The Catholic Leader Keeping Faith with You

SOME of Brisbane’s homeless call her “Santa”, but Sr Salvacion Bunao likes to think of herself just as a nun serving the vulnerable, inspired and challenged by the Pope. The Franciscan Immaculatine Sister, who works alongside the Capuchins at South Brisbane, has been personally delivering food and good cheer to vulnerable members of her community, including elderly parishioners, families and ... Read More »

YOUNG Catholics from the Kingston-Marsden parish are walking on air after raising more than $7000 for some of India’s most vulnerable citizens by trekking through the Logan suburbs. Members of the Maxmilian Kolbe parish youth group set a challenge to raise money for two organisations run by Catholic religious congregations in India by each walking 50km over 21 days. The ... Read More »

VIETNAMESE refugee Fr Huong Van Nguyen is well aware of the emotional roller coaster that comes with putting your life on hold. The 71-year-old priest for the Brisbane archdiocese said he suffered anxiety, fear, isolation, and uncertainty when he had to wait 12 years to become a priest. In 1983 Fr Nguyen was ordained a transitional deacon for his home ... Read More »

WHENEVER Casey Arden got into trouble as a young girl, or if she had a burning question about life, she “straight away put up a prayer” to God. It was an unusual habit for a child with no exposure to Christianity at home – until late last year, she didn’t even know what the Holy Spirit was. But for 35 ... Read More »

A BRISBANE priest has spoken out against plans to remove mobile phones from refugees and asylum seekers in detention. Bracken Ridge parish priest Fr Gerry Hefferan has pleaded for the proposed federal legislation not to be adopted. Fr Hefferan, who was part of an Australian Catholic delegation that visited Port Moresby last November to meet asylum seekers and refugees formerly ... Read More »

THE Catholic Church is to set up a new national office for safeguarding to streamline and co-ordinate efforts to protect children. “The Catholic Church in Australia is bringing into a single entity several national agencies working in the area of child protection and safeguarding,” Brisbane Archbishop Mark Coleridge, president of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, said. One of the agencies ... Read More »

PROTESTERS and faith leaders united to sing Amazing Grace in the darkness and call for the release of asylum seekers being detained in the heart of Brisbane recently. Leaders from various Christian denominations and other faiths had gathered for a twilight prayer vigil during Refugee Week (June 14-20) at Kangaroo Point, not far from the hotel where the asylum seekers ... Read More »

A GROUP of five, young asylum seekers ask that they not be identified. The reason is simple. They, and their families fear deportation if they speak out against how they are treated under Australia’s immigration system. Each of the five are at school, live with families, siblings or friends in community detention in Brisbane, waiting they hope, to start life ... Read More »

COLLECTION plates around Brisbane have been collecting dust instead of coins and notes for the past eight weeks but a new app is giving parishioners a chance to donate to their parish once more. The Parish Giving app for the Archdiocese of Brisbane was released at the end of April, several weeks after parishes were told to suspend Masses and ... Read More »