127 :
22 May 2013

Can the Church learn to evangelise from the likes of papal knight, Rupert Murdoch? The reputed last command of Jesus to his followers was for them to become evangelists, bringing his "good news" to all people. Self-evidently from the statistical information available the Church has been falling down on the job in a catastrophic way in the industrialised world in recent decades. Yesterday in the business press it was announced that an old boy of the college the editor of Catholica attended was promoted to a new position overseeing the most successful television network in Australia. This led Brian Coyne to wondering if the likes of successful media executives like Tim Worner, or papal knight, Rupert Murdoch, might offer lessons to the Church in how to market or evangelise Jesus, God or Catholicism. [more]

126 :
14 May 2013

For Christ's Sake : here's a positive contribution you can make to our world... Internationally, the Catholic Church continues to slide towards oblivion — or at least towards the "smaller, purer Church" envisaged by Pope Benedict. There are possibly only three ways the slide can be reversed: by the offering of more rosaries and masses for God to intervene and send more vocations and halt the slide; Brian Pitts in our forum today outlines, with the help of Dr Hans Küng, the second way — by a return to the simplicity of the Gospel message of Jesus [LINK]; or the third way, for those who believe if it is to have any chance of restoring credibility in the educated, first world might well be by the program being offered by Bishop Geoffrey Robinson in his new book "For Christ's Sake: End Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church ... For Good". The editor of Catholica, Brian Coyne, today offers a review and overview of Bishop Robinson's new book and what he is proposing. [more]

125 :
07 May 2013

A book to challenge the very foundations of your faith! The editor of Catholica, Brian Coyne, today offers a review and overview of Michael Morwood's new book "It's Time: Challenges to the Doctrine of the Faith". The reviewer concludes: "if this book doesn't make you think about what you truly believe nothing will. It's a book to challenge, and paradixocially strengthen, the very foundations of your faith!" [more]

124 :
30 Apr 2013

Is there a God who is conscious and "directing the traffic" in Creation? Today's lead commentary by the editor of Catholica, Brian Coyne, has been triggered by an interesting conversation on our forum about the nature of Revelation. The editor has found himself pondering where does Revelation come from? Where does this God, or the Divine, we call on reside? [more]

123 :
23 Apr 2013

What is the "Good News"? (Part 1) Sue, on our forum, has posed a question today that has enabled generated a number of responses in the forum: What is the "Good News"?. Editor, Brian Coyne's commentary, which we present as the lead commentary today, might seem to go off at a tangent discussing some interesting stuff about an old school mate of his who is today involved in some high tech commercial work in the United States. In the final analysis though he brings it back to some relevance to the question Sue posed. [more]

121 :
11 Mar 2013

What is the state of Reform & Renewal in Catholicism today? (Part 1) Last Friday the editor of Catholica, Brian Coyne, participated in a panel discussion on renewal movements in four of the major religious traditions at a Conference for teachers of "Studies in Religion" in New South Wales secondary schools. The four panelists* presented perspectives from Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and Christianity. As well as the conversation at the Conference itself, the panelists were asked to provide written responses to three targeted questions examining renewal movements in their traditions. What immediately follows in this introduction is the format the panelists were asked to follow. Following that are Brian Coyne's responses to the first two questions and the answer to the third question follows on a separate page.
*For a fuller report of the Conference including details of the Keynote speaker and the other panelists please see the report in our forum HERE. [more]

120 :
26 Feb 2013

What would be required to turn this crisis around and rejuvenate Catholicism? Dr Andrew Kania's commentary yesterday, as well as the unfolding events with the revelations about and resignation of Cardinal O'Brien, have had the editor, Brian Coyne, thinking about what sort of a message a new Pope might deliver that might have some hope of rejuvenating Catholicism and bringing it back from the cliff that it seems set to be pushed over. Overnight he penned what might be the initial draft of an address a new pope might make to the world on his election that might restore some faith in the institution. Perhaps other wordsmiths in our community might like to attempt alternative drafts and we might see if some consensus emerges as to what might work. Already in the string on our forum, TonySee, has drawn attention to another similar exercise on the blog of Fr Anthony Chadwick. Benikira in our string provides a more poetic response. What would you like to hear a new pope say that might restore your sense of faith and hope in Catholicism? [more]

119 :
20 Dec 2012

The genius of the "Catholic or Christian imagination" For our lead reflection today we draw your attention to the further posts in an extended conversation in our forum on our ideas about the nature of the Divine. It's not particularly the post of the editor which we have highlighted here which is embedded in the conversation but the entire conversation with inputs from people ranging from an agnostic outlook right across to an almost, if not, mythical outlook. Editor, Brian Coyne argues in this series of three posts, that modern scientific insight far from driving us towards agnosticism or atheism might open our minds to some of the genius hidden in the "Catholic or Christian imagination". [more]

118 :
21 Nov 2012

Building the Kingdom : Building a Better World... We all dream of living in, or helping build a better world. Why is it so difficult to build that "better world"? We human beings seem to have been working on it for an awfully long time and we're still a long way from achieving it judging by the conflict and poverty that so often greet us in the media. In this commentary, editor, Brian Coyne offers some perspectives drawn from his recent reading of Daron Acemoglu's and James Robinson's book Why Nations Fail: The Origins of Power, Prosperity and Poverty. [more]

117 :
18 Nov 2012

What is your picture of the "ideal Catholic"? Do bishops and popes have some picture in their head of the "ideal Catholic"? Do you have some picture in your head of what constitutes the "ideal Catholic". Catholica editor, Brian Coyne, has been mulling on these sort of questions and comes to the conclusion there is in fact no "ideal Catholic". What is your opinion? [more]

116 :
24 Oct 2012

Some further thoughts on the systemic causes of the Clerical Abuse Crisis... Rather than attempt some review of Denis McLaughlin's book on Edmund Rice and the Christian Brothers, what I have found myself more inclined to write are a series of impressions about how what he writes has impacted on my own outlook. I think Denis has uncovered a bit of a gold mine of valuable information through this research and trying to condense it down into some kind of review looks an increasingly impossible task for me at least. Today's reflection is largely based on Chapter 7 of his book, Further Distortions of Edmund Rice Education, but it ranges further than that and begins with a personal reflection on what Brian Coyne sees as a personal dilemma in his own set of beliefs, and which he suggests might be wider than a personal dilemma but part of the institutional dilemma that helps explain the present series of crises it is facing. ...Brian Coyne, Editor [more]

115 :
22 Oct 2012

Some further thoughts on the systemic causes of the Clerical Abuse Crisis... Further to the commentary series by Tom McMahon looking at the systemic causes of the Clerical Abuse Crisis [LINK] – as well as our on going conversations about the future for the priesthood and religious life – ACU researcher, Associate Professor Denis McLaughlin, sent us an interesting study he undertook a few years ago on Edmund Ignatius Rice, founder of the Christian Brothers and the Presentation Brothers. Catholica editor, Brian Coyne, has been reading the book over the weekend and has prepared this essay, based on the findings of Denis McLaughlin, that provide further valuable fodder for our conversations. [more]

114 :
17 Sep 2012

God and religion as a response to the inherent injustice of life? Instead of our own lead commentary today I'm drawing attention to an article in The Global Mail by Mike Bowers, Ellen Fanning, and Daniel Kirkwood on the contribution made by Australia's original inhabitants to the Australian landscape. According to a new book by historian, Bill Gammage, the Aboriginal peoples managed the Australian landscape in a far more sophisticated way than they have previously been given credit for. [direct link to the article in The Global Mail] | [more background information in our forum]

113 :
05 Sep 2012

God and religion as a response to the inherent injustice of life? Catholica editor, Brian Coyne, has been mulling again in the midst of the decline in religious practice, if there might be a very practical reason why so many human beings in so many different cultures down through history have invented the idea of religion and a supernatural being. Did God invent us human beings, or, did we need to invent God (and religion)? Do we need some place, or being, where the inherent injustices and unfairnesses of life are finally reconciled? [more]

112 :
22 Aug 2012

Despite some optimistic stats the overall picture is still bleak... Catholica editor, Brian Coyne, came across a report on vocation trends in the United States earlier today on NCR. This led to the uncovering of an even more recent report from the Center for Applied Research in the Apostolate (CARA) at Georgetown University on emerging new models of pastoral ministry which makes for interesting reading against the decline in vocations. One might even begin to get one's hopes up that things might be turned around. He argues though from a trawl through other statistical trends that the situation remains bleak. [more]

111 :
18 May 2012

A valuable book that helps us better understand the pickle Catholicism is in today... A few week's ago, Catholica editor, Brian Coyne, published a preview of this newly published book by Kevin Peoples, Santamaria's Salesman: Working for the National Catholic Rural Movement, 1959-61. Having now read the full book Brian returns today with a review including some direct words from Kevin Peoples in a telephone conversation they had earlier today. [more]

110 :
23 Apr 2012

A book about two conflicting views of lay action in the world... Serendipitously arriving in my mail box last Friday was a new book book from Garratt Publishing recounting another side of the influence of prominent layman, Bartholomew Augustine Santamaria, on the Catholic landscape of Australia. This time the rural landscape of this nation and his attempts through the National Catholic Rural Movement (NCRM) to build some kind of agrarian, small plot utopia in this land. In his essay commentary last week Dr Graham English mentioned, almost in passing, Santamaria's attempts to give life to a vision of almost peasant agriculture. It was one of Bob Santamaria's significant defeats and in this new book, Kevin Peoples, who was for a brief time enamoured of the vision, has gone to primary sources to document the history. As indicated in our recent concentration on the book of Dr Anne O'Brien, which also has a significant focus on the endeavours of Mr Santamaria and his various organisations, this is not just ancient history. Some of the bishops who were infatuated with the Santamaria vision and style now control the Catholic institutional agenda in this country and many are asking today to what sort of final destination they are leading the Church: to some resurgence or to a denouement like the almost now forgotten Democratic Labor Party, or initiatives like the NCRM? [more]

109 :
14 Apr 2012

Are you a believer or a doubter? Today's commentary is prompted by tomorrow's Gospel reading — the story of Doubting Thomas. Catholica Editor, Brian Coyne, chose Thomas as his confirmation name at the age of 11 or 12 because the story of Doubting Thomas had some impact on him. Today he still wonders if he is more doubter or believer and tries to fathom through his position today via this commentary. Where do you sit on the spectrum between doubt and belief? [more]

108 :
03 Mar 2012

Does Catholicism have a political agenda? Or should it? Today's commentary is prompted by two articles I read overnight about religions' relationship with secular politics or, more specifically, Catholicism's relationship with secular politics. The first article, this week's editorial in The Tablet, is commenting on the present Republican Presidential contest in the United States. The second is a debate Sandro Magister has drawn attention to in the more esoteric realms of specialist theological magazines. [more]

107 :
28 Feb 2012

The history of Synods in Australia... On Catholica today we're going to take you away from our own website to bring to your attention some information that we think is valuable and provides considerable food for reflection. The subject is Synods — those meetings at the grass roots level of the Church that are supposed help with the guidance and governance of the Church. We draw your attention to a detailed study that has recently been published by Peter J Wilkinson into the history of Synods in Australia; and we also direct your attention to the Synod presently underway in the Diocese of Broken Bay here in New South Wales. [more]

106 :
04 Feb 2012

A quintessentially "Catholic" homily... In the Members' Forum of Catholica yesterday I broke a piece of Good News for the benefit of our forum members and I'd like to share that a little more widely today with you, our loyal subscibers. ...BMC, Editor [more]

105 :
20 Dec 2011

A tribute to Aileen, Lawrence, John and other departed members of our cyber community... I received a belated email yesterday advising me of the death of one of our long time contributors to the discussions on Catholica. She wrote under the name Gaspode, a name she'd borrowed from a character – a talking dog by that name – in the novels of Terry Pratchett. Today's commentary is a tribute to Gaspode – she was actually famous in her own right as a poet under her real name Aileen Kelly – and also to some other members of our community who have passed away almost without our noticing in recent years. ...BMC, Editor [more]

104 :
13 Dec 2011

A second look at a valuable insight into where Catholicism is heading... Over the last few weeks Catholica editor, Brian Coyne, has been having a more leisurely read of Tom Roberts' recently published book, The Emerging Catholic Church. We reviewed it on Catholica with some haste when it was first published [LINK] but on a second, more detailed reading Brian Coyne concludes " this is a 'tour de force' analysis of the challenges facing institutional Roman Catholicism". In this review Brian attempts to give an overview of what is in the book, how Roberts presents his case, what conclusions he comes to, and why we should treat this study Tom Roberts has undertaken seriously. [more]

103 :
25 Nov 2011

Who controls the Catholic church's agenda? A Case Study from Australia... Today's lead commentary deals with a sensitive political issue causing some concern in a number of places in the Catholic Church in Australia. It concerns the encouragement, or lack or encouragement, given to contemporary Christian music which has been widely used in parishes across this country since the Second Vatican Council. In some conservative quarters "contemporary music" is preceived as "the problem" that has caused Mass attendances to drop. We do not share that view here at Catholica. We believe this retreat back to the liturgical and musical styles of the 1950s is simply more of the same agenda that we have been fed for the last forty years since that Council that has been a major factor in causing nearly 90% of the adult baptized to cease listening or participating across the face of the Western world. [more]

102 :
14 Oct 2011

The new confidence in the voice of mainstream Catholic priests... Catholica Editor, Brian Coyne, has been noticing a new assertiveness on the part of mainstream priests to speak out about the crisis institutional Catholicism is in today. In this commentary he directs your attention to a number of places where this new, more assertive voice might be found. Will it be enough to save the institution from sinking below the waves under the assault perpetrated on it by this small remnant minority who seem capable of only dealing with their insecurities in one way — a craving need for certitude and authority figures? [more]

101 :
29 Sep 2011

Addressing the problem of too many prisoners... Last Sunday the Australian Catholic Bishops released their 2011-12 Social Justice Statement: "Building Bridges, Not Walls" It is a superbly written and produced document placing the spotlight on a public issue that has become an acute embarrassment in a civilised society like Australia — the rapidly escalating number of people in our prisons and the harm this is doing to the individuals incarcerated not to mention to wider society. Catholica Editor, Brian Coyne, has been reading the document and offers this overview of its contents. [more]