producer and writer, and Joanna Kearney, who presents the videos.

“Rebecca and Joanna gave so much of themselves to this project, inviting us all into these holy sites and the compelling stories of missionary disciples through the ages,” she said.

“One of the fruits we hope to see is a growing understanding of the Church’s history here and our pioneers in faith, and people being inspired to follow their example.”

The first two diocesan videos – for Auckland and Christchurch – are now live on the Catholic Enquiry Centre’s YouTube channel.

The Auckland project focuses on the Cathedral of St Patrick and St Joseph and a range of sites in Northland – the site of the first Mass on New Zealand soil, the resting place of Bishop Pompallier and the mission house named for Pompallier.

Among the pilgrimage options in the Diocese of Christchurch are the parish in Temuka, with its beautiful church and the historic centre dedicated to St Mary MacKillop, who lived there; the Sanctuary of Fourviere at Leithfield; and Akaroa, the site of the first Mass and the first Catholic church in the South Island.

“There are so many great insights contained in these videos, that people will learn new and exciting things about the Catholic faith in our country,” Mrs Mulqueen said.

Videos for the other four dioceses will be released in coming weeks.

Access the videos at: https://www.youtube.com/@catholicdiscovery9588