Media Release,
28 October 2011
For more information go to www.acmro.catholic.org.au
The Australian Catholic Migrant and Refugee Office offer our condolence to the family of the Sri Lankan refugee who passed away on Wednesday, 26 October. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family and to the Sri Lankan community. Continue reading
www.cievents.com.au/events/ACMC2012
Recently, a friend sent through a message to me on Facebook with the picture just below, which shows Jesus talking to a young man. Indeed, Jesus is asking us to follow him, and although we all misread the signs at times – Christ desires all of us to be with him. So, we have a 2,000 year old message which is timeless, it doesn’t age, although perhaps the mediums we use to communicate the message could do with a little work. This message of course is that of love, hope, mercy, faith and salvation. These are not easy messages to put into one line “tweet” or a pithy “facebook” status. We don’t exactly update our relationship status to “In a relationship with Jesus Christ” and consider ourselves “Facebook official” the moment we realise how much we have been gifted by God in our lives.. The hope of Christ in the world gives life to all, and yet so many haven’t been touched in this way. 
Next year, the second Australian Catholic Media Congress will be held at the Menzies Hotel in Sydney with the theme “Communicating the Word: Timeless messages, new media.” Our international guest for this Congress is Monsignor Paul Tighe, Secretary to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications.
The Congress is open to anyone who wishes to attend, particularly those with an interest in Church media. The congress aims to address some of the challenges of spreading a message in a sometimes hostile world; it aims to show new ways of engaging with technology to more effectively proclaim those messages. Over three days, from the 30th of April to the 2nd of May, the bishops have invited you, the people of Australia to attend the Australian Catholic Media Congress and discuss your hopes and vision for Church media.
So we hope that you will join us. www.cievents.com.au/events/ACMC2012
By Beth Doherty
Note: For a copy of the Social Justice statement, or for more information, visit http://www.socialjustice.catholic.org.au/
Social Justice Sunday was celebrated in parishes over the weekend of 24 September and this year’s statement by the bishops is on a unique and timely subject: prisons and the justice system. The statement is hopeful and reflects the Gospel-inspired dream of human dignity held by the Church for some of the most undervalued members of our society. It also wonders aloud about a system in this country which falls terribly short.
The CEO of Jesuit Social Services Julie Edwards spoke on our justice system as she opened the National Justice Symposium held at Australian Catholic University over the weekend of 21-22 October, a symposium specifically on this topic.
She said: “We want a community where people flourish and get to reach their potential. We want to bring this type of community into being through evidence-based assessments and respect for human dignity, not just knee-jerk reactions. Let’s not have a shallow, superficial and populist conversation. We want to help people turn their lives around. We need to step back and ask, “What does a humane, effective justice system look like?” Continue reading
AT THE BASILICA OF ST JOHN LATERAN
In the history of salvation God called extraordinary people to proclaim his revelation to the world. Patriarchs and prophets prepared the Chosen People, the Israelites, to grasp the reality of the one true God and to shape their lives according to his Will.
On the Feast of St John the Baptist we see in him the fulfilment of the centuries of preparation and the validation of all that had gone before. We hear in him the combined voices of all the prophets as he cried out “Prepare the way of the Lord, make straight His paths”. Continue reading
By Patricia Mowbray
The Disability Projects Office of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference is a much more all-encompassing ministry than one might imagine. It involves encouraging and promoting the full participation of people with disability, their families and friends in the faith life of our Church in Australia.
It’s all about taking our rightful place in the Body of Christ. Continue reading