Category Archives: Press Releases

Pope urges faithful to respond to the ‘cry of the poor’

The second World Day of the Poor will be celebrated on November 18.

In his message for the second World Day of the Poor, Pope Francis has called for a new evangelisation that prompts Catholics “to make tangible the Church’s response to the cry of the poor”.

In a letter to clergy throughout Australia, Bishops Commission for Pastoral Life chairman Bishop Terence Brady encouraged all Catholic communities to be involved and respond to the theme of day: “This poor man cried and the Lord heard him” (Psalm 34:7). Continue reading →

Australian youth auditor announced for Vatican Synod

Twenty-two-year-old Sydneysider Sebastian Duhau will soon be winging his way to the Vatican as Australia’s youth auditor at the upcoming General Synod of Bishops on Young People, Faith and Vocational Discernment.

Mr Duhau, from the Diocese of Parramatta, was nominated and accepted to participate in the General Synod itself, along with young people and lay Catholics from more than 40 countries, according to an official list of participants released by the Vatican on Saturday. Continue reading →

Bishops oppose plan to purge prayer from Senate

Parliament House, Canberra

A proposal to abandon formal prayer in the Senate has been strongly opposed by Australia’s Catholic bishops.

Senator Lee Rhiannon’s motion to create an inquiry proposes that the Senate should abandon the long tradition of formal prayer and replace it with a bland statement inviting senators to private reflection and prayer. Continue reading →

Church calls for action to stem the rising tide of homelessness

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The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference has used its 2018-19 Social Justice Statement to express deep concern about Australia’s alarming growth in homelessness and insecure housing.

In A Place to Call Home: Making a home for everyone in our land, released this morning, the bishops have called on Australians to look beyond the immediate challenges of the average household budget and to consider those who are homeless or facing housing stress because of skyrocketing rents and property prices. Continue reading →

Bond strengthens between Church and Australia’s First Peoples

A connection between Gospel values and the core tenets of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander life – family, spirituality and culture – is attracting more of Australia’s First Peoples to the Catholic faith.

Australia’s First Peoples now constitute more than 130,000 of all Catholics in Australia and the numbers are increasing, according to the National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council (NATSICC), a peak advisory body to Australia’s bishops. Continue reading →

Geraldton Diocese gives strong country voice towards Plenary Council Plenary Council 2020

Catholics in the Western Australian diocese of Geraldton have provided a strong rural voice during the preparation phase of the three-year Plenary Council 2020 process.

The Geraldton Diocesan Conference 2018, drawing on Psalm 118, adopted the theme of “Lamp for the Steps and Light for the Way: Listen to God and each other as we light the way forward.” Continue reading →

Catholic communicators to focus on hope-filled message Australian Catholic Media Council

Catholic News Service editor-in-chief Greg Erlandson, a keynote speaker at the Australian Catholic Communications Congress

Restoring hope and trust in the world, the Church and the media will be the focus of a gathering of Australian Catholic communicators in Brisbane in September.

The Australian Catholic Communications Congress, an initiative of the Australian Catholic Media Council, will draw delegates from across the Church – communications professionals, journalists, priests and parish pastoral workers, but also members of the lay faithful. Continue reading →

Survey explores young people’s hopes and challenges Office for Youth

Archbishop Anthony Fisher OP, the Bishops’ Delegate for Youth, says the largest survey of young Catholics ever conducted will further shape the Church’s engagement with young people and help the bishops tackle some of the many challenges young people face in contemporary society.

The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference last year initiated a survey of people aged 16 to 29 as part of international preparations for the Synod of Bishops on Young People, the Faith and Vocational Discernment, which will be held in October this year. Continue reading →

Momentum building as Plenary Council marks two-month milestone Plenary Council 2020

Thousands of people from across Australia have taken time in the two months since the Plenary Council 2020 officially launched at Pentecost to consider the future of the Catholic Church.

In May, the Listening and Dialogue phase of the Plenary Council began, with resources created to help people across the country participate in a prayerful conversation to consider the question: “What do you think God is asking of us in Australia at this time?” Continue reading →