The Bishops of Australia have invited the whole Church to a Year of Grace which will commence at Pentecost, 2012. This short video shows the Bishops breaking open the theme “Starting afresh in Christ”.
Author Archives: Mark Wei
THE MINISTER, THE BISHOP & THE PEDOMETER: CLOCKING UP KILOMETRES TO END POVERTY
Bishop Max and Minister Bowen
As part of Caritas Australia’s Project Compassion campaign, Minister Bowen has been participating in what is known as “Caritas Ks” by wearing a pedometer, which counts every single step he takes during this sitting week in Parliament. Continue reading
St Benedict’s parish Canberra an authentic witness to Christian life and welcoming community
St Benedict's Parish - MGL sisters make final vows at packed ceremony
20 March, 2012
St Benedict’s parish in Narrabundah in the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn is one of 20 parishes identified by the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference Pastoral Research Office (PRO) as having something a little bit “special” in its latest research project “Building Stronger Parishes”. Continue reading
Women’s advocate to give presentation on new media at Catholic Congress
Media Release
15 March, 2012
Canberra writer, commentator and women’s advocate Melinda Tankard Reist will be one of two Australian keynotes presenting at the Australian Catholic Media Congress 2012, a congress which will take place between 30 April and 2 May in Sydney.
Melinda Tankard Reist has developed a profile over the last 20 years through her work on issues affecting women and girls, and she will speak on building a grassroots movement using new media on day two of the Congress.
The Australian Catholic Media Congress is held just once every three years at the Menzies Hotel in Sydney and is a project of the Australian Catholic Media Council, through the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference.
The Congress carries the theme “Communicating the Word: Timeless Messages, New Media” and will focus on how social media can be used to proclaim timeless messages of faith.
Melinda will speak to the 150-strong crowd for an hour on 1 May, focussing on how she has used various types of new media such as Twitter, Facebook and blogging to spread a positive message and challenge advertising standards through movement ‘Collective shout.’ (http://collectiveshout.org/)
Melinda is best known for outspoken stands against the objectification of women, sexualisation of girls, pornography, prostitution, trafficking and violence against women, as well as being one of Australia’s first expressly ‘pro-life feminists’. She also blogs and tweets daily at Melindatankardreist.com
Other speakers at the Congress include international keynote and Vatican Official Monsignor Paul Tighe, Secretary to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications; former young Australian of the Year Khoa Do and many others.
Early-Bird registration is $655 and will be available until 30-March, 2012.All interested in attending the Australian Catholic Media Congress 2012 are encouraged to have a look at the website www.communicatingthewordACMC2012.com or contact Beth Doherty on 0407 081 256, 02 6201 9859 or media@catholic.org.au
Year of Grace website launched: a gift from the Australian bishops to the Church
Media Release
2 March, 2012.
The Official website for “A Year of Grace” has been launched today at www.yearofgrace.catholic.org.au signalling the start of preparations for this important event for the Catholic Church in Australia.
A Year of Grace is the Australian bishops’ gift to the Church to celebrate and renew our faith and life as Catholics. It will begin at Pentecost 2012 and is an exhortation from the bishops of Australia to “Start afresh from Christ.”
Project Officer for the Year of Grace Fr. Peter Brock hopes that the site will become a hub for Catholics during the Year of Grace. Continue reading
Catholic education keen to unpack the Gonski Funding Report
Media Release, 1 May, 2012
The National Catholic Education Commission (NCEC) will accept the Australian Government’s invitation to participate fully in the analysis of the recommendations of the Report on Funding for Schooling released on 20 February.
“There is much detailed work to be done”, said Mrs Therese Temby, Chair of NCEC.
“We have asked Minister Garrett and his department to release as a matter of urgency the detailed modelling that has already been completed on the Gonski recommendations”, she said. Continue reading
International Women’s Day kit now available!
Each year, the Office for the Participation of Women releases a kit for the celebration of International Women’s Day. To download your own copy of the kit, feel free to click here OPW Parish Kit 2012
Prayers of General Intercession International Women’s Day 2012
The following prayers, written by Beth Nolen, are provided for use on International Women’s Day.
Priest: We are called to be people who listen to God’s Word and respond. Let us turn to God in prayer now, so that our prayers can help make a difference to our world.
We pray for men and women who hold positions of leadership and power within the Church, that their work will help empower all those influenced by their ministry, to know their full dignity and value. (Pause to enable the faithful to pray this prayer in their hearts.) Gracious God, hear our prayer. Continue reading
Catholic Women’s Fellowship relaunches with new flexible structure
Media Release
March 1, 2012
The Catholic Women’s Fellowship will re-launch in 2012 with a new structure, allowing young women to complete a program of theology, spiritual formation, personal development and interfaith dialogue.
The Fellowship is the result of a partnership between the Bishops’ Office for the Participation of Women (OPW), The Broken Bay Institute (BBI), and the Sisters of the Good Samaritan. Continue reading
Secretary to Pontifical Council to head influential line-up at Media Congress
Media Release
23 February, 2012
Monsignor Paul Tighe, Secretary to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications heads an influential line-up of guests for the Australian Catholic Media Congress 2012, an event which is held once every three years in Sydney.
The Media Congress is organised by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference and will take place from 30 April – 2 May at the Menzies Hotel.
The event carries the theme “Communicating the Word: Timeless Messages, New Media”, to focus on the way the Church and the world can engage with social media to share important messages. Continue reading