In Australia's multi-stage Plenary Council, Brisbane Archbishop Mark Coleridge saw the Holy Spirit — comforter and disrupter — at work, a dynamic also present in Pope Francis' style of synods, he writes.
Commentary: There are signs that the Catholic Church's response to the sexual abuse crisis is now getting at deeper, institutional questions. A unique example that could bring encouraging news has come from Australia.
Political news and commentary roundup: Let's be better and not call for Barr to be denied Communion; does church teaching change? Harris needs 'a higher gear'; Employers exploit young people via visas.
The president of the Australian bishops' conference told his fellow bishops that it is "a time of humiliation" for Catholic Church leaders, but he is convinced that God is still at work.
NCR Connections: Clergy culture or clerical culture are quickly becoming well-worn descriptions of an entity that previously went by the more reverential term "priesthood."
Grace on the margins: Survivors were right to be disappointed that their demands were not met, but anyone listening to press briefings could hear that the bishops who went to Rome were nowhere near ready to take action.
Commentary: The plenary process is revealing manifest bad faith as bishops maneuver to avoid reform. There's danger of dissipating whatever trust is left among the Australian faithful.
