Australian Bishops
Some decisions of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference were reported by cathnews.com on 28 May 2003.
"Consideration was also given to the question of the distribution of Holy Communion under both kinds and to issues surrounding lay preaching and Australian adaptations to the General Instruction of the Roman Missal.
The bishops sent directives on these issues for recognition by the Vatican. ...
They also approved the construction of a website for the National Liturgical Commission."
The new membership of the Bishops Liturgy Committee (as of 22 May 2003) is:
Bishop Kevin Manning (Chairman) of Paramatta
Bishop Mark Coleridge (Secretary) of Melbourne
Archbishop Denis Hart of Melbourne
Bishop Dougherty of Bathurst
The web site still has the old list:
Bishop Manning (Chairman)
Bishop James Foley (Secretary)
Archbishop Hart
Bishop Ingham
I am particularly encouraged by the new involvement of Bishop Mark Coleridge. He was ordained less than a year ago. Before that was at the Vatican, since 1998. He is also on the Bishops Education Committee, with Bishop Manning and Archbishop Pell.
This morning I have been reading a particularly good speech by Archbishop Pell of 30 May 2003. The whole speech is at sydney.catholic.org.au but here are some highlights:
"... There is no doubt that this was a reforming Council but the Council preferred to use the term renewal "Ecclesia Renovanda" rather than the term reformation used by Luther. Perhaps in the light of our present troubles an even better title would be "Ecclesia Semper Purificanda" that is a Church always in need of purification. ...
... In other words Catholicism is primarily a religion concerned about worship, service, and right personal conduct. On too many occasions the principal energy of some Catholics has been diverted into other areas; for example, nationalism, being successful, keeping the organisation running efficiently, concern for social justice or ecology or life issues or feminism. ...
... Some talk also as though a change in the balance of power between the Roman centre and individual dioceses or bishops' conferences would radically enhance the preaching of the gospel and the number of personal conversions. This would be as effective as the Chinese stationing most of their troops in Sichuan to protect their Eastern seaboard. ..."
By J.R. Lilburne, 2 June 2003. I give what I have written on this page to the public domain.
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