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| | CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Christchurch |
 | | (Its centre being Christchurch, the Capital of Canterbury, New Zealand.) It comprises the provinces of Canterbury and Westland, a small portion of the Province of Nelson, and the Chatham Islands. |
 | | In 1860 Christchurch received its first resident priest, Father Chataignier, S.M. On 11 September of that year he laid the foundations of the first church in Canterbury, a wooden structure, 28 by 18 ft. A more spacious church was erected in 1864. |
 | | The Diocese of Christchurch, formerly part of the Diocese of Wellington, was established by papal Brief, 10 May, 1887. |
| www.newadvent.org /cathen/03699a.htm (525 words) |
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