Writer
John Warhurst
John Warhurst AO is an Emeritus Professor of Political Science at the Australian National University, He is chair of Concerned Catholics Canberra Goulburn and a member of the Plenary Council, and a regular columnist with the Canberra Times and Eureka Street.
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Peace on Earth this Christmas
Peace should be one of our ultimate goals as we seek a better society. Nothing is more important. But what can anyone say about peace that doesn’t sound too preachy or self-righteous? I hesitate to say anything for this reason. Continue reading »
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Hoping against hope: The Synodal process and prospects for equality for women in the church
The most pressing challenge for the Catholic Church remains addressing women’s inequality in its ranks. The current Synod on Synodality offers some hope, but there are huge roadblocks. The likelihood of equality for women in the Church requires a leap of faith, extremely long-term thinking, and hoping against hope. I cannot see it happening in Continue reading »
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In the chorus of Yes, why aren’t the bishops joining in?
The official position of the church on the Voice referendum is curious, because, despite overwhelming support for a YES vote from an extraordinary range of Catholic agencies, religious orders and congregations, and voluntary Catholic organisations, the highest national church authority, the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, has not followed suit. This is surprising because the whole Continue reading »
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The future of the Catholic Church: Creating unity through diversity
Official surveys all show that the Catholic Church in Australia is in serious trouble. Any refusal by the church to be fully inclusive of women and diverse sexualities will almost certainly lead to a much smaller church than has historically been the case in Australia. If the church cannot accommodate greater inclusion and equal human Continue reading »
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King Charles’ coronation brings Australia closer to a republic
It is about being subjects rather than citizens. It is about ancient oaths of loyalty and fealty. It is about pomp and ceremony paid for by the state. Continue reading »
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Plenty of spin at the second Catholic Plenary Council. Hearts were broken
There are significant long-term consequences in the fiasco for the whole idea of synodality and co-responsibility in the Catholic Church in Australia. Continue reading »
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Plenary Council: The hardest work is yet to come
Solemn High Mass at St Stephen’s Cathedral in Brisbane with Archbishop Mark Coleridge has brought to a close the First Assembly of the Plenary Council. What direction are we heading? What is our Catholic identity? Did we come as far as could reasonably be expected? Continue reading »
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Insights from the Plenary Assembly where reaching out can be difficult
John Warhurst, a member/delegate at the Catholic plenary, is writing a daily blog on his thoughts from the assembly. Continue reading »
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Now or never: Remarks by John Warhurst at Book Launch of Wrestling with the Church Hierarchy
It is now or never for the Catholic Church’s Vatican Two generation. They must continue to wrestle with the church hierarchy if the forthcoming Plenary Council is to have any chance of achieving its potential. Continue reading »
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Plenary Council progress without transparency or inclusion for lay Catholics
Concerned Catholics Canberra Goulburn last August challenged the President of the forthcoming Fifth Plenary Council of Australia (PC), Archbishop Tim Costelloe of Perth, to avoid a breach of faith with the Australian Catholic community. It called on him to open the process of formulating the Instrumentum Laboris, the PC working document, to public scrutiny prior Continue reading »
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A breach of faith with many thousands of Catholics.
Leading church renewal group, Concerned Catholics Canberra Goulburn, has called on Australian Catholic bishops to release an essential document for consultation with the broader Catholic community before the bishops finalise it and send it to Rome ahead of the historic Plenary Council. Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Catholic Bishops must embrace transparency and accountability
Senior Catholic bishops must exercise leadership and firmly grasp the fresh opportunities now provided to them for increased transparency and accountability within the church. They must grab the moment. Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Church Governance Review Project Team Opportunity
The church governance review now underway has garnered considerable national and international interest as a forward step in church reform. This opportunity should not be over-sold as taking control of church reform, because of the considerable constraints under which the review team is working, but the balance of skills and experience in this group means Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHUST. Robert Fitzgerald provides a glimmer of hope for Australia’s Catholics.
Robert Fitzgerald has brought a ray of hope for those Catholics despondent about this dark time for the church in Australia. Fitzgerald is ideally-placed to offer advice on the temporal and spiritual future of the church in Australia. He has served Australia on two national commissions — as a long time member of the Productivity Commission, advising Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Why I am not leaving the Catholic Church
Not only am I not leaving the Catholic church, but I am redoubling my efforts to join with others in making the case for much needed reforms. At heart I believe it is an institution worth working within to improve because it does way more good than harm in Australian society. For me the church Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Catholics grow restless at bishops’ lethargy.
Rather than despair at the absence of half of humanity in the clergy and disappearance of their adult children from the church pews, reforming Catholics are seeking to turn their old church around. Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. The power of the Catholic lobby. (Canberra Times 27/9/2018)
The continuing education funding controversy invites scrutiny of the power of insider politics. Political insiders are those who use economic clout, political connections, extensive networks and privileged access to decision-makers to consistently influence political outcomes. Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Let’s talk about the Catholic bishops.
While knowledge of individual bishops is helpful, what is more useful is a sense of how they operate and where they stand collectively. Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Major Catholic church consultation ambitious – but will it succeed? (Canberra Times 5/7/2018)
The huge Australian Catholic community, the largest, the most clerical and the most hierarchical of our Christian churches, has just embarked on a potentially defining internal consultation process, the Plenary Council 2020, to discuss the future of its church. While its leaders, like Cardinal George Pell and the recently sentenced Archbishop Philip Wilson, attract media Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Mud-wrestling the Catholic elephant.
The Catholic Church is so big and complex. That is one of its defining characteristics yet the media and society at large, much less the Catholic community itself, often fail to grasp its consequences. Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Demystifying the Coalition
The downfall of Barnaby Joyce and his replacement by Michael McCormack from Wagga Wagga as Nationals leader shows once again that maintaining the Liberal-National coalition has a considerable impact on the nation, and thus it deserves greater attention and transparency. Instead it is clouded in secrecy and often taken for granted. Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Corruption and decay of Australian politics. A REPOST from June 15 2017
This week’s ABC Four Corners program that revisited, after 30 years, Chris Masters’ revelations of police corruption in Queensland, “The Moonlight State”, brings to mind how widespread corruption in Australian politics has been since then. Continue reading »
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MARK METHERELL and JOHN WARHURST. Royal Commission provides almanac for what Catholic bishops should do now.
Our group, Concerned Catholics of Canberra Goulburn, was formed back in April 2017 in response to the tide of evidence of child sex abuse that has swept the church. Our motivating concern was to press for reforms in our church, not only to remove the settings that enabled that abuse but also to shake out Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. The Coalition’s special disrespect for unions.
The raid on the offices of the Australian Workers Union by the Australian Federal Police demonstrates a disrespect for trade unions contrary to the Catholic tradition. Since the papal encyclical Rerum Novarum in 1891, Catholic Social Teaching has recognised the right of workers to join together collectively in unions as an important element of the Continue reading »
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JOHN WARHURST. Catholic Citizens needed within Church
Catholics must stand up and become active citizens not loyal subjects within their own church community. The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse has pointed to weaknesses in culture and governance within the Catholic Church in Australia. Within the church the normal tenets of liberal democracy, including inclusiveness, transparency, equality and responsiveness Continue reading »
