A Perth priest was with his father until the end. And both men experienced the dignity of one another's vocation. When Nishan De Saram told his father Damian he wanted to be a priest, his loving father was initially unsupportive. But in the last four years of Damien de Saram’s life (13 Sep 1943 - 1 Feb 2011), he got an upfront look at the meaning and dignity of his son’s ministry, accompa...

Somascan fathers at Spearwood parish prepare to celebrate their saints feast day marking 500 years since their patron's liberation from imprisonment. St Jerome Emiliani (1481-1537) was no plastic saint - fallen one day and holy the next. When Our Lady visited him in prison and freed him from captivity, his ascent to sanctity was anything but immediate, Somascan priest Fr Johnson Malayil ...

Lovers, one of them a future great novelist kept apart by a priest, the last thing Robert Hiini expected to find in the bargain bin of an antique shop in Rockingham. The two lovers had been spotted together once more and the usually cheerful priest was furious at the deception.The first time, they were cavorting innocently over tea: he, having left their mutual lodging house on the pretext...

After nine months of resistance, Gilbert Trutwein finally gave in. God, he said, kept sending people in need of spiritual and emotional healing his way. Whether out-and-about with friends or down at the local shops, the stream of encounters with ordinary people and a persistent sense of calling led Mr Trutwein to establish Love Ministry Healing. “I really didn’t want to do it but the Lord...

At the very hour the Beaconsfield parish ended eight years and 56 days of perpetual adoration, St Jerome’s in Spearwood announced it would begin adoring the Blessed Sacrament seven days a week. Adoration promoter and Glendalough parish priest Fr Doug Harris spoke to Spearwood Catholics at the 6pm vigil Mass on Saturday, 26 November, explaining the nature and benefits of adoration – both ...

For 15 years, the volunteers and staff of Pregnancy Assistance have been reassuring women they can choose to keep their unborn babies and can count on being supported. For 15 years, the volunteers and staff of Pregnancy Assistance have been reassuring women they can choose to keep their unborn babies and can count on being supported. Often it was the only affirmation some women got, said lo...

The Schoenstatt movement celebrated its willingness to bring Christ to every kind of environment last Sunday with a mass celebrating 20 years since their shrine was blessed in Armadale. Visible from the busy South Western Highway, it’s a world away from the lush green surrounds of the original Schoenstatt shrine, along the Rhine River in Germany but shares the same universal call to holine...

When it comes to celebrating milestones, Balcatta Catholics know how it’s done. Marking their 50th anniversary with a special Mass, the launch of an anniversary book and dinner at the Sicilian Club, couples and friends danced into the night in celebration of the parish. Auxiliary Bishop Donald Sproxton joined parish priest Fr Irek Czech SDS and other clergy in celebrating the anniversary ...

It might strike terror in the hearts of many Catholics but Judy Woodward says she loves knocking on doors and speaking with complete strangers. She’s been sharing her faith through the Legion of Mary for more than 20 years now. It’s not the only work they do, she says, and it’s not for everyone but it is something that she thoroughly enjoys. Mrs Woodward joined over 200 of her fellow leg...

The fruits of the ‘Arab Spring’ for Christians in Syria are also far from certain, according to a local Syrian Orthodox Church leader. Standing in solidarity with Coptic Orthodox Christians at a prayer vigil in Victoria Park on Friday night, the Rev Deacon Theodore Issa prayed for the souls of Egyptian Copts killed in recent protests and persecutions. The deacon recently returned from Jorda...