Parish

A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization.

By extension the term parish refers not only to the territorial unit but to the people of its community or congregation as well as to church property within it. In England this church property was technically in the ownership of the parish priest, vested in him on his institution to that parish.

Church territorial structure

• A chapelry is a subdivision of a parish to cope with difficult access
• A parish is a subdivision of a diocese or see. The diocese is headed by a bishop
• An archdeaconry is another subdivision of a diocese, it is a group of parishes
• A diocese is a subdivision of a province. The province is led by a metropolitan bishop
• A province may cover all or part of a country or a group of countries and be presided over by an archbishop who is Primate

The Diocese of Wellington

The Diocese of Wellington is one of seven dioceses of the Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia. The Diocese covers the area between the bottom of the North Island of New Zealand up to the area of Mount Ruapehu.

There are over 90 parishes and mission districts within the diocese of Wellington.

The Wellington Diocese is divided into seven Archdeaconries; Wanganui, Manawatu, Kapiti, Wairarapa, Belmont, Ohariu, and Wellington.

The diocese's first bishop, Charles John Abraham, was consecrated in 1858. The seat of the Bishop of Wellington is at St Paul's Cathedral in Wellington.

The incumbent Bishop of Wellington is the Rt Rev'd Dr Thomas Brown.

The diocese celebrated its sesquicentenary in 2008; the celebrations included pilgrimages throughout the diocese.

Old St. Paul's, the second Church of St Paul in Wellington, which was the pro-cathedral church for the Anglican Diocese of Wellington from 1866 to 1964 is still consecrated, but is now owned by the New Zealand Historic Places Trust. The first parish church for the early settlers was behind where the Beehive stands today.

So, our hierarchy is something like this :

The Anglican Church in Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia.

The Diocese Of Wellington - Bishop Tom Brown

The Rangitikei Arch-Deaconry - Archdeacon David van Oeveren.

Parish of Pohangina - Rev. Julia Budd

St. Mary Magdalene's / St. Bartholomew's