Archbishop-elect Peter Comensoli Images by Giovanni Portelli Photography © 2018

Pope Francis has this evening appointed the Bishop of Broken Bay, Peter A. Comensoli, as the new Archbishop of Melbourne, with effect from August 1, when he will be installed in St Patrick’s Cathedral.

Archbishop-elect Comensoli was ordained priest for the Diocese of Wollongong and served as Auxiliary Bishop and Apostolic Administrator of the Archdiocese of Sydney before being appointed to Broken Bay in December 2014. Continue reading →

Sixty women and men from Parramatta Diocese and beyond gathered last week to discuss the critical place of women in the life of the Catholic Church and the need for the female voice in leadership.

Our Lady of Mercy College, a school deeply committed to women’s participation in Church and society, was a fitting venue for the evening of formation and consultation with the Council for Australian Catholic Women. Continue reading →

The role of women in families and communities and in the Catholic Church is the focus of this year’s Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Sunday, to be celebrated on July 1.

The theme for this year’s celebration is “Because of her, we can” – which is shared with the theme for NAIDOC week, to be held from July 8-15. Continue reading →

Sr Monica Cavanagh RSJ

Australian Catholic Bishops Conference president Archbishop Mark Coleridge has congratulated Sr Monica Cavanagh RSJ on her election yesterday as president of Catholic Religious Australia at the group’s National Assembly.

Sr Monica, currently congregational leader of the Sisters of St Joseph, was elected along with a number of other religious women and men to the Catholic Religious Australia Council. Continue reading →

Lana Turvey-Collins explains the Plenary Council 2020 process to Townsville locals.

The northern Australia tour continued for Plenary Council facilitator Lana Turvey-Collins recently when delivered five sessions over three days in the Townsville Diocese, presenting to more than 130 people.

Geoff Gowdie, Church life and mission services director for the Diocese, saw the opportunity to gather as many people as possible together from a wide range of ministries to gain an understanding of how the Plenary Council will work. Those people can then serve as leaders in their specific ministry or parish.

Continue reading →

Roslyn Rajasingam, national director of the Apostleship of the Sea

Dozens of Catholic chaplains and managers who work in Australian ports – and the tens of thousands of people who support their work financially – are being reminded of the scriptural imperative to “always welcome a stranger” in the lead-up to Sea Sunday next month.

On July 8, the Catholic Church will celebrate the work of those men and women who work on the seas and those Catholics across the country who minister to seafarers by providing spiritual, social and material support. Continue reading →

Pope Francis has sent his support and blessings to the Catholic Church in Australia as it commences a three-year process to consider its future through the Plenary Council 2020.

The Church in Australia, on the feast of Pentecost, yesterday marked the official launch of the Plenary Council, which will culminate in gatherings in 2020 and 2021 to consider the Church’s governance, laws and practice. Continue reading →

Images by Giovanni Portelli Photography © 2016

The Australian Catholic Council for Employment Relations has told the Fair Work Commission that the minimum wage is “manifestly inadequate” and hundreds of thousands of families are living in or threatened by poverty.

The ACCER, the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference agency focused on employment matters, has told the Fair Work Commission that its view on wage levels is based on Catholic social teaching, which holds that workers “have the right to wages that will support themselves and their families at a decent standard of living”. Continue reading →

Earlier this month, Archbishop Mark Coleridge was elected president of the

ACBC president Archbishop Mark Coleridge. Images by Giovanni Portelli Photography © 2016

Australian Catholic Bishops Conference. Currently the Archbishop of Brisbane, he previously served as an Auxiliary Bishop in Melbourne and as Archbishop of Canberra-Goulburn.

In this conversation with the ACBC Communications Office, he speaks about his appointment at a critical time for the Catholic Church in Australia. Continue reading →