Ending poverty is cheaper than keeping it. So why don't we?
Mark Gaetani
This article was first published in EUREKA STREET, 13 November 2025
Australia is a nation rich in resources, opportunity and social ideals, yet today, around 3.93 million people, including one in six children, live below the poverty line.
This appalling figure in one of the world’s wealthiest countries forces the question: why does poverty persist in a social democracy built on “a fair go”? What does this reveal about our social contract and our willingness to tackle the roots of disadvantage, particularly as the language of “cost-of-living pressures” stifles the moral urgency to take collective action against poverty?
Mark Gaetani is National President of the St Vincent de Paul Society.
Time for Catholic Bishops to speak up for Palestine
Catholics for Justice and Peace for Palestinians
20 May 2025
An open letter to Catholic Bishops. Please speak up.
As Catholics we urge all bishops to take whatever action is available to help end the genocidal acts in Gaza.
The late Pope Francis was very clear on his great love and concern for the Palestinian people. He has described the humanitarian situation in Gaza as shameful and likened the war to terrorism.
Whilst Pope Francis has been living out the Gospels in caring for the oppressed and vulnerable our Bishops have said not nearly enough.
Catholics for Justice and Peace for Palestinians is a group of Australian Catholics who have come together to highlight the plight of Palestinians and encourage action. The group includes Clare Condon, Chris Sidoti, Marilyn Hatton, Francis Sullivan, Claire Victory, John Warhurst AO, Patty Fawkner and John Menadue AO.
Faith and Public Policy
Francis Sullivan
17 April 2025
Easter is as good a time as any to be reminded that Christianity has a contribution in the formulation of public policy.
An emphasis on values and virtues will go a long way in ensuring that our social fabric remains strong. Helping shape the public conscience is never redundant. Our challenge is to place mercy and truth at the head of the queue when considering the promotion of social order and security.
From its outset, Christianity has attempted to engage the prevailing culture with a deep humanism based on compassion and justice. It has fumbled these attempts at times, but overall it has left the dual markers of the preservation of human dignity and the promotion of the common good as the litmus test for a decent society. The upshot has been the promotion of more inclusive and co-operative communities that have had an eye to the downtrodden and disadvantaged.
What the bishops chose not to say
John Warhurst
13 April 2025
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Those Catholics and other ‘people of goodwill’ who notice the Bishops’ federal election statement for May 2025 will be puzzled and exasperated: puzzled by its modest aspirations and exasperated by its narrow contents and lack of energy and engagement. Issued under the title “Called to Bring Hope in the Year of Jubilee” the statement references the coincidence of the election with the Holy Year of Jubilee, themed ‘Pilgrims of Hope’. It was produced under the banner of the Bishops Commission for Life, Family and Public Engagement, chaired by the Archbishop of Melbourne. |
ACCCR calls for Justice and Compassion in the Federal Election
Media release 28 March 2025
As Australians prepare to cast their votes in the upcoming Federal Election, ACCCR urges voters, political leaders, and policymakers to prioritise social justice, compassion, and integrity in governance.
As a coalition committed to reform within the Catholic Church and broader society, ACCCR calls on all political candidates to commit to policies that reflect fundamental values of human dignity, fairness, and care for the vulnerable.
Key concerns for ACCCR in this election include:
- Social and Economic Justice – Ensuring policies that reduce inequality, provide a fair living wage, and strengthen the social safety net to support those in need.
- First Nations Justice – Commitment to real action on reconciliation, including implementing the Uluru Statement from the Heart and policies that improve the well-being of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
- Climate Action and Care for Creation – Addressing the urgent climate crisis with strong policies that reduce emissions, support renewable energy, and protect the environment for future generations.
- Human Rights and Refugee Protection – Ending inhumane offshore detention, ensuring humane and fair treatment of asylum seekers, and upholding Australia’s commitment to international human rights obligations.
- Integrity in Politics – Advocating for transparency, accountability, and a strong federal anti-corruption commission to restore trust in democratic institutions.
Faith communities play a critical role in shaping a more just and compassionate society. We encourage all voters, especially Catholics and other people of faith, to consider these moral and ethical principles when deciding their vote.
ACCCR calls on political leaders to lead with courage, integrity, and a commitment to the common good. The choices we make in this election will shape the future of our nation and determine whether we become a more inclusive, compassionate, and sustainable society. In this context, we hope for a respectful campaign free of personal attacks, wilful exaggeration and misinformation.
In the last week of the campaign, ACCCR will circulate an assessment of the policies being proposed.
For media inquiries, please contact:
Eleanor Flynn, Co-chair Kevin Liston, Co-chair
Email. Acccr.reform@gmail.com Email. Acccr.reform@gmail.com
Phone. 0412 347 811 Phone. 0411 197 829
SYNOD ON SYNODALITY: For a Synodal Church: Communion, Participation, Mission
Final Document: Official English Translation
“With the Final Document, we have gathered up the fruit of years – at least three – , during which we set out to listen to the People of God, in order to have a better understanding, by listening to the Holy Spirit, of how to be a “synodal Church” in these times”.
From Pope Francis’ closing address.
Authoritarian Leaders - JohnA. Dick Another Voice 15.1.25
Thinking about next Monday’s U.S. presidential inauguration – which this year ironically coincides with Martin Luther King Jr. Day – I have been collecting my thoughts about authoritarian leaders and their followers.
Last week, on Friday January 10th, the president-elect, in a court decision in Manhattan, received an unconditional discharge of his sentence, which formalizes his status as a felon and makes him the very first person in U.S. history to carry that distinction into the White House.
Christianity of Churchianity - John A. Dick. Another Voice
On December 23, 2024, New York’s Cardinal Timothy Dolan said in an interview that President-elect Trump “takes his Christian faith seriously.”
Cardinal Dolan’s remark prompts me to begin my 2025 Another Voice reflections, with two brief observations about religion: first, that there has always been healthy as well as unhealthy religion. Secondly, that all religions, including Christianity, go through a 4-stage evolution that often gets repeated more than once. As the Swiss theologian Karl Barth (1886 – 1968) so often said: Ecclesia semper reformanda est (Latin for “the Church must always be reformed.”
The Threads of Patriarchy. Maree Sobolewski
The Issue. Community minded women, inspired and guided by the Holy Spirit, wish to use their gift of agency
to discern their own calls, as any male might do, with of course the appropriate due processes. To serve in the
church in the capacity God calls them to whatever that might be. In their capacity and gifting as a lay person or
in ordained ministry according to their charisms. In ministry, leadership and decision making. To do so without
prejudice. Responding to their call would be understood as responding to God’s will.
The Abandonment of Religion - Robert van Mourik
“Unless religion changes and adapts to the evolving world, it cannot do what it has the capacity to do: enkindle a zest for life.” Ilia Delio
Humankind’s awareness of spirituality is not a recent development. For example, archaeologists have found evidence of rituals surrounding burials more than 70,000 years ago. The rationale for building the Egyptian pyramids provides further evidence of a spiritual consciousness. Indigenous peoples have long respected the Great Spirit and their interrelationship with it. Planet Earth was revered as the Great Mother Goddess, birthing forth a prolific variety of life, nurturing and sustaining egalitarian and prodigious creativity. Yet formal religion has been around for only about 4,500 years, a miniscule fraction of the spiritual journey that began to unfold so long ago.
The Importance of Understanding Spirituality - Robert van Mourik
“We are not human beings having a spiritual experience; we are spiritual beings having a human experience.” – Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Spirituality is an awareness that there is no difference between matter and spirit. Some define spirituality as man’s search for meaning and others as recognising this awareness. Mystics have long recognised spiritual growth (e.g. The Interior Castle, St Teresa of Avila) while modern authors have written about stages of faith (Stages of Faith, Fowler) and stages of spiritual growth (Integral Spirituality, Wilber).
Passing generation of Vatican II clergy - John Warhurst
Yet another religious order or congregation leaves our diocese. A much-loved Vatican II-inspired archbishop dies. Our parish priest tells us that relieving priests are more difficult to find. These are all striking moments in church life. Yet the biggest shock has been to learn of the seemingly inevitable decline of the National Council of Priests (NCP).
In any likely version of a future Church the clergy will play a central role. They will do this either as the traditional church’s clerical workforce in a largely unchanged hierarchical church or as equal partners with lay Catholics and religious in a newly reformed and co-responsible synodal church.
Pope Francis certainly recognises this fact and often gives the impression, when he condemns clericalism, that he frets about whether the modern church’s male priesthood is fit for the task and committed to his synodal agenda. As part of the consultation for the second assembly of the Synod of Bishops he called 300 parish priests from around the world to Rome to learn more about their views.
Life After Death - Garry Everett
The Christian view of life after death owes everything to the Christian view of God, writes Garry Everett. Our experiences of love are foretastes of God’s greater love for us.
In that wonderful stage production and movie, The Lion King, the opening song is entitled, The Circle of Life. Like the verses of our favourite psalm, we should ponder the words of this song also.
The lyrics by Tim Rice touch into the eco-spirituality theme of the inter-connectedness of all things. The music by Sir Elton John conveys the feeling that every ending is a beginning of something new.
Church without Clergy - Dr Harald Prinz
There are situations in which history overtakes itself and developments unfold a dynamic that was hardly conceivable a short time ago. This is shown by the current discussion on the role of the priest in the Catholic Church, which has broken out on a large stage.
It is less than two years ago that I put forward a cautious conditional thesis on this topic in this magazine: “If the Church is not in a position to adapt the image of the priest to today’s requirements and convictions and thus to provide the faithful with sufficiently good priests, an alternative path could be to train a Church that no longer needs clergy, but only more pastors (women & men) who understand people’s lives”.
LGBTQ+ Issues and Catholic Doctrine - Dr John A. Dick
After my Values Clarification post on July 3rd, a number of people have asked me for a clarification about Catholic teaching about LGBTQ issues past and present. By way of response, here is my brief summary…
The Bator Week: The impact and the Legacy - Michael Gill
He arrived on Wednesday, flew out the following Tuesday. An amazing gift to us in so many ways.
For most of us, an “unknown”. Who would turn out to listen and contribute?
Fr Agbonkhianmeghe Orobator, SJ aka Bator. Nigerian convert, coming from a community where the various brands of Christian abused him and his Animist family and neighbours.
He grew up in a family of his father, 7 wives and 27 siblings ( I hope I recall the numbers correctly).
We Are Historical: We Grow in Knowledge and Understanding - John A. Dick
Evolution is a fact not a theory. Evolution of life on earth has been going on for 3.5 billion years. Anthropologists have discovered that the first humans (Homo Sapiens) most likely developed in the Horn of Africa between 300,000 and 200,000 years ago. Cave paintings and rock paintings began to emerge on multiple continents some 30,000 years ago. The physical universe, our planet, and all living organisms are still evolving.
Baptism - John A. Dick
The Synoptic Gospels (Mark 1:9–11; Matthew 3:13–17; Luke 3:21–23) mention the ritual immersion practiced by John the Baptizer in which Jesus himself participated. Matthew 29:18–20 also portrays the risen Lord, in a post-Resurrection narrative, commanding his disciples to baptize using a Trinitarian formula. The words came not from the historic Jesus, biblical scholars suggest, but from early church practice around the year 80 CE.
Ordination - John A. Dick
Our understanding of priests, bishops, and deacons has changed dramatically in the church’s long history.
After Jesus’ death and resurrection, the disciples of Jesus (c. 4 BCE – 30 or 33 CE) understood their role as one of ministry and service to others. Sent out to spread the Good News of the Way of Jesus, they were called “apostles” from the Greek word apóstolos, meaning “one who is sent out.”
In the earliest Christian communities, men and women were apostles. There was a variety of ministries; but ordained priesthood was not one of them. Contrary to what one occasionally hears, the historical Jesus did not ordain anyone at the Last Supper. In the medieval period, many thought he did. But ordination did not exist in his lifetime.
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Evolving Catholicism and the Synod - Francis Sullivan AO. ACCCR webinar 22.2.2024
In the moments available to me this evening I would like to give a reflection on where I sit with the Synod on Synodality.
I do so because many fine Catholic friends either have no interest in the Synod, have not even heard about it, or have little hope that it will amount to anything.
I think we all appreciate that the interest and confidence in the Church is at an all-time low. The fact that a meeting in Rome, still heavily controlled by the Vatican, can somehow enliven the flagging fortunes of the Church is a bridge too far for the majority of my Catholic friends and the Catholic circles in which I move.
Yet, I have hope. Even more than hope, I see some tentative green shoots of change.
Catholicism at a crossroads – Kevin Liston. ACCCR webinar 22.2.2024
Catholicism is at a crossroads. Most baptised Catholics have given up on the church organisation. They find the spirituality and theology on offer to be inadequate. Rules, practices and exclusions do not make sense. The credibility of bishops and clergy is at an all-time low. Many of my family, friends and colleagues wonder what I find in it and why I continue to be involved. I am not alone in this.
Catholicism is evolving. At this time in the West or Global North, it is in decline, rapidly diminishing in credibility, influence and relevance. Yesterday, I heard Austen Ivereigh, the Pope’s biographer, describe the Synod as the most important event in the Catholic church since Vatican II. I have questions about that. I want to ask if this is so.
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Observations from Near and Afar - Tommy Hayden and Leo Traynor
Although these ‘Observations’ refer directly to experiences in Ireland and three African countries, but they are also relevant to the church in Australia. ACCCR
We are responding to a request to share our thoughts on our contrasting experiences of the church in Africa and Ireland – and by extension in the West. We came here as missionary priests in the 70s and 80s and have now worked in three countries in West and Central Africa.
ACCCR Response to Pope Francis' On Promoting Theology
Catholic theology is at a turning point. On 1 November 2023, Pope Francis endorsed a major evolution. It is, as it always has been, a search for understanding but it is no longer restricted to Scripture and Tradition as sources. Francis is clear; the experience of human living is an essential source of theological reflection. The traditional description, “faith seeking understanding” has been declared inadequate and has been superseded.
The human experience of the faithful, the concrete situations in which we live, and the knowledge we gain through our relationships with one another are genuine sources of mature theology.