A rooftop view of Rome from Maria Bambina over looking St Peter’s Square at the Vatican. Archbishop Coleridge invites everyone to ‘journey with us in prayer’ on the eve of the Synod.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GN5-UkOuqnw
Author Archives: ACBC Communications
Pope Francis’ Homily at Opening Mass of Synod on the Family Translation by the Vatican
‘This is God’s dream for his beloved creation: to see it fulfilled in the loving union between a man and a woman, rejoicing in their shared journey, fruitful in their mutual gift of self.’
At 10 am today, the 27th Sunday of Ordinary Time, Pope Francis presided at the Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica for the opening of the Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the theme: ‘The vocation and mission of the family in the Church and in the contemporary world.’ Below is the Vatican-provided translation of the homily Pope Francis delivered during the Mass:
“If we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us” (1 Jn 4:12).
On the Road Together – Village Life Rome is a village: you're always bumping into someone you know
Accommodation during #Synod2015
By Archbishop Coleridge
From our different temporary lodgings, Bishop Hurley and I arrived at Maria Bambina this morning at about 9am, and an hour later we set off to the Synod Hall to lodge what’s called the “petitio loquendi”, which means our request to speak (for three minutes!) at the Synod.
We’re only a stone’s throw away from the Synod Hall but it was quite an effort to get there. A huge crowd was waiting to get into the Audience Hall (just beneath the Synod Hall) to meet with Pope Francis at 11.30am. So we had to go via the cape: nothing is simple or straightforward in Rome. Continue reading
On The Road Together – Towards and beyond a wedding
St Peter’s Basilica in Rome
By Archbishop Coleridge
Rome is a city that juggles fixity and flux, changelessness and change, being and becoming. It’s a place that holds together past and present, with an unusual capacity to adapt while keeping a core intact.
The historic monuments are everywhere, but the city is vibrant and contemporary. That’s part of what it means to call Rome “eternal”. What’s true of this city is true of the Church, especially as we look to #Synod2015.
On The Road Together – A Striking Start
Rooftop view of Rome
By Archbishop Coleridge
My first full day in Rome … and there’s a transport strike! I really know I’m back here when that sort of thing happens. I think the first word I ever learnt in Italian was “sciopero”, which means “strike”. Some things never change in the Eternal City. I’m staying for a couple of nights at Domus Australia because I can’t move into my Synod residence till Saturday.
Bishop Eugene Hurley and I will be staying at a place called the Istituto Maria Santissima Bambina, which means the Institute of the Most Holy Child Mary. The name is a bit baroque but it’s a great place to be for a Synod, as a few us learnt when we were here a few years back for the Synod on the Word of God. Continue reading
On The Road Together – Show us your power, Little Flower
By Archbishop Coleridge
Sitting in the lounge at Dubai airport waiting for my flight to Rome, I’ve been thinking that the Synod needs to deal with facts – the world as it actually is rather than the world as we might wish it to be. Yes, we need to hold firmly to the vision of the way things ought to be (that we’ve received from Jesus) but also deal with the facts on the ground as they are at present.
Many of the facts may seem unfriendly to the Christian vision of things, but I’m reminded of Carl Rogers’ words: “The facts are friendly”. They mightn’t seem so at first, but the challenge is to discover how what seems to be unfriendly is, in the end, friendly. Perhaps the facts are friendly because God is in the facts, somewhere – and God is always friendly, even though that isn’t always obvious either.
Continue reading
On The Road Together – Thoughts from the Synod
Over the next three weeks, the ACBC will help to keep you updated about what’s happening at the Synod on the family taking place in the Vatican, Rome.
Our ACBC bishop delegates at the Synod, Archbishop Coleridge and Bishop Hurley, will be blogging about their experiences. Keep an eye out for ‘On The Road Together‘ blog updates.
By Archbishop Coleridge
Finally, after months of preparation, the bags are packed and I head to Rome tonight for what is probably the most eagerly anticipated Synod since the close of Vatican II, 50 years ago. The word “synod” means “on the road together”, which explains the title of this blog.
When the Pope decided to convene the two Synods on marriage and the family, he summoned the Church to undertake a journey together. He made the Synod more of a process than an event. First there was the preparation for last year’s Synod; then there was the Synod itself which drew widespread publicity.
Church in Australia to Highlight Gender Inequalities on International Day of the Girl Child
International Day of the Girl Child
More than one million children are being trafficked annually and forced into prostitution, according to the United Nations.
The UN is highlighting the various forms of discrimination and abuse suffered by girls around the world to mark the International Day of the Girl Child on 11 October 2015.
Marking this significant day, the Council for Australian Catholic Women prepared a parish resource that includes a parish bulletin notice, a suggested petition for the general intercessions and links to online resources.
Catholic Prison Chaplains National Gathering Highlights Role of Prison Chaplain and the Needs of Prisoners
Left to right: Bishop Terry Brady, Fr Peter Carroll msc, Dr Ruth Webber, James Koulouris; Assistant Commissioner, Governance & Continuous Improvement, NSW Government, Dr Ann Marie Martin; Assistant Commissioner, Offender Management & Policy, NSW Government, Patrick Aboud; Governor Long Bay Correctional Centre.
The role of the prison chaplain goes far beyond just looking after the religious and spiritual needs of prisoners, Dr Ruth Webber told delegates gathered for the inaugural Catholic Prison Chaplains National Gathering this weekend.
Dr Webber is a Professor (Honorary) at the Australian Catholic University. In her keynote address on Thursday 24 September, she said, ‘Prison chaplains provide much-needed emotional, practical and social support to prisoners’. Continue reading
National Family Pilgrimage off to Philadelphia
Yili and Salome Li, Ron Pirola, Bishop Kennedy, Bradley and Natalie Wilkinson with their children Hannah, Joel, Jemima and Eve.
Bishop Michael Kennedy departs with representatives from many Australian dioceses today to join with 150 other nations at the World Meeting of Families in America later this month.
The World Meeting of Families will take place at Pennsylvania Convention Center in Philadelphia from 22-25 September 2015.
Pope Francis will attend the gathering that centres on the theme, ‘Love is our mission: The family fully alive’.
Twenty one adults and 23 children, aged between three years and 14 years, will travel on the official Australian pilgrimage led by the Bishop Delegate for Marriage and Family, Michael Kennedy, along with Dr Ron and Mrs Mavis Pirola, Co-Chair Couple of the The Australian Catholic Marriage & Family Council (ACMFC). Continue reading