St Alphonsa Church on Nudgee Road, known to older locals as St John's, has seen its Syro-Malabar Catholic congregation grow.

The growth has been due primarily to an influx of Indian migrants.

This community continues to thrive, holding daily Masses in Malayalam, its native language.

However the Brisbane Catholic Archdiocese has announced that the 7.30am Sunday Mass for the English-speaking congregation will be cancelled from September.

This decision reflects broader demographic changes as traditional Catholic communities struggle with ageing populations and declining numbers of priests.

Concurrently, Eastern Catholic and Orthodox communities have seen growth.

Ageing population

Statistics from the National Catholic Census Project show a slight increase in the number of Catholics in the area.

The data shows followers rising from 5,410 in 2016 to 5,757 in 2021.

However the local Catholic population is ageing, with 16.7% over 65 compared to 12.7% in 2016. Additionally, the proportion of Catholics born in non-English speaking countries has increased from 11.6% to 14%.

The approximately 50 English-speaking parishioners have been directed to attend Mass at nearby parish churches.

As a result, the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church will become the sole user of the church on Nudgee Road, continuing to serve its vibrant community.

Shortage of priests

The challenges facing the English-speaking congregation of Northgate are not isolated. The Archdiocese of Dublin recently announced that its seminary has just one student.

Ireland's Catholic Church is also consolidating its six dioceses into three. The consolidation comes amidst a declining number of practising Catholics.

Ireland has only 2,100 priests serving an estimated 3.5 million Catholics. Many priests are nearing retirement and, with few seminarians, the future landscape of the Catholic Church in the country faces major changes.

Sources

Brisbane Times

CathNews New Zealand

"We have to listen to the cries of the earth and the cries of the poor. The vision has to become action" he said.

Coleridge stressed the insufficiency of ongoing discussions without tangible outcomes.

In a decisive move to address the pressing issues of environmental degradation and social injustice, the Brisbane Archdiocese on Thursday launched the Laudato Si' Action Plan 2024-2026 at the Francis Rush Centre.

Action-oriented strategy

Crafted through a collaborative effort among various agencies within the Brisbane archdiocese, the plan presents seven targeted goals.

These goals are designed to echo and respond actively to Pope Francis's environmental and social advocacies in the encyclical Laudato Si'.

The goals range from directly addressing the environmental crisis and aiding those in poverty, to transforming economic, educational and spiritual practices within the Brisbane Archdiocese.

Emma Beach, who spearheads the Laudato Si' Action Plan, underlined the commitment to realising these ambitions.

"It's going to happen" she said, signaling a shift from planning to implementation.

The action plan includes significant changes such as adjusting investment strategies, revamping the archdiocesan vehicle fleet to decrease fossil fuel dependency, and revising procurement processes.

Immediate steps and future goals

A standout feature of the plan is its actionable steps, each accompanied by specific deadlines and responsible parties.

For example, to combat reliance on fossil fuels, the first order of business is updating the archdiocese's car fleet within the next four years.

Moreover, in an effort to align financial practices with ethical standards, investment policies will be revised by January 2025 to include reports on fossil fuel investments and other non-congruent activities.

The action plan also emphasises ecological education, aiming to involve 15 parishes in developing their own Laudato Si' commitments by 2025-2026.

This strategy seeks to educate and empower communities to contribute actively to environmental stewardship and social justice.

The plan outlines seven goals in a four-year time frame:

• Responding to the Cry of the Earth
• Responding to the Cry of the Poor
• Ecological economics
• Adoption of sustainable lifestyles
• Ecological education
• Ecological spirituality
• Community resilience and empowerment

Beyond dialogue

The Brisbane Archdiocese's Laudato Si' Action Plan signifies a pivotal leap from dialogue to action in the face of global ecological and social challenges.

By setting clear goals, actionable steps and strict timelines, the Archdiocese underscores its dedication to making a substantive difference.

This initiative stands as a testament to the belief that effective response to the cries of the earth and the poor goes beyond talk, requiring immediate and committed action.

Source

• Catholic Leader

Brisbane Archbishop Mark Coleridge said the innovation was sparked by the continued interest in online Masses. This is despite the easing of COVID-19 restrictions allowing parishioners to attend churches in person.

"We've always thought of a Catholic parish as something that has a geographic base around a church and perhaps a school, but the past two years have made us think about life differently," Archbishop Coleridge said.

"We know that some of our parishioners who began to watch Masses by livestream early last year are still watching and may not be able to make it to a physical parish. So, we decided that we would come to them by forming a dedicated online parish community with a priest who will engage with them regularly."

Brisbane's first online parish priest is Fr Peter Brannelly. He will be a regular face on the archdiocese's social media platforms engaging viewers across southeast Queensland and beyond.

Fr Brannelly added the online ministry to his role as parish priest of Caloundra.

"I was delighted to assist in this role because we know how online interaction has grown during the pandemic," Fr Brannelly said.

"We have been able to connect with Catholics in ways that we hadn't thought of before Covid came into our lives.

While many Catholic dioceses and parishes provided a livestream of Masses, the Brisbane archdiocese wanted to go a step further and created an online parish that could be a central meeting point in the same way a physical parish brings together its community.

Archbishop Coleridge said it was important for online parishioners to see a regular face and engage with a priest in something like the way they would if they were attending a physical parish.

Each week, Fr Brannelly will introduce the livestream of a Sunday Mass for parishioners, invite prayer intentions, delve into the lives of saints on their feast days and feature in other engagement opportunities with parishioners.

The online parish began in line with the new liturgical year, with the Advent season leading into Christmas celebrations.

Fr Brannelly said the online parish community enabled people to feel as though they had a regular connection in their faith, just as they would if they were coming to a parish.

"We expect we will engage with people who are still going to their physical parish but who may not be able to make it every weekend."

Sources

The Catholic Leader

CathNews

Australian Catholics