Diocesan priests may get the opportunity to live a more fraternal life with the Archdiocese of Brisbane announcing an Oratory will be established in the city by 2016, the first of its kind in Australia.
Archbishop Mark Coleridge has given his go ahead to a ‘Congregation of the Oratory of St Philip Neri’, to be established under the guidance of the Confederation of the Oratory, based in Rome.
Like other oratories around the world, the Brisbane Oratory will provide a location where diocesan priests may live in community and participate in shared ministries, without the specific strictures typical of a religious order.
The Congregation of the Oratory will begin its life as an Oratory “community in formation” consisting of priests and perhaps seminarians, the Archdiocese told media last week.
The congregation’s formation phase lasts for at least three years, during which time the community will be supported by an oratorian delegate appointed by the Procurator General, or chief diplomat, of the Oratory in Rome.
Other Oratories, perhaps even the Birmingham Oratory of Cardinal John Henry Newman fame, may provide support and assistance as requested.
Archbishop Coleridge will also oversee its development in his capacity as the local bishop.
After at least three years, and with the approval of both the archbishop and the Procurator General, the community may petition the Holy See to be formally established, under Church law, as a fully-fledged Congregation of the Oratory.
The Brisbane ‘community in formation’ will comprise four experienced diocesan priests in good standing from different Australian Dioceses as well as two seminarians.
Those young seminarians will begin their studies for the priesthood in an overseas Oratorian seminary in September this year.
Archbishop Coleridge is yet to decide on the Brisbane Oratory’s location and the ministries its members will undertake.
The archdiocese said it plans to keep Catholics around Australia abreast of the nascent community’s developments.