With just over 10 days to go till the First Assembly of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia, President and Perth Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB is inviting Catholics across Australia to pray with and pray for Council Members during the upcoming first general assembly.

Some of the country’s leading Catholic thinkers have been engaged to support the members of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia when they gather for the First General Assembly early next month.

Fr Gordon, who will participate in the upcoming First Assembly of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia in his capacity as Vicar General for the Cairns Diocese, was five years old at the time of the last Plenary Council.

Governance and Structure were raised to the forefront of Church discussion in the findings of the Royal Commission (2017), and both are now key agenda items on the upcoming fifth Plenary Council of Australia in October 2021.

Adelaide Archbishop Patrick O’Regan has said the upcoming sessions of the Adelaide Diocesan Assembly would provide an opportunity for Adelaide’s eight Plenary Council members to hear the voices of the local community.

Plenary Council Member, Eva Skira AO, is Chair of both the Association of Ministerial Public Juridical Persons (AMPJP), and the Trustees of St John of God Healthcare.

In this exclusive story as part of the lead up to the First Assembly of the Plenary Council, Australian Catholic Bishops Conference President Archbishop Mark Coleridge from Brisbane has this week given a historical recount of the events that led to the calling of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia.

As the Church in Australia prepares for Assembly 1 of Plenary 2020 (2-10 October, 2021), it has asked members to consider the question: “In what way does the Church in Australia recommit to the mission of Catholic education, including Catholic schools and universities in the decades to come?”

The role of Catholic schools has always been central to Australian Catholic identity, and the introduction of curricula and teaching practices, such as WA’s Religion and Life as an ATAR subject, plays an important role in the Church’s evangelisation and formation of young people.

Plenary asks for “candour and courage” as members examine the future of Catholic education.

The Fifth Plenary Council of Australia agenda calls those attending the assemblies to “develop concrete proposals to create a more missionary, Christ-centred Church in Australia”.

We are pleased to introduce to you, Congregational Leader of the Dominican Sisters Western Australia, Sr Mary Ryan OP.