THE spirit of ecumenism alive in the Church in the Queensland bush left a lasting impression on priests visiting Roma for the National Council of Priests’ (NCP) 2004 convention.
One hundred priests and bishops from 17 dioceses and eight religious orders spent two days and nights in Toowoomba and two days and nights in Roma, 360 km further west, for the NCP’s biennial convention from September 6-10.
Some of the visitors, like Frs Gerry Iverson, Bill Moore and Tim Hogan from Parramatta diocese, and Brisbane priest Fr Peter McCarthy, were struck by the depth of ecumenism in the country Church.
NCP chairman, Fr Hal Ranger, who is parish priest of Dalby in Toowoomba diocese, said partnership with other Churches was one of the convention themes.
The priests honoured the work of the Rev Dr John Flynn, the Presbyterian minister who founded the Australian Inland Mission in 1929 in western Queensland.
They also honoured the Anglican Bush Brothers and their wives, ‘and the heroic Catholic sisters, priests and people of the west over the past 150 years’.
