A lent resource Take a Walk with a Yamatji Man, The Way of the Cross – A Healing Journey, released by the Archdiocese of Perth in an 18-minute video, encourages the community to reflect and pray together this Holy season. By Amanda Murthy.

The eRecord’s Matthew Lau recently sat down with the Archdiocese of Perth’s Aboriginal Catholic Ministry Pastoral Worker Reg Carnamah to speak about a special project assigned to him during COVID-19 lockdown from March to June 2020.

When Reg Carnamah, Badimia Yamatji Man of the Murchison Region, took the challenge to use his skills and personal story and struggles to paint the Stations of the Cross during coronavirus-led restrictions period, the results were not only fourteen paintings, but also acceptance of his past.

The dry heat of Kambarang, Nyoongar Season of Birth, could be felt at St Mary’s Cathedral last Sunday as members of Perth’s indigenous and Catholic communities came together to acknowledge and celebrate the achievements of Aboriginal peoples and culture at the 2020 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Mass.

The Hon Ben Wyatt, WA Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, has last month launched new online resources dedicated to Aboriginal communities to “assist them research on their families and community histories”.

This time of COVID-19 has been a challenge, but it has also been an opportunity for healing and hope.

Uniting as one Catholic Church to give thanks for faith and culture, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community from across Perth gathered last Sunday, 12 July at Embleton Parish Holy Trinity Church despite the postponement of the 2020 NAIDOC celebrations due to some COVID-19 restrictions still in place.

Traditionally celebrated across parishes on the first weekend of July, the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Mass is a celebration of the efforts by both the Indigenous community and the Catholic Church to achieve integration and solidarity as brothers and sisters in Christ.