I write to you having recently celebrated the feast of Christ the King. Whilst this feast does indeed acknowledge Jesus as King of our lives and universe, scholars acknowledge the historical reasons for introduction of this feast in 1925 as a response to a time of political upheaval in Europe. European bishops were worried with what they saw as the rise of secularisation and that governments of the time were increasingly asserting more power over and against the church and so the solemnity was established. Ironically it is clear from the scriptures that Jesus’ kingdom was vastly different from the power, control and wealth of this world. When Christianity became the religion of the Roman Empire under Constantine, bishops often took on the trappings of royalty: owning property, having servants, even some leading armies! Some bishops lived in palaces, had benefices, wore regal clothing, had feudal coats of arms and acted dictatorially to their subjects instead of the servant leadership modelled by Christ. Over the next few years the Australian Catholic church will require many new bishops as many of our existing bishops reach retirement age or have already surpassed it. The church will need to choose wisely their replacements who hopefully will model Christ the Good Shepherd and his servant leadership. It would be a mistake to revert to the old model of episcopacy. It is important to pray for our bishops, acknowledging their humanity and imperfection and to affirm those who model the kingship of Christ.

Pope Benedict’s recent accommodation of Anglicans in the apostolic Constitution Anglicanorum Coetibus is a source of joy for some and consternation for others. Many will appreciate the Pope, through the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, reaching out to disaffected Anglicans to provide a means for them to come into communion with Rome. Others are concerned that this move permits an increase of non-celibate priests in the Western church (which many would advocate) but fails to reconcile with a large number of priests who have left active ministry because they do not feel called to celibacy. Also in the Australian context we have Catholic priests who have left the Catholic Church and joined the Anglicans to continue to minister as married men – some have even become bishops in the Anglican Church. The current negotiations with Archbishop Lefebvre’s followers will also be watched with interest.

I have just returned from a seminar in preparation for Advent conducted by the Jesuit Richard Leonard. Many priests across the country have appreciated Richard’s input to our professional development and his perspective on the church in Australia. His statistics and intriguing facts on Australian culture and lifestyle are very challenging for the mission of the church and our part as priests renewing the mission of Christ. As priests, some of our assumptions about Australian society are very wide of the mark and we have to be careful that our prejudices don’t obstruct the mission of Christ in our world and country. I have asked Richard to contribute some of his thoughts on this in a future edition of The Swag.

Plans continue for a bumper NCP biennial convention which will be held in the Diocese of Parramatta from the 12-16 July 2010. Our topic: The Risen Christ in the Changing Face of the Priesthood. Guest speakers include: Fr Donald Cozzens author of The Changing Face of the Priesthood, Freeing Celibacy and Faith That Dares to Speak and many other reflections; Rev Dr Richard Lennan, priest of the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, now lecturing at Boston College – his specialty is ecclesiology and Dr. David Tacey associate professor at La Trobe University, teaching literature, spirituality and Jungian psychology, author of the book Edge of the Sacred and ReEnchantment: The New Australian Spirituality. Ms Geraldine Doogue, ABC commentator and presenter, has also agreed to participate.

A convention registration form is printed on the reverse of The Swag address fly sheet, or you can go to this page to download one. To take advantage of the early bird discounted rate you need to return your form to the NCP office by 31st January.

This convention is open to all priests – NCP members and non-members alike. It really is a time for us to join in camaraderie and solidarity. For those wishing to come to the convention, but may be reluctant for financial reasons, some subsidy may be arranged. Please contact Sally Heath at the NCP office.

May the season of Advent be a time of preparation and anticipation to welcome Christ afresh once again into our world and communities.

Ian McGinnity