Archbishop Charles Balvo (Wikimedia Commons/Dan1)
Pope Francis has announced that American Archbishop Charles Balvo, a veteran of the Vatican’s diplomatic service for more than 30 years, will serve as the next Apostolic Nuncio to Australia.
Archbishop Balvo, currently the Vatican’s ambassador to the Czech Republic, was born in New York City and was ordained a priest of the Archdiocese of New York in 1976.
by Archbishop Mark Coleridge
We’re all feeling a bit ragged at year’s end. December is the weariest time of the year, but this is more than normal end-of-year fatigue.
Many of us seem to be limping towards Christmas, eyeing off some time to rest in the company of family and friends.
Catholics are being encouraged to participate in a nationwide survey on religious discrimination legislation currently before the Australian Parliament and speak up in favour of religious freedom.
Last month, the Attorney-General referred three bills to the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights: the Religious Discrimination Bill 2021; the Religious Discrimination (Consequential Amendments) Bill 2021; and the Human Rights Legislation Amendment Bill 2021.
Archbishop Mark Coleridge (left) and Br Peter Carroll FMS
The fourth report from the Catholic Church to the National Office for Child Safety outlines initiatives across dozens of Catholic entities as they continue to strengthen their efforts to keep all people safe in Church settings.
The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference and Catholic Religious Australia accepted the recommendation of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse that organisations provide annual progress reports on their work to protect children.
Mass for You at Home will be broadcast at 6am on Christmas Day on Channel Ten and available online later that day
People unable to attend their local parish for Christmas celebrations will get a special present, with a bonus Mass to be broadcast on Channel Ten at 6am on Christmas Day.
Mass for You at Home has been broadcast each Sunday for more than 50 years, but there was no television Mass scheduled for Christmas Day, which falls on a Saturday this year.
The fruits of the first general assembly of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia have been gathered together in a new report that contains dozens of proposals to shape the ongoing Council journey.
The more than 270 Plenary Council members gathered online for the first assembly in October, spending much of the week in small groups discerning responses to the 16 agenda questions.
The commitment to sustaining the faith of those unable to attend Mass and the generosity of Catholic individuals, families and organisations means Mass for You at Home will continue in 2022.
The Diocese of Wollongong, which took over production of Mass for You at Home in April, and the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference recently confirmed the plan to ensure the ministry remains on free-to-air television, as well as being accessible online and on pay television.
Archbishop Patrick O’Regan (left) and Bishop Shane Mackinlay
Archbishop Patrick O’Regan and Bishop Shane Mackinlay have been elected Australia’s two delegates to the XVI Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops, to be held in 2023.
The delegates were confirmed during the recent plenary meeting of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference.
The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference has welcomed the introduction of the Religious Discrimination Bill, which will provide basic human rights protections for Australians of all faiths and none to express their beliefs.
Archbishop Peter A Comensoli, chair of the Bishops Commission for Life, Family and Public Engagement, has commended the bill, saying it offers “a positive expression of religious freedom” that will be “an important progression towards parity with other anti-discrimination laws in Australia”.
Next week’s International Day of People with Disability is a chance for Catholic communities to celebrate the lives, achievements and contributions of 4.4 million Australians with a disability, Bishop Don Sproxton has said.
The international commemoration is held each year on December 3. Bishop Sproxton, the Bishop Delegate for Disability Issues, has written a message for the day that urges parishes to be a hospitable place for all.
Australia’s Catholic bishops, on the recommendation of their key Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander advisers, have endorsed the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference made the decision as it gathered online for its biannual meeting earlier this month.
Catholics in Australia are encouraged to join their prayers to those in Myanmar (CNS photo/Athit Perawongmetha, Reuters)
Catholics in Australia have been encouraged to join with other Christians in committing time on November 28 to pray for peace in Myanmar, where unrest and violence have been prominent since February.
Pax Christi International, a Christian peace movement, is organising the day with support and guidance from members of the Burmese community in Australia.