Writer
Francis Sullivan
Francis John Sullivan AO is Chair of the Mater group of hospitals and Chair of Concerned Catholics Canberra Goulburn.
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Pope Francis has abandoned transgender Catholics
In a recent official Declaration on Human Dignity, Dignitas Infinita, the Pope has endorsed a document that effectively outlaws sex change for transgender Catholics. The Declaration is both harsh and unrelenting in its tone, dismissive of new science and judgemental of those Catholics who in good faith make life choices contrary to the edicts of Continue reading »
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Transcendence: Searching for light amidst horrors in Ukraine and Gaza
Is there any light in the Christian message in the face of the horrors in the Ukraine and Gaza? Apart from wishing peace on Earth does Christian belief actually change anything? Continue reading »
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Albanese Government makes good start for the dispossessed, but much more to be done
In 1996 Paul Keating said, “when you change the Government, you change the country”. Continue reading »
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George Pell’s death symbolises the demise of a church out of touch and out of time
Pell was an ideological warrior that resisted the changes of liberal society and its tolerance for diversity and individualism. Continue reading »
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30 years on, Keating’s Redfern speech demands we back the Voice: Watch it here
On the 30th anniversary of former Prime Minister Paul Keating’s historic Redfern Speech, First Nations Australians are still waiting for the vision it articulated to be realised. Continue reading »
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Why is the Catholic Church still investigating itself?
For those still interested, the erosion of episcopal authority from the clerical sex abuse scandal continues at pace. Continue reading »
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What can the under-privileged hope for in the budget…not much?
In a civilized country, where we pride ourselves on a fair go for all, a very significant part of our community is missing out. Continue reading »
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Plenary Council: The Church needs to change with the times
The Catholic Church needs a renaissance to be effective in its mission, as the Plenary Council faces the challenges of an evolving, complex world. Continue reading »
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The dark shadow of scandal still lurks four years after the Royal Commission findings
Unless all the implications of the sex abuse scandal are faced head-on, the Church will struggle to be identified for anything else. Continue reading »
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Plenary Council: Time to test the full range of issues facing the church not just in Australia but France.
The rubber has hit the road at the Plenary Council, but there are still nine months to go before resolution. Continue reading »
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Vale Bishop Geoffrey Robinson
Bishop Geoffrey Robinson died on 29 December 2020 aged 83. In this subdued time of Christmas and New Year celebrations, the sombre news of his passing seems quite apposite. He was a talented, sensitive man who cherished his priestly vocation. Continue reading »
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Endemic secrecy in the Catholic Church
Throughout the child sexual abuse Royal Commission the inquirers regularly asked why institutions not only tolerated child abusers but actively concealed their crimes. Secrecy was endemic in the culture of these institutions. Continue reading »
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The Light From the Southern Cross. A Report on Catholic Church Governance
The Church culture of the past is still the culture we have today. And that is fundamentally what the Implementation Advisory Group (IAG) had to confront. How to navigate the realpolitik of the Catholic Church. No mean task for a group set up without any institutional clout or effective prominence. Continue reading »
