Print friendly
There are surveys which suggest that 90 per cent of Catholic priests are happy in their job, but yet some recent media on the subject would suggest that we are in an insurmountable crisis of faith in this country.
Much of the criticism aimed at the Catholic Church, sometimes from within its ranks, is aimed at those who appear to ignore the decline in vocations, and try to patch up the problem with foreign clergy who cannot acculturate.
Indeed, it cannot be denied that the Catholic Church in Australia is in need of pastoral workers at various levels, due to an increase in Catholic populations. The Catholic Church in Australia is more significantly impacted by migration than most. As such, Bishops are responding to this need in a way that is possible for our time, and in a way which has already brought unforeseen gifts.
I am one of those overseas priests and I wish to comment on this from my experience and knowledge of working extensively with migrant communities. I have worked in Australia for over 20 years as a migrant chaplain and a parish priest as a member of a missionary order of priests.
Read Maurizio Pettena’s full comment at CathNews Australia
Related Posts:
News category: Analysis and Comment.
