Author: Peter Albion
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Offer it up
Like many ARC members, I am old enough to have memories of growing up in the pre-Vatican II Catholic Church. Mandatory penitential acts, like abstaining from meat on Fridays, fasting on prescribed days, and giving up sweets for Lent were part and parcel of life. Friday abstinence was sufficiently well known as a marker of…
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Synodal challenges
In recent years dioceses across Australia and around the world have been nudged into conducting synods. In the case of my diocese, Toowoomba, the synod I attended last week was the second in its history; the first was in 1948. In the intervening decades there have been diocesan pastoral councils and occasional broader gatherings to…
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History may not have the answers
Much of the debate around the ordination of women to the diaconate or priesthood hinges on the interpretation of the early history of the Church. Were the women referred to as deacons really admitted to the same role and status as men who bore the same title? Did women really preside over early eucharistic home…
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Are we misinterpreting the parable of the wedding feast?
The pairing of the Gospel reading for this Sunday with the passage from Isaiah about the feast to be provided by God naturally leads us to think of the king in Matthew’s parable as representing God. A commentary by Tobias Winright on the Catholic Moral Theology site cites one source that makes the alignment explicit:…
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Changing emphases in papal visits
This commentary from the Global Catholic website contrasts the different emphases that can be seen in the itineraries of Pope Leo’s travels. It can be seen as a consistent core message directed toward different audiences. In the Middle East and Africa he spoke to encourage the faithful in loving Christians lives in societies that sometimes…
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Would a different question yield a different answer on the ordination of women?
This piece, Ordination of women: the Church is asking the wrong question, on the Global Catholic site is interesting reading. Essentially the argument is that when we ask “Can the Church ordain women?” we put the Church at the centre of discernment and immediately narrow the investigation. It goes on to suggest that a better,…
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Living with AI
Pope Leo’s encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas, continues to provoke reflective commentary from multiple perspectives. A recent article, Magnifica Humanitas: Beyond the “Planet of the Apes” syndrome, by Joseph Borg on the Global Catholic website concludes that “Magnifica Humanitas is therefore not a lament but a summons. It calls humanity to engage AI without fear or naïveté,…
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Synodality v Clericalism: Unfinished business
I was unaware of the existence of Global Catholic prior to reading a post by Peter Johnstone in the Australian Catholics Facebook group. The site claims to offer “insightful commentaries and diligent analyses of global events through a Catholic lens, from a distinguished team of writers.” Articles on the site appear to span news from…
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When the blind lead…
Maps and modes of transport are useless if we don’t know where we want to go. Our Church needs a shared vision of what we seek to become. Only then can we move forward together.
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Women in Church history
To most Catholics the actions of Popes Francis and Leo in appointing women to curial positions with significant authority appears as progress toward the recognition of women in the Church. It is not a serious breach in the wall of male clericalism and falls far short of the true equality that progressive Catholics would want.…