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Waitangi Day
February 6 @ 9:00 am - 11:59 pm
6 February is our national day commemorating the first signings of the Treaty of Waitangi – Te Tiriti o Waitangi, in 1840.
‘Because of the Christian involvement in its signing and the Church’s mission to bring about a better world we can mark Waitangi as a significant spiritual event and a time to pray for the land and its peoples. We can give thanks for the gift of being here, ask forgiveness for the wrongs of our history from which some have benefitted and some have lost, and re-commit ourselves to work for a more just society.’ Monsignor Gerard Burns homily Waitangi Day 2019
“It is good that we look here to Waitangi, where in these first sacred discussions about the way to live in partnership with each other, my predecessor Bishop Pompallier asked for and received a guarantee of religious freedom and protection. It is religious tolerance, religious inclusion and religious acceptance that is our heritage. We honour and celebrate that today.” From Cardinal John’s address at Waitangi in 2020 reaffirming protection of religious beliefs.