Difficult but possible: finding hope in a hopeless world

Report: The NZCMA Retreat and Seminar 2026

Difficult but possible: finding hope in a hopeless world

St Thomas Aquinas ST 2:2 Q17

Around 50 Catholic doctors and healthcare workers gathered at the St Francis Friary in Auckland, New Zealand for an inspiring and timely retreat and seminar the weekend prior to Palm Sunday.

It was good to welcome many new faces and share such a rich time of spiritual nourishment and encouragement.

We were very sorry to have to limit numbers and missed many who could not be with us but unfortunately there was a double booking for the venue, which meant we were restricted to a room which can only hold 50. Next time we will try to avoid this unfortunate limitation, and we regret that so many who wanted to be with us but could only accompany us in prayer and spirit (thank you).

Some highlights included:

Encouragement from the Church

In his message to retreatants Archbishop Paul Martin said “The Church values greatly your witness to faith as you work with our brothers and sisters, and we pray that you will have the courage to continue to hold firm to the call of Christ and to the Gospel…”

Please see the link to his full message.

We were also given words of encouragement by the Apostolic Nuncio, Gábor Pintér.

Partnering with our Māori Patients

We were blessed to have Manuel Beazley; the Vicar for Māori speak to us about our role in health as Tangata Tiriti. He advised us not to get tripped up on words but to focus on “the word” by which he meant the true spirit of the agreement between Māori and newcomers to NZ when the Treaty was signed in 1840. This is not a dead document but a living agreement which we are still striving to honour. As we grapple as a nation with the historic injustices done where this agreement has not been honoured, we can be confident all have a place here in Aotearoa and an important role as Tangata Tiriti.

In our care for Māori patients, we should be guided in our work by Aroha. This is not a superficial concept of love but one akin to the Greek Agape (to seek the good of the other). Aroha is derived from two other words “Aro” (to look intently) and “ha” (the breath), so in showing aroha we truly strive to “see the heart” of our Māori patient.

Manuel was asked about the emerging interested and expression of Māori spirituality in our workplaces, where this can feel unsafe for Christians at times when gathered for Karakia. Manuel exhorted us to “know our identity” as Catholic health workers and not be afraid to express this confidently.

He explained how Bishop Pompallier and Mother Aubert very sensitively recognised the importance of whakapapa in explaining the lineage from Jesus through Peter and the early church fathers to the Church. This way of explaining apostolic succession and our “whakapapa” to our Lord and creator was well understood by Māori and many came to faith through this alone. Manuel reassured us that it is perfectly acceptable for us, when gathered for Karakia to use the sign of the cross and pray quietly to our Lord. He also expressed that many times modern translations of early Karakia are inaccurate and the English translation can subtly change the original meaning, making them less comfortable for us as Catholics. He is very happy for any of us to send him any Karakia which cause us discomfort and he will assist us in a correct interpretation of the original language.

Reflections on Hope

Fr. Chris Denham, our chaplain led us on a very encouraging and timely Lenten reflection on Hope.

At a time when we are so aware of the increasing suffering in the world, the seemingly endless demands on our health coworkers and distress of conscience for many of us it can be hard to remember our Christian call to Hope.

Fr. Chris reminded us of the two “kinds of hope”. The Hope which only God can give us as one of the theological virtues (“there are three things that last: faith, hope and love “) and the practical everyday way we live and embody this hope day to day with our patients and colleagues.

He encouraged us to reflect on the words of Psalm 91 (see below) which speaks very much of the concrete ways in which our loving God cares for us and gives us reason to hope.

He reminded us of the severe hardships suffered in history including the 14th century, where the 100-year war and Black Death decimated Europe and that people living then would believe the world was coming to an end. In that dark time the Church was blessed by mystic Julian of Norwich, whose famous words "All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well" remain a helpful encouragement to us today.

We were encouraged to resist the temptation to despair and not to allow the “background noise” of hopelessness which can permeate our media (especially social media) to overwhelm us or convince us that things are hopeless. We were encouraged to see the good in our lives, remember God is all powerful and loves us very much, remember to appreciate the beauty and goodness of God’s creation and most especially His creation of those we are privileged to serve in our work and the colleagues we work with.

In the Genesis account of the creation of Man “God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.”

Please see the link to a transcription of Fr Chris’s valuable teaching and reflections.

Psalm 91

Assurance of God’s Protection

1 You who live in the shelter of the Most High, who abide in the shadow of the Almighty,

2 will say to the Lord, “My refuge and my fortress; my God, in whom I trust.”

3 For he will deliver you from the snare of the fowler and from the deadly pestilence;

4 he will cover you with his pinions, and under his wings you will find refuge; his faithfulness is a shield and buckler.

5 You will not fear the terror of the night, or the arrow that flies by day,

6 or the pestilence that stalks in darkness, or the destruction that wastes at noonday.

7 A thousand may fall at your side, ten thousand at your right hand, but it will not come near you.

8 You will only look with your eyes and see the punishment of the wicked.

9 Because you have made the Lord your refuge, the Most High your dwelling place,

10 no evil shall befall you, no scourge come near your tent.

11 For he will command his angels concerning you to guard you in all your ways.

12 On their hands they will bear you up,

so that you will not dash your foot against a stone.

13 You will tread on the lion and the adder, the young lion and the serpent you will trample under foot.

14 Those who love me, I will deliver; I will protect those who know my name.

15 When they call to me, I will answer them; I will be with them in trouble, I will rescue them and honor them.

16 With long life I will satisfy them, and show them my salvation.

International Colleagues

Dr Elvis Seman, medical director of Matercare Australia spoke of the valuable work carried out by this international group of Catholic obstetricians and gynaecologists, which work to improve the lives and health of mothers and babies both born and unborn.

He highlighted two of their amazing projects - one in Rwanda and Uganda where the Palatine sisters and Sisters of St. Joseph of Tarbes help run maternity units built with the help of Matercare and staffed with the help of international volunteers Obstetricians and other health workers. They welcome contributions from volunteers and help with travel and accommodation expenses. They like medical staff to stay for a minimum of 3 months.

Dr Joseph Hassan and Cushla Hassan have been invited to present the work of the Nelson and Upper Hutt services Hapai Haputanga Pregnancy Support at the International Matercare Conference in September 2026, in Rome

Eamon Mathieson, the Chair of the Australian Catholic Medical Association spoke about the history of their organisation and the encouragement received by members. He spoke of the blessings of this national organisation, which has a regular newsletter ( see link) and regular regional meetings with occasional national conferences ( the last one was 2025). He also highlighted the encouragement of staying in touch with our colleagues in the wider Church and recommends for those who can attend the international FIAMC congresses which occur every 4 years (the next one is in Brazil in July 2026). There is also an Asian congress which is held every 4 years, 2 years after the international congress. He highlighted that it would be good for us to work towards an Oceania Congress in the future, including our Pacific colleagues together with Australia and NZ (however this will take a lot of organisation and hard work to achieve). He reminded retreatants about the Eucharistic Convention in Sydney 2028, which the Pope plans to attend.

Regards - Joseph