VINCENTIANS from the Real Presence Nundah conference celebrated 100 years ministering to the poor, and their local pastor says they have always lived up to their conference name. Banyo-Nundah parish priest Fr Bernie Gallagher likened the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist to a “real presence of Christ in the poor” and praised the local Vincentians who ministered to ... Read More »

THE Queensland Government’s controversial election promise to fast-track euthanasia legislation early next year is coming under increasing pressure. Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk shocked Church leaders and other opponents of voluntary assisted dying (VAD) by announcing at Labor’s campaign launch on October 18 that legislation would be introduced next February if the Government was returned. By advancing the timeframe, the Premier has ... Read More »

A CATHOLIC organisation fighting modern slavery and human trafficking has welcomed ground-breaking statements by major Australian supermarkets shining a light on a dark side of fruit and vegetable production. Woolworths and Coles have released their first review statements under the Modern Slavery Act of 2018. It requires companies to review their supply chains and check if workers face human trafficking, ... Read More »

FORMER Test cricketer Matthew Hayden is going into bat again – this time opening for a major advertising campaign calling all Catholics to come to church. The campaign will run across South East Queensland early next year and is pitched middle stump at “baptised but not practising” Catholics. Recent census figures show only about eight to 10 per cent of ... Read More »

“I STILL get a buzz when I see the positive difference we make to the lives of our clients,” long-time Centacare employee and long-service award winner Desley Chorlton said. Ms Chorlton, who is the Brisbane North and Moreton Bay regions community services area general manager, received a 20 years of service award as part of Centacare’s annual recognition program. She ... Read More »

THE former parish priest of Port Arthur has criticised the decision to make a film detailing the events that led to the 1996 massacre.  Brisbane priest Fr Morgan Batt was the parish priest of Richmond and Port Arthur, Tasmania, when the massacre which killed 35 people unfolded. He was on his way to say Mass at Port Arthur when he ... Read More »

VINNIES’ national leader is seeking an urgent meeting with the Prime Minister to talk about housing as a separate call goes out for the Queensland Government to do more to avoid a “homelessness crisis”. The St Vincent de Paul Society’s national president Claire Victory was motivated to request a meeting with Prime Minister Scott Morrison after the release of the ... Read More »

THERE will be plenty of room at one guest house this Christmas after a Brisbane safe house successfully transitioned its last live-in mother into stable accommodation. Pregnancy Crisis is a volunteer-run service that provides practical support, including emergency accommodation, for women with unplanned or unexpected pregnancies. During the pandemic the organisation extended its crisis accommodation period for as long as ... Read More »

BISHOP Vincent Long has called for an end to the “deplorable” situation facing refugees and asylum seekers in the heart of Brisbane. Bishop Long, the Parramatta bishop who chairs the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Commission for Social Justice, was responding to reports that the health and wellbeing of men detained at a Kangaroo Point hotel continues to deteriorate. Brisbane refugee advocate ... Read More »