"There's a culture of unaccountable clericalism where the power of the Archbishop and clergy in general is really exercised with very little consultation and accountability to the people that the church is meant to serve," Board member Carey McIver (pictured) says.

Concerned Catholics Australia formed as a result of "a lot of frustration", McIver says.

The group wants to create a church "relevant to the 21st century … a church that is inclusive, listens, invites participation of all people not simply those that are of a clerical order," he explains.

This would involve greater representation of women, who make up 50 per cent of the congregation, in leadership and governance roles.

"Our late Archbishop Guilford Young advocated this back in the early 60s … and here we are 70 years later and the role of women is still undervalued." he says.

Another item on the group's wish list is "active pastoral councils" in parishes to advise priests and better meet the needs of the community.

"There are contentious social issues that we hold a line in the sand on that are not debatable," he says.

"That's not, in my humble opinion, a church that reflects how the world has changed in terms of our understanding of science, technology, the universe of which we are a part."

To illustrate how far the Church is from this reality, McIver offers the example of the fallout from the 2019 appointment of Father Nicholas Rynne.

Rynne was appointed as the parish administrator of the Meander Valley parish. However tensions arose over his more traditional approach.

Concerned parishioners wrote to the archbishop about changes Rynne was 'forcing' on them.

After an investigation, Rynne was removed from the parish.

Despite his removal, some say the views of parishioners were not listened to soon enough.

Concerned Catholics' Australia founding member Paul Collins says the Rynne incident was not unique.

Laity and quite a number of priests in Tasmania have had for some time, he says,

"These concerns centre around the voice of the laity being heard, the kind of issues that the laity are focussed on, and particularly concerns about appointments to parishes.

The church's future could be "disastrous" unless the leadership was prepared to have "sufficient emotional intelligence" to listen to other people, Collins says.

Hobart's Vicar General, Father Shammi Perera, says he is "disappointed" about claims of a lack of engagement.

The Church and the archbishop in Tasmania "regularly engages with parishioners and the broader community and will continue to do so."

Tasmanian parishes are encouraged to run at least one session to share views before Australia's 2021 Plenary Council, Perera stresses.

However, Collins says there is some concern that while plenty of lay people are going to the Plenary Council many are church employees.

McIver says in addition the response from the Archbishop to his group's efforts to facilitate the gatherings before the Plenary Council had not "been encouraging".

Source

• ABC News
• Image: ABC

The state of Victoria's Voluntary Assisted Dying Review Board reported 124 deaths by assisted suicide and euthanasia since 19 June 19, 2019 when the procedure became legal.

There were 231 permits issued for the procedure that year.

The Board's report says 104 of those who died under the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017 committed assisted suicide. A further 20 people were euthanized by a medical practitioner.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrew had predicted there would be ‘a dozen' deaths in the first 12 months."

Victoria Health Minister Jenny Mikakos, of the Australian Labor Party, also expected the number of people seeking assisted suicide or euthanasia to be low initially, and increase in later years. Like Andrew, she thought as few as 12 people would access the scheme.

"We anticipate that once the scheme has been in place for some time, we'll see between 100 and 150 patients access this scheme every year," Mikakos said shortly before the law took effect.

Applicants under the Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017 ranged in age from 32 to 100, with an average of 71 years of age.

Forty-four percent were female, 55 percent were male and 1 percent were "self-described."

Most applicants - 78 percent - had diagnoses of malignant cancer and 15 percent had neurodegenerative diseases.

Anti-euthanasia advocate and director of HOPE, Branka van der Linden, called the number of deaths and the rate at which they were occuring "alarming.

"Half of those who applied for lethal drugs made their final request for euthanasia less than three weeks after they first requested it," van der Linden said.

"That's not a lot of time for reflection, for alternative options to be offered and explored, or for the necessary support to be provided."

Archbishop Peter Comensoli of Melbourne said the number of suicides was "heartbreaking."

The attitude toward death contradicts the extreme cautionary measures being put in place for the coronavirus pandemic, he noted.

"The whole state is making sacrifices to protect people from COVID-19 while on the other hand public hospitals are encouraging assisted suicide," Comensoli told The Catholic Weekly. "The contradiction is baffling for many doctors."

Tasmania is currently debating a bill that would legalize assisted suicide for Tasmanian residents 18 years of age and older, who "have decision-making capacity, (are) acting voluntarily, and have a relevant medical condition."

Tasmania rejected a similar bill in 2013.

Source

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: ABC News

Martine Delaney had complained to Tasmania's Anti-Discrimination Commission about a booklet produced by Australia's Catholic bishops.

The booklet, titled "Don't Mess with Marriage", was a pastoral letter from the bishops sparked by the same-sex marriage debate.

Ms Delaney and Hobart archdiocese agreed to enter conciliation last year, but the activist said the Church refused to budge from its position.

Ms Delaney said she withdrew her case to avoid a lengthy tribunal battle.

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A pastoral letter from the bishops titled "Don't mess with marriage" was sent home with students of Catholic high schools in several archdioceses, including Hobart.

It stressed both respect for all and respect for the unique nature of marriage as a union of man and a woman.

Rodney Croome, national director of Australian Marriage Equality, stated the booklet is illegal under Tasmanian law.

His group cited laws that bar offensive conduct, inciting hatred, and publishing notices that promote or express discrimination.

"The booklet likely breaches the Anti-Discrimination Act and I urge everyone who finds it offensive and inappropriate, including teachers, parents and students, to complain to the Anti-Discrimination Commissioner," Mr Croome said.

But Archbishop Julian Porteous of Hobart said: "A document defending the current law in our nation could hardly be called discrimination."

"The Catholic Church in Tasmania is exercising its right to freedom of opinion, just as opponents to the Church's views on marriage are also exercising their rights," the archbishop said.

Mr Croome said the distribution of the pastoral letter to Catholic school students was "completely inappropriate", and that the Catholic Church had enlisted young people "as the couriers of its prejudice".

He said that the booklet harms homosexual students, and that he had received several complaints from Catholic school teachers about the booklet distribution.

Archbishop Porteous said many parishioners and Catholic parents have spoken positively about the pastoral letter.

He added that the pastoral letter respects diversity and "does not advocate hatred or vilification of people with a same sex attraction".

Sources

• Catholic News Agency
• Image: Guilford Young College