COLLABORATION among women and men, clergy, religious and lay people would underpin the operations of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference’s newly named Office for the Participation of Women, its director Kimberley Davies said.
Maitland-Newcastle Bishop Michael Malone, a member of the Bishops’ Commission for Church Ministry (BCCM), announced the appointment of Ms Davies on July 18 and said she would also be the executive secretary to the BCCM.
He also announced the appointment of Sue Doepel as project officer for the BCCM.
She will work with Ms Davies in the Office for the Participation of Women (OPW).
The OPW was formerly known as the Commission for Australian Catholic Women and was renamed to conform with the recent restructure of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference.
Ms Davies has spent her career in Catholic education in Queensland and was most recently assistant principal – religious education at St Mary’s Primary School, Ipswich.
“I believe the future is about women and men – clergy, religious and lay members of the Church working together in partnership, recognising the unique gifts of each other that will enhance the life and mission of the Church,” she said.
“Dialogue and collaboration are keys which can be used to bring about this participation and I look forward to working with and meeting Catholics across Australia.”
Mrs Doepel is mother of four and lives in Canberra.
“My interests lie in social justice, interfaith dialogue, building community relationships and seeing lives transformed through meaningful participation in the Catholic Church,” she said.
