Keywords: Plenary Council
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RELIGION
- Bruce Duncan
- 14 November 2024
The Synod is possibly the most important event in the Catholic Church since the Second Vatican Council. And despite its focus on internal Church reform and participation, can it effectively address broader social and moral issues in the world while still promoting a more inclusive and accountable Church?
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 07 November 2024
The Catholic Church recently displayed two strikingly different faces. In Rome, the Synod on Synodality wrapped up with a facade of unity. But back in Melbourne, a Catholic University’s graduation became a battleground over church doctrine and free speech, exposing deep, unresolved fractures within the church.
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 03 September 2024
Lay-led organizations, once marginalised, are now ascendant in the Church, challenging traditional hierarchies and redefining what church might look like in future. Ministerial Public Juridic Persons (MPJPs) have a growing influence, and for some, hold the potential for a more inclusive, lay-led Church.
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RELIGION
- Elizabeth Young
- 15 August 2024
Copious research has demonstrated the historical existence of women deacons, including St Phoebe, the only person in scripture with the descriptor Deacon. So how far off is Australia from ordaining women deacons?
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 03 July 2024
In 1962, Goulburn was the centre of national attention when Catholic schools closed in protest over a lack of government funding and control. Students overwhelmed public schools. Could this happen again? An Australian archbishop suggests it as an option if religious freedom in Catholic schools is threatened.
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 29 May 2024
We are now witnessing a changed dynamic within the movement for church reform. The balance within its component parts has changed towards a more pessimistic view. A minority is still hopeful; a few even remain optimistic, but most are struggling.
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 09 April 2024
8 Comments
Timothy Radcliffe has a hopeful vision for the Church, yet noting the slow pace of institutional change in his recent visit to Australia, he presented a sort of optimism that eschewed any hope for immediate outcomes. The basis for Radcliffe’s optimism seems to be his assumption that it is acceptable for the Church to take its time.
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 13 March 2024
7 Comments
The Vatican's decision to let priests bless couples in 'irregular relationships' has sparked diverse reactions within the Australian Church, revealing the complex interplay of faith and cultural diversity within Australia’s Church communities.
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 04 January 2024
Last year, the late Cardinal George Pell anonymously published a memorandum that criticized Pope Francis and his vision of a synodal church and condemned the Synod as a ‘catastrophe’, Cardinal Pell's memo signals building tensions between different visions for the future of the Church in Australia.
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 06 December 2023
4 Comments
In the aftermath of the Synod on Synodality, the Catholic community is marked by a sense of uncertainty, reflected in reactions that span from hope to criticism. As the Second Assembly nears, the critical need for more transparent and effective communication from Church leaders becomes increasingly evident.
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 14 November 2023
11 Comments
Religion and politics are frequent bedfellows. Despite many clerics and bishops holding strong political views, and many lay Catholics being active within political parties, the successful embrace of synodality depends upon finding middle ground, and leaders who respect a diversity of views.
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RELIGION
- John Warhurst
- 18 October 2023
9 Comments
This month we navigate the dual milestones of a failed constitutional referendum and the First Assembly of the Synod of Bishops. Seemingly disparate, these events converge in debates over tradition, leadership, and discourse. Their outcomes promise to shape the nation's spiritual and secular contours for generations.
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