The new website for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing has arrived. The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference (ACBC) have last week launched the new website, Deaf and Hard of Hearing Catholic Ministry, via video conference. The Emmanuel Centre and Catholic Ministry for Deaf and Hard of Hearing, based in Perth co-ordinated services in Perth that enabled those who attended (in Perth) to part...

The Emmanuel Centre and the Catholic Ministry for Deaf and Hard of Hearing have this month come together as a community, in response to the Archbishop’s blueprint for bringing the Church to Christ and Christ to the Church. The Way Forward was launched in parishes across Perth on September 19 and 20, inviting the Perth Catholic community to respond to a questionnaire that will in turn guide the pastoral needs of the Archbishop and the Archdiocese in the years to come.

The presidents of the US and Canadian bishops conferences have this week joined leaders of the regional bishops conferences of Asia, Africa, Latin America, Oceania and Europe in signing an appeal for government leaders to reach a “fair, legally binding and truly transformational climate agreement” at a summit in Paris. Indian Cardinal Oswald Gracias of Mumbai, President of the Federation of Asian Bishops Conferences, signed the appeal on 26 October at the beginning of a joint news conference at the Vatican.

Directing music for an American Catholic parish drove a Christian musician down a 25-year journey as a contributor to the Church’s liturgical music. In 1973, Marty Haugen took what he thought was a temporary job as music director for the Catholic Church in Minnesota.

As the lively profile of a wildly successful uber-geek, Steve Jobs is likely to appeal to many a youthful tech fan. Parents should be aware, however, that this is a morally complex life story – the computer pioneer and Apple, Inc co-founder died in 2011 at 56 – recounted with a vocabulary that’s anything but user-friendly for younger moviegoers.

The pursuit to support and nurture women in times of need is behind Santa Maria College graduate Madison Boot’s decision to study at The University of Notre Dame Australia’s Fremantle Campus.

The St Vincent de Paul Society in WA is seeing more and more people falling into poverty and, with an ever-increasing demand for its services, it has recognised a need to undergo some major changes moving forward. St Vincent de Paul Society CEO Mark Fitzpatrick said that, in 2014 alone, the society delivered material assistance to 38,243 people in WA, and provided $8.35 million in direct support to people in the WA community.

The first task of the Catholic Church “is not to hand down condemnations or anathemas, but to proclaim the mercy of God”, Pope Francis has told members of the Synod of Bishops on the Family. At the end of the synod’s final working session on Saturday, 24 October, Pope Francis was honest about the differences of opinion present among synod participants and about the tone of their discussions sometimes exceeding the bounds of charity. But he framed all those differences as an opportunity for learning.

While not specifically mentioning the controversial proposal of a path toward full reconciliation and Communion for the divorced and civilly remarried, members of the Synod of Bishops on the Family handed Pope Francis a report emphasising an obligation to recognise that not all Catholics in such a situation bear the same amount of blame.

In an interview with Catholic News Agency, little Carmen’s parents, mother Carmen and her father Santos, have told their story about what led to the miracle that led to the Vatican’s approval of Louis Martin and Marie-Azelie Guerin as saints.