Writer
Paul Collins
Paul Collins is an historian, broadcaster and writer. A Catholic priest for thirty-three years, he resigned from the active ministry in 2001 following a dispute with the Vatican over his book <em>Papal Power</em> (Harper Collins (1997)). He is the author of seventeen books, the most recent being <em>The Depopulation Imperative </em>(Australian Scholarly (2021)) and <em>Recovering the ‘True Church’</em> (Coventry (2022)). A former head of the religion and ethics department in the ABC, he is well known as a public commentator on Catholicism and the papacy and also has a strong interest in ethics, environmental and population issues.
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Tuvalu: Paradise lost?
The recent treaty with Tuvalu opens the way for a more generous treatment of Pacific people. Continue reading »
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Climate disaster: Pope Francis repudiates developed world’s economics and culture
‘It is no longer possible to doubt the human origin of climate change’ (Pope Francis). Continue reading »
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Has Australian Catholic University just lost the right to call itself “Catholic”?
Where’s Cardinal George Pell when you need him? Gone to God, I know, but as one of the founders and a former Chancellor of Australian Catholic University (ACU), he would be horrified at what is currently happening there. Why? Continue reading »
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Political instability and Niger’s biggest problem
West Africa is emerging as a highly unstable region and massive over-population is at the heart of the problem. Continue reading »
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Is Pope Francis preparing for the next pope and an “October revolution” in Catholicism?
Its mid-summer in Rome and last week there was a heat wave with a top temperature of 38° Celsius. Hot days in Rome are stifling, with the heat compounded by the over-whelming influx of tourists. Continue reading »
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Our digital Aunty
The ABC is in trouble again as it abandons its cultural role to become “fully digital” by 2028. Continue reading »
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The Voice and Reconciliation
The Voice is beyond politics. It’s about reconciliation between two profoundly different cultures and approaches to life. Continue reading »
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Vale, Stan Grant
Stan Grant is always intelligent, insightful and provocative. He demonstrated this in his extraordinary farewell piece last Monday night on the ABC’s Q+A. Continue reading »
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Opus Dei: A Catholic sect
Opus Dei is a sect. Its spirituality doesn’t free the spirit, but enslaves it. Continue reading »
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The Pell memorandum must be confronted
We’ve all had far too much George Pell lately, but his so-called “Memorandum” on Pope Francis’ papacy is about much more than the present papacy and needs to be confronted. Continue reading »
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Cardinal George Pell
The media reaction to the death of Cardinal George Pell is extraordinary. But his contribution to Australian Catholicism is very much a mixed blessing. Continue reading »
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Reflecting on the Ratzinger papacy
Benedict XVI’s life and papacy was a mixed blessing for Catholicism. Continue reading »
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Christmas: war and peace
As we end 2022, we seem besotted with rumours of war. In contrast, the central message of Christmas is God’s gift in Christ of peace, justice, humility and joy. Continue reading »
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One established church is enough
Just now we all need a rest from royalty. But what’s gone unnoticed in media is how intimately connected the monarchy is to the Church of England. Continue reading »
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How to become a Catholic bishop
The fundamental crisis of Australian Catholicism is one of leadership and bishops are at the heart of this crisis. Continue reading »
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Christianity: a dismal future?
The future for religion in Australia, especially Christianity, looks rather bleak following the 2021 Census. But is the future really that dismal? Continue reading »
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Paul Collins: Pope Francis keeps them guessing
For a week or so the Vatican rumour mill has been in overdrive. How sick is Pope Francis? Will he resign? Where next for the papacy? Continue reading »
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A mixed blessing for Catholicism
The man who effectively ran the papacy in the late-1990s and the early-2000s during declining years of John Paul II died on Friday 27 May. His career was a mixed blessing for Catholicism. And sixteen new voting cardinals just appointed. Continue reading »
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Christ’s Resurrection in 2022
In the gospels Jesus challenges the religio-political establishment, hostility to him grows, and he is convicted on trumped-up charges and dies as a common criminal on the cross. His life seems over. Continue reading »
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Putin, the Pope and the Patriarch
While the invasion of Ukraine is fundamentally strategic, religion, faith and history also play a major part. Continue reading »
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Pope Francis is 85. Insiders are already thinking about the future leader of Catholicism’s 1.34 billion adherents
If it reaches a deadlock someone from left field might emerge. But here are my tips. Continue reading »
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What motivates Putin’s invasion of Ukraine? Don’t underestimate history and religion
There is a theory that he has an almost mystical notion of Russia of which Ukraine and particularly Kiev are integral parts. Continue reading »
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The fundamentalist take-over of ‘Christianity’
The Religious Discrimination Bill debate got taken-over by religious extremists with the mainstream wedged in the middle Continue reading »
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Population decline isn’t happening fast enough to save planet
By 2050 we will consume three earths per year. Degradation of land and the oceans, biodiversity loss and global warming are the direct results. Continue reading »
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The Plenary Council has been a masterclass in avoiding the real problems in the Catholic Church.
The present model of the Catholic Church has far outlasted its relevance. The time has come for all Catholics to tell Rome loudly and clearly: the monarchical model isn’t fit for purpose and has to go. Continue reading »
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History lessons for critiques on Christianity
Before we worry too much about school students, it’s the adults who need remedial history lessons if two recent articles are anything to go by. Continue reading »
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Hans Kung: a theologian for everyone
Hans Küng died last Tuesday aged 93. I had the honour of knowing him as a friend. He was a rare breed: a theologian who spoke to people of diverse beliefs and none. Continue reading »
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Joe Biden’s Catholicism
With the exception of Jimmy Carter and George W. Bush, religion has not been a big deal for recent US presidents who were, at best, nominal Christians. For Joe Biden faith is central to who he is. Continue reading »
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George Pell could comment ‘Don’t say I didn’t warn you’
Sensational news stories about Vatican finances are two-a-penny. But for the first time Australia features in a scandal with claims that since 2014 €1.4 billion (A$2.3 billion) of Vatican money ended-up in the Great South Land. Continue reading »
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Faith when matter really matters
Christmas is not about Santa Claus, consumerism, or even happy families. It’s about God’s radical entry into humanity in the person of Jesus. Continue reading »
