Editorial

Australian Catholicism in the balance

Michael Gilchrist

Contents - Oct 2007 - Buy a copy now Editorial: Australian Catholicism in the balance - Michael Gilchrist Catholic Life: Sydney's Pastoral Plan ready for implementation in 2008 - Michael Gilchrist News: The Church Around the World Events: Book Launch: Advancing the Culture of Death, by Rev Dr Peter Hung Tran More of the same: Retired Sydney bishop calls for a radical overhaul of the Catholic faith - Michael Gilchrist Queensland: Liturgy in Brisbane and the rights of the laity - Michael Apthorp Sacred space: Sydney seminar promotes improved church architecture and art - John O'Brien A Christian sceptic's challenge: why atheism has no answers - Babette Francis Sacred language: New US liturgy head endorses revised Missal translation Truth: And the Light shines in the darkness: the meaning of true ecumenism - Andrew Kania Protect Our Children: New organisation to tackle doctrinal and moral child abuse - Fr John O'Neill PP Letters: Bishop Robinson - Fr Edward P. Evans Letters: Moral standards - Don Gaffney Letters: More on Vatican II - Peter D. Howard Letters: Catholic education - June See Letters: Mass attendance - John Schmid Letters: Nonsense - Frank Bellet Letters: Teaching position available in France - Br John Moylan CFC Letters: St Therese Church Torquay demolition threat - Charles Haber Poetry: Mother to Son - Bruce Dawe Books: JOHN HENRY NEWMAN: In His Time - Tim Cannon (reviewer) Books: SPANISH ROOTS OF AMERICA - Tim Cannon (reviewer) Events: Cardinal Pell to celebrate Latin Mass - 3 November 2007 Books: Books available from AD Books Reflection: Archbishop Hickey on the Christian concept of marriage - Archbishop Barry Hickey

The polarisation of Australian Catholicism into two radically different churches - as the late B.A. Santamaria long recognised - has been dramatically illustrated by two recent events.

On the one hand, the Sydney Pastoral Plan (page 3), with the aim of strengthening the faith in key areas of church life has been finalised and is due to be implemented in 2008; on the other, the publication of a book by Bishop Geoffrey Robinson, a former auxiliary bishop of Sydney. This book questions the very foundations of the faith in the name of responding to the evil of sexual abuse in the Church (see pages 6-7).

For decades since the late 1960s, the faith of Australian Catholics has been eroding, in part as a result of new church 'modernisation' policies, not unlike those espoused in Bishop Robinson's book.

The seriousness of the situation has prompted a comprehensive response from Cardinal George Pell and his co-workers with the aim of re- evangelising the Archdiocese of Sydney through a series of radical reforms.

The success or failure of the Pastoral Plan over the next few years will have implications for the rest of the Church in Australia which faces similar problems.

Meanwhile, Bishop Geoffrey Robinson's book has been publicly supported by some religious organisations and individuals in Sydney, including the Aquinas Academy, Catalyst for Renewal and assorted academics and educators, as well as the secular media.

Indeed some regarded Bishop Robinson as a front-runner to succeed Cardinal Clancy as archbishop of Sydney in 2001, while Bishop Robinson suggests in his book that 'many' Australian bishops would agree with at least some of what he has written. One of them, Bishop Pat Power of Canberra-Goulburn, has already offered public encouragement.

The forces lined up against any effort to strengthen orthodox Catholicism in Australia, in union with the Pope and universal Church, remain well-entrenched and as keen as ever to impose more of their failed medicine, if given half a chance.

Michael Gilchrist (Editor)

Reprinted from AD2000 Vol 20 No 9 (October 2007), p. 2