Media Release
15 December, 2011
The Bishops Commission for Pastoral Life (BCPL) in partnership with The Broken Bay Institute (BBI) is happy to announce the winner of this year’s youth ministry scholarship.
Ms Lauren Cole, the Diocesan Youth Ministry Coordinator for the Rockhampton Diocese has been award a full scholarship to study the BBI-University of Newcastle Graduate Certificate in Theology, specialising in Youth and Campus Ministry in 2012 and 2013. Continue reading
Media Release
8 December, 2011
The Bishops Commission for Church Ministry (BCCM) has founded a new Lay Pastoral Council to develop policies for the education, formation, pastoral care and support of Lay Pastoral Ministers.
The members of the newly-formed Council are: Sr Philomena Burrell (Perth); Mrs Heather Carey (Adelaide); Sr Kathy Hatherall (Brisbane); Mr Richard McMahon (Sydney); Mrs Kathleen Lillis (Melbourne); Fr Brian Moloney (Australian Catholic Council for Clergy Life and Ministry Representative) and Bishops’ delegate Bp Peter Comensoli (Sydney). Continue reading
Dear Friends in Christ,
At our baptism, we are welcomed and commissioned to spread the Good News, to produce fruit that will last and to use our God-given gifts. We are all called to witness the life of Jesus Christ through our prayer, our offerings and how we share our gifts. It is through the life, suffering, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ our Saviour that we are challenged and called to be a loving, compassionate and inclusive community; to be truly One Body in Christ.
The President of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, Archbishop Philip Wilson, in his recent letter to the Catholic Church in Australia, invites and calls us to a Year of Grace. It will be a time to contemplate the face of Jesus Christ; for it is when we recognise Jesus Christ in ourselves and each other that we are led on a profound and mysterious journey towards understanding the meaning of being One Body in Christ.
Continue reading
Media Release
24 November, 2011
The new English translation of the Roman Missal was officially launched today by the President of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference Archbishop Philip Wilson during the Bishops’ Plenary meeting in Sydney. Continue reading
“One Body in Christ” – Release of a New Resource for Welcoming People with Disability
Media Release
16.11.11
The Australian Catholic Disability Council and the Disability Projects Office of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference have released today a new resource for parishes and Church communities called One Body in Christ, Welcoming People with Disability. Continue reading
By Archbishop Mark Coleridge, photos by Loui Seselja
I have no illusions about the challenges we are facing, but I have high hopes for the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn. Both the challenges and the opportunities were on show last Saturday at the Archdiocesan Assembly attended by over four hundred members of the Archdiocesan community. They came from far and wide, from every corner of this far-flung and very diverse Diocese; and it struck me that in some ways this was the “core leadership” group. Continue reading
By Marita Winters, Director, Catholic Enquiry Centre and the National Office for Evangelisation
Recently I’ve been part of several dinner conversations on the state of the Catholic Church.
Does that sound familiar?
During one, there was comment on the average age of the few participants at a vigil Mass -the estimate given was “at least mid-60’s”. During another there was discussion around the overwhelming participation for registration for a parish Sacramental program one week and the return to half-empty seats the following week. Continue reading
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
Two years ago I was researching material for a new book. The book Call and Response is the resource that the Catholic Enquiry Centre supplies to those who enquire seeking information about the Catholic faith. In the midst of research and writing three significant things happened. The first was we received an enquiry from a priest asking if we had any catechetical resources that might be suitable for a person with impaired vision. Continue reading