We priests are called to be enablers of God’s reign in the world – bearers of the good news of Jesus Christ, in season and out of season. We should never forget that we are only a part of the people of God, the body of Christ. Significant as we are, we have to collaborate with Christ’s faithful and listen attentively to [...]
Editorial
As I sit down to write this editorial comment, many diverse thoughts and experiences are running through my mind. Muddled as they are I want to share them. My sense is that many of us ordained priests at this time are trying to hold faithfully in balance lots of mixed feelings. Four months since the forced departure of Bishop Bill Morris from [...]
Editorial
Recently Amos Oz, Israeli writer, poet, and historian, presented The Ervin Graf Memorial Oration at the Shalom Institute in Sydney. He spoke about what he regards as the single most urgent issue of our times – fanaticism. The problem with fanatics, according to Oz, is that they fail to appreciate that the ends never justify the means. To bring about what they believe [...]
2011 Awards for Excellence in Catholic Press Australasian Catholic Press Association (ACPA)
56 delegates enjoyed the opportunity to meet up with Catholic colleagues from around Australia, New Zealand and the Pacific to discuss issues of common interest at the annual conference held recently in Adelaide. Whenever possible, the Association sponsors a Pacific delegate who may otherwise not have the opportunity to attend and this year ACPA was pleased to [...]
Letter to the Editor
Congratulations to John Ryan for his positive portrayal of the secular priesthood. (The Swag Winter 2011 p24). This comes at a time when we hear so many warnings about secularism and secularization. (Yet it should be noted that “secular values” under attack are in fact outcomes of capitalism: in the past we spent so much effort against communism, while ignoring [...]
Letters to the Editor
I, like many others since 1958 when it arrived, first saw the statue, The Pharisee, at St Patricks College Manly. Others may have seen it before in the Sydney Town Hall vestibule when it arrived from Italy in c1890. It was there for about two or so years while L Polena on behalf of the Melbourne based [...]
Letters to the Editor
When Catholics for Renewal was consulting extensively in preparing the Open Letter to Pope Benedict and the Australian Bishops, a ‘30s something’ couple commented that they agreed strongly with the thrust of the draft but felt they could not sign as they no longer considered themselves Catholic. They then said that if the Church seriously addressed the matters canvassed, they would [...]
Letters to the Editor
John Ryan (Winter Swag 2011) asks the question: “What is the secular vocation and what is the spirituality for the secular priest?” He says: “In the beginning to grapple with this challenge I would want to place the secular priest as deeply as possible within the experience of the people he is called to serve. As he walks with [...]
Good Sams honour long-time ministry colleague
The Good Oil (August 2011), the Good Samartitan Sisters e-magazine reported that twenty Good Samaritan Sisters travelled to Lawson in New South Wales in July to celebrate the eightieth birthday of their long-time friend and ministry colleague, Father Arthur Hackett.
Dual aspects to the war in Afghanistan for many Australians
Richard Tanter, peace policy analyst, offers a set of proposals to help discuss ways of responding to the war in Afghanistan in an article in Disarming Times, Pax Christi Australia’s journal, August 2011.
