The first monks to reach Western Australia were, to the best of our knowledge, the Benedictine members of the first missionary party that came with Perth’s first Catholic bishop, John Brady.

In the middle of the 19th century, the Roman Catholic community of Perth erupted in bitter and violent division as two zealous but ultimately flawed bishops fought it out for control of the diocese. It was a battle fought not only in the congregation but in the colony’s fledgling courts and eventually on its streets as instructions from Rome – each time, nine months in the coming – were mischievously ignored or only selectively received. How had Bishop Brady’s optimistic if impractical vision for a mission in Western Australia gone so badly awry, and who was to blame? Historian and Adelaide-based Dominican Father, Dr Christopher Dowd OP, explains.

Hal Colebatch writes on the early traces of Catholicsm in Western Australia in this introductuon to The Record’s Historical Edition.

The Archdiocesan Historical Commission plays an important part in researching and celebrating the history of the Perth Archdiocese, according to its chairman, Monsignor Brian O’Loughlin.

Hal Colebatch discusses Bishop John Brady and the establishment of the Church in WA.

The first Catholic missionary party faced huge problems in the Swan River Colony, not the least of which was the temperamental personality of Bishop Brady. Among other problems: great poverty and lack of resources to support clergy and religious, and poorly planned missions far away…

It will likely remain a mystery whether the skilled tailors and embroiderers responsible for a set of vestments brought out of archdiocesan archives last week could have ever imagined they would end up at what was then the very end of the earth.

Acknowledging the fundamental differences between masculinity and femininity is not to imply inferiority or superiority…

Paradoxically, the line between great ability and disability – as we think of them – can be very fine. Both can come together…

Nothing could have better illustrated in Australia Pope Francis’ call for Catholics and Christians to focus their energy more on the new evangelisation than last week’s comments by stellar Australian Rules footballer Gary Ablett as he won football’s highest honour, the Brownlow Medal, for the second time, wrotes the Editor in this weeks Editorial.