Mt La Verna Retirement Village have been blessed with a new cross of San Damiano, written by WA icongrapher Marice Sariola.

The Australian Salvatorian family together with the Perth Catholic community, gathered at Saint Mary’s Cathedral for a thanksgiving Mass, to mark several significant events for the Order. The beatification of their founder Blessed Francis Jordan, his 103^rd death anniversary, 140 years since their foundation, and the 60^th anniversary since the Salvatorian Fathers started their pastoral work in Australia.

Students from nearly a dozen Catholic schools around the state gathered at Aquinas College on Friday, 3 September, for the 2021 WA Earthcare Youth Eco-Summit. The delegates met in discussion groups throughout the day, attending 12 sessions, covering topics such as Our Carbon Footprint and Managing Waste to Our School Strategies – What are we Brewing, interspersed with special online presentations on topics such as Pope Francis’ Laudato Si and the Climate Clever App, developed for Australian schools.

Recognising that humans are hard-wired to be kind particularly during difficult times such as the COVID-19 pandemic, Catholic Mission Conference speaker Hugh Mackay posed, Will there be a culture shift at having lived through this pandemic?

The Mission: One Heart, Many Voices conference held from 1 to 3 September 2021, with an additional day of creativity shaped by young people on 4 September, explored the challenges of living the gospel and leading mission in Australia and globally. The biennial event was last seen in 2019.

There is growing fear among Catholic providers of disability services that the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) will not deliver the level of support that clients and providers need.

The volunteering spirit is alive and well in Willetton where John Paul Care gardening volunteers Elisabeth and Neil Macpherson have been helping their community for nearly 30 years.

89-year-old Fr John Neill OP was a founding Trustee-Governor of UNDA and will be remembered as a visionary leader who devoted his life to the service of the Church and education. He passed away Saturday 22 August.

The Archdiocese of Perth celebrated the gift of the Sacrament of Marriage with a Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral, and acknowledged couples celebrating their milestone anniversaries particularly 25, 40, 50, 60, 70 years.

The KSC Education Foundation Inc are encouraging religious educators and leaders in Catholic schools to apply for their scholarship. One of the aims of the Foundation is to support those who teach and give witness to the Catholic faith in the Catholic education system.

The Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference, in conjunction with the Justice Ecology Development Office (JEDO), have last week launched the Social Justice Statement 2021-2022: Cry of the Earth, Cry of the Poor at Newman College.

The Australian Catholic Church History Symposium inaugural lecture will commence at 6pm on Wednesday, 22 September at the University of Notre Dame Australia in the Tannock Hall of Education (ND4), corner Cliff and Croke Streets, Fremantle.

With most of the country’s population currently in lockdown or having experienced lockdowns in recent weeks the First Plenary Council Assembly the journey been adapted to cope with changing circumstances caused by COVID-19.

Redemptoris Mater Seminary’s Grzegorz Rapcewicz was Ordained to the Diaconate at St Mary’s Cathedral on 12 August by Auxiliary Bishop Donald Sproxton. Dcn Rapcewicz will continue to serve his ministry at Osborne Park Parish while awaiting the next step of his vocation – priesthood.

Following the beatification of Salvatorian founding Father Francis Mary of the Cross Jordan on 15 May 2021, the Archdiocese of Perth together with Salvatorian Fathers and Sisters will be celebrating a Thanksgiving Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral on 8 September.

The upcoming Safeguarding Breakfast on 9 September, themed ‘Every Child in Every Community Needs A Fair Go’ will see the launch of a new story book ‘I am God’s Marvellous Creation,’ dedicated to children between the ages if three to eight years of age.

Following the success of the 2020 Catholic Education Leaders’ Forum Roadshow held at Catholic schools across WA, the 2021 roadshow kicked off earlier this month.

Perth Auxiliary Bishop Don Sproxton concluded his four-day parish and school visitation with the Sunday Mass celebrated at Armadale, in conjunction with the feast day of Australia’s first saint, Mary of the Cross McKillop, recognising her commitment to helping the poor, her care for women and children who were destitute or orphaned.

Australia's Churches are being invited to especially pray for our local, national and global communities experiencing great need and distress caused by COVID-19 on Sunday 22 August.

Chair of the Bishops Commission for Social Justice, Mission and Service, Bishop Vincent Long OFM Conv, has last week said we are facing an ecological crisis and Pope Francis wants the whole Church globally to act with a greater sense of urgency.

Perth Catholics gathered at the Newman Siena Centre on Thursday, 29 July for the final Plenary Council seminar, this time, answering the question, ‘How is God calling us to be a Christ-centred Church in Australia that is a joyful, hope-filled and servant community?’

This year’s NAIDOC Week theme Heal Country was reflected in the Archdiocese annual NAIDOC Mass held at Saint Mary’s Cathedral on Sunday, 1 August. The 11am Mass attended by hundreds was a way to gather in prayer with the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community, bound by the gift of our common faith.

Fourteen Catholic Education school choirs participated in the annual Sacred Choral Section of the Catholic Performing Arts Festival at St Mary’s Cathedral on 27 July.

After a year break due to covid restrictions, the Orchestral Mass held its largest event in its’ sixth-year history – with the involvement of a 68-piece orchestra and a total of 115 choir members from WA schools (Catholic, Anglican, Uniting Church and public schools) - joining the St Mary’s Cathedral choir at its’ 11am Sunday Mass on 25 July, celebrated by Perth Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB.

The Catholic Arts committee is this year honoured to introduce “The Spirit of the Arts” to the annual Performing Arts Festival. Staff and students of Catholic Education schools were present for the festival’s opening ceremony at St Mary’s Cathedral on 22 July, led by Fr Vincent Glynn EV.

An exhibition of photographs and objects belonging to Emeritus Pope Benedict XVI is displayed at Poli Art Gallery, Rome, and online from 29 June to 22 December 2021.

In a video and text released by the Vatican, Pope Francis’ prayer intention for June 2021, focused on the beauty of marriage, inviting everyone to pray for those preparing for marriage, which he said is “a vocation born from the heart.” On 28 August, the Archdiocese of Perth will celebrate a Marriage Mass at Saint Mary’s Cathedral.

Leaders from Western Australia’s Catholic acute, aged and disability healthcare sector have last month engaged in a special dialogue with Perth Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB to discuss the impending impact of the Voluntary Assisted Dying legislation.

Redemptorist Mater seminarian Grzegorz Rapcewicz has spent 10 years discerning his vocation and is now set to be ordained to the Diaconate, en route to priesthood, on 12 August at St Mary’s Cathedral.

Employees of the 26 agencies from across the Archdiocese of Perth gathered as a people of Christ on 15 July at St Mary’s Cathedral, to reflect on their roles to the community and pray for God’s continuous guidance in the important work they do.

The Catholic community gathered to end the 2021 NAIDOC Week with a Mass at the Embleton parish, Holy Trinity Catholic Church, on 11 July. At the conclusion of Mass, ACM Pastoral Worker for over 12 years, Badimia Yamatji man Reg Carnamah, was presented with his 2021 National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council (NATSICC) Adult Service to Community Award for his dedication and commitment to serving the people of Western Australia, through his various roles in the Archdiocese of Perth.

David Anthony Barnao, Principal of David Barnao & Co (now Barnao Property), has last week been gifted an Apostolic Blessing for his decades of resolute services to the Church and wider community.

The Year of Saint Joseph will be a crucial motivator for participants of the 2021 Australian Catholic Men’s Gathering, which will be launched nationally online from 31 July.

The Archdiocese of Perth honoured three of its’ long-serving staff, who officially retired on 30 June and 2 July respectively. Archdiocese Clergy Liaison Officer Brian Bonser, Manager: Compliance and Suppliers Warren Lethridge and Personal Assistant to Perth Auxiliary Bishop Don Sproxton Caroline Fouche reflect on their journey and provide advice for future staff.

As the delayed First Assembly of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia draws near this October, the Members from the Archdiocese of Perth have gathered together to build rapport and continue their discernment on their journey towards a pivotal time for the Church of Australia. Gathering last month at the Redemptorist Monastery in North Perth, the Members participated in a workshop led by Fr Edmond Nixon CSsR.

The Perth Catholic community attended a two-hour seminar at Newman Siena Centre on 24 June, exploring a theme of the Plenary Council, “Discovering A Christ-centred Church that is Open to Conversion, Renewal and Reform.” The event led by Catholic Education Western Australia Director of Religious Education Dr Chris Cotter, was organised by the Archdiocese of Perth Centre for Faith Enrichment, as a space for the community to continue the process of prayer, discernment, and dialogue.

A review of the National Redress Scheme, commissioned by the Federal Government, was released by Social Services Minister Anne Ruston last month. Blue Knot Foundation, the National Centre of Excellence for Complex Trauma, has publicly welcomed the response to the Final Report, Second Year Review of the National Redress Scheme (the Final Report), prepared by Independent Reviewer Robyn Kruk AO.

Voluntary Assisted Dying Legislation enacted in Western Australia on Thursday 1 July will change the way the Catholic acute, aged and disability care sector functions forever.  The legislation, passed by the McGowan government on 10 December 2019, allows Western Australians who are terminally ill the right to end their life at a time of their choosing.

Acknowledging the rich history of the Greenmount Parish on the occasion of its 60^th anniversary, Perth Auxiliary Bishop Sproxton spoke about the importance of good leadership, which the parish was fortunate to receive from all its’ leaders.

Perth Auxiliary Bishop Don Sproxton visited Wanneroo Parish on Sunday 20 June to celebrate the installation Mass of Fr Peter Porteous OSM, together with Assistant Priest Fr Leonard Guiang OSM.