001 :
08 Mar 2008

Steps towards Ministry… We are all called to evangelise. In this article, originally published in the New Evangelisation newsletter, New Zealand (www.newevangelisation .wellington.net.nz), Sydney-based lay activist, Harvey Smith, outlines some thoughts for stirring us out of our complacency. [more]

001 :
07 Dec 2007

A plea from the heart… On a regular basis now we receive unsolicited commentaries and reflections from readers and, where possible, we endeavour to slot them into our publishing schedule. Today's contribution comes from Kerry Gonzales whom I do not know other than what you will read in this essay. What she writes struck me as a "from the heart" plea and I feel many will be attracted to the frankness and honesty of what she expresses. …Brian Coyne, Editor [more]

001 :
04 Nov 2007

What would you do? This commentary is an account of a complex case involving allegations of abuse sent into Catholica by one of our readers. The case is situated in another country, not Australia. Our correspondent has brought it to our attention as it involves complex moral issues. They suggest virtually all of the players in this case have become "losers" and asks "which one was the victim?" By way of introduction our correspondent writes: "This is a case involving an infatuated woman, a naive priest, a misguided crusader and a weak bishop and how a confluence of circumstances combined into a tragic loss for the diocese and almost a suicide." All the names have been changed, and other details that might make identification of the particular individuals involved or the location difficult. The principal reason we publish the story is that in a way it is an excellent hypothetical. Except perhaps for the children involved, whom one can excuse on the grounds of childhood innocence, all of the other players in the drama have self-evident moral flaws of one description or another. We end the report with two questions that might form the basis for discussion in our forum. [more]

001 :
04 Oct 2007

Who will celebrate the Sacraments in ten years time? In light of the present petition to the Australian Catholic Bishops, readers of Catholica Australia will be interested in this discussion paper prepared by the Pastoral Council at the Parish of the Immaculate Conception, Rosebank, Johannesburg late last year which discusses the similar looming crisis in Ministry and the availability of Sacraments facing the Catholic Church in Australia. [more]

001 :
17 Aug 2007

Another lay response to Bishop Manning's interview… Way over on the other side of this continent in the South West of WA, Peter Beeson, has been mulling over what the Bishop of Parramatta, Kevin Manning, had to say in his interview with Catholica editor, Brian Coyne, last week. He provides a summary of what he thinks were the key points in Bishop Manning's argument and he shares his thoughts on a couple of areas where he finds himself in disagreement with the Bishop and indeed with Church teaching as it has been urged on the faithful… [more]

002 :
01 Jul 2007

Can you assist Dr Gakavian in his work? Last year Cliff Baxter introduced readers of Catholica to Dr Armen Gakavian, a still youngish graduate based here in Sydney, who has made it his life's work to assist the people of Armenia. He writes, researches and undertakes practical social justice endeavours in support of the long struggle the people of Armenia have been involved in to carve a better place for themselves and their nation in the world. One of the practical endeavours which Cliff and Armen brought to our attention was the situation of one particular family in Armenia, the Nersisyan's, whom Armen has made it his business to assist financially. Today Dr Gakavian puts before you a further request for financial assistance for the Nersisyan family. [more]

001 :
04 Jun 2007

Catholic Religious Education in Australia — why and how it has changed... Catholic Education in Australia faced a major crisis in the 1960s to the point where the bishops of the time seriously considered having to close the entire system down because they simply did not have the resources to sustain it any longer. The new system that was established in the 1970s, thanks largely to government funding, is fundamentally different to the system of religious education that had existed in the past. In today's commentary, Dr Graham English, Senior Lecturer in Religious Education at ACU National, explores some of the other social and cultural factors that make Catholic Religious Education today so much different to what it was in the past. [more]

001 :
18 May 2007

Draft Pastoral Plan needs serious re-write suggests Academic... The Archdiocese of Sydney recently circulated a Draft Pastoral Plan for public discussion. A pdf copy of the draft document is available on the Archdiocesan website. The feedback being picked up by independent religious journalists and commentators around Sydney is that at the parish level there is disquiet about the draft plan. Fr Daniel Donovan, a lecturer at the School of Religious Education at ACU National was approached by a number of parishes to provide a critique of the Draft Plan. His conclusion is that the draft is seriously flawed and needs to be taken back to the drawing board for a major re-write. He argues the document is theologically flawed and needs to pay far greater heed to official Vatican documents and the accepted teaching of the Catholic Church. In his critique, Fr Donovan cites a number of significant Vatican level documents which would urge a different approach to be taken to what has been proposed in the Draft Pastoral Plan for Sydney. We publish here the critique Fr Donovan has provided to the parishes that requested it. [more]

018 :
23 Dec 2006

"Our political leaders must listen to the voice of the oppressed in this Holy Land" Patriarch Michel Sabbah's Christmas message underlines the enormous contradiction that Bethlehem presents to our world today. [more]

013 :
01 Dec 2006

Renewal within Catholicism Michael J Bayly argues: "As Benedict XVI breathed the air and walked the ancient streets of Istanbul, my hope is that he was similarly moved and inspired to usher in a "renaissance" within the Catholic Church — a new era marked by creativity, tolerance, and the inclusion of the experiences and insights, hopes and aspirations of all. Just as Mehmed II revitalized Istanbul, may Benedict XVI facilitate a renewal within Catholicism. This "renewal" could be initiated by the Pope's convening of a truly ecumenical council — perhaps in Istanbul!" [more]