Retired archbishop Rosales visits Pinoys in New Zealand

Retired Manila Archbishop Gaudencio Cardinal Rosales went to New Zealand recently to visit priests and other Filipinos residing there, the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA) said. Rosales was in New Zealand to visit priests from the Missionary Society of the Philippines (MSP) assigned in areas like Auckland, Queenstown, Dunedin, and the Cook Islands.   "The MSP has a special place in the heart of the Cardinal, as he was the society's spiritual director during its formative years," the DFA said.   Rosales arrived at the Wellington Airport on February 11, feast day of Our Lady of Lourdes, accompanied by Fr. Ruben Elago, head of the Order of the MSP in New Zealand.   Shortly after his arrival in Wellington, Rosales presided over the Mass for the Filipino community of Barangay Sta. Lourdes in Wairarapa, about an hour's drive from Wellington.   Rosales also presided over the Mass for the Filipino community in Wellington at the Sacred Heart Cathedral. Meanwhile, the DFA said Rosales received a jar of honey from Filipinos working as bee keepers in farms in Wairarapa, most of them from his home province of Batangas.   This prompted Rosales to remark that New Zealand is indeed "a land flowing with milk and honey and the remaining Eden on earth," the DFA said.   Rosales also expressed his appreciation for the warm attention shown by the Filipinos in New Zealand, including Philippine embassy workers and officials. - VVP, GMA News