YOUNG Catholics from around Australia have been in Brisbane to learn how to make a difference.
The seven-day Young Political Activist Training Conference aimed to encourage young Catholics in political activism and attracted more than 30 people last week.
The conference offered young Catholics a practical program informing them about political, social and moral matters in Western civilisation.
Many young Catholics at the conference expressed concerns about the relativistic and anti-Christian ideologies dominating Australian politics.
Australian National University graduate Clare O’Donovan, 24, from Brisbane, said the conference was “a wonderful experience”.
“I decided to attend the YPAT conference because of my interest in the cross-section of Catholicism and politics,” she said.
“I wanted to gain a greater understanding of political procedures, the history of Australian politics and the ways in which we can stand up against the attacks on the cultural and social issues that threaten the future of our society.”
Clare said the YPAT Conference was rich in Catholic tradition and encouraged the Church’s call to be saints.
“The presenters have been phenomenal, passing on their wealth of knowledge on crucial issues including the culture of life and human dignity, freedom of speech and freedom of religion, St Thomas More and freedom of conscience, the ideologies of Marxism, radical libertarianism and post-modernism, the institution of marriage and the law, Theology of the Body, conservatives in the media and Catholic social teaching, and how they interact with society and culture,” she said.
Twenty-two-year-old Richard Sofatzis, from Sydney, came to the YPAT Conference to find out how he could make a difference.
“I came because I wanted to learn more about the political processes that are really forming our society, and shaping the way our society is going forward,” Richard said.
“It’s definitely got us thinking about what can we do, and the way to approach the situation.”
The conference taught participants the key principles of Catholic social teaching, including human dignity being the core moral vision for society, the right to political and social participation, and the solidarity of humanity.
Key speakers at this year’s conference were Anna Krohn, from the John Paul II Institute in Melbourne, lawyer Joseph Santamaria and Catholic human rights activist Rita Joseph.
Luke McCormack, the president of National Civic Council Queensland, a group that seeks to shape matters of public policy in Australia, said YPAT taught the necessary tactics for Catholics interested in political activism.
“The way forward is to get people to learn how to organise themselves politically in their profession,” he said.
He also said the tradition of Catholic social teaching was the primary resource for anybody interested in political reform.
