Author(s): Nicholas Reid

NZ biography

The full and richly illustrated biography of one of the most important figures in New Zealand church - and general - history. When James Michael Liston died at the age of 95 on 8 July 1976, he had been a Catholic priest for 72 years. Coadjutor-Bishop of Auckland from 1920 to 1929 and bishop in his own right from 1929 to 1970, he was the leader of New Zealands most populous Catholic diocese for half a century, and was the recipient of many New Zealand and international honours. Nicholas Reid's biography gives a full account of Listons work within the New Zealand church, and his huge contribution to its development. It also pays frank and fascinating attention to the controversial aspects of his career. The first of these is his early commitment to the cause of Irish independence, and his trial for sedition in 1922. The second is the tension that arose around his conservative opinions and personal style towards the end of his very long career, when, as Michael King wrote, 'Liston?s growing conservatism and "creeping infallibility" imposed stress on his colleagues and the priests of his diocese'.The author Nicholas Reid has taught history in secondary schools and is currently a teaching fellow at the University of Otago. He was the Stout Research Centre Fellow in 2004, and is well known as a book and film reviewer. First published August 2006.