Origins of the Catholic Church in Australia.
The first Catholics to come along to Australia, were amongst the first convicts to step foot on the shores of Port Jackson in Sydney. These Catholics were Irish in origin, and brought Catholicism to Australia, although Anglican Ministers were trying to stop the spread of Catholicism in Great Britain and her colonies. Most of the Irish who came here came here because of the British persecution of Irish Nationalists.
The first obstacle to Catholicism spreading came with the Passing of the so called, White Australia Act, 1903 which prohibited those with of non-white colour from successfully settling in Australia. After World War II, there then came a relaxing of the immigration prohibitions, the Federal Government under Prime Minister Menzies and Prime Minister Chiefly opened Australia’s doors to immigrants of European origin, which brought over 1 million Catholics in a short period of time. This period brought dramatic change to the Australian Catholic Church.
The Church was not the centre of life as it was in Asia or in Europe. The separation of Church and State was clear, and the Church had nearly no influence in Politics. Australian Catholics focused on saints of Irish and English origin, while these saints held nearly no influence in other nations.
Catholic Practices Prior to 1962.
The Catholic Church prior to 1962 was very different to what it is today. Most things were practiced differently, such as mass, churches, and catholic participation in the church. This all changed when in 1962 the pope at the time called a council that would forever change the church.
Before this council, the way a church building would have been set out was very different. A church built prior to 1962 would have been built as if it were a large cross if you were to look at it from the sky.
Also, pre-1962, a Catholic Mass was very different. In a catholic mass prior to 1962, a priest would speak to the congregation in Ecclesiastical Latin and it was not practiced in the local languages. The people were not encouraged to participate. Practices such as Benediction, Novenas, and Rosary were practiced by the family as a whole. Benediction was on Friday nights where the whole family would attend. The novenas would be attended by children prior to important schooling events (held by the school itself) and the rosary was a family ac...
... middle of paper ...
...of the clergy, almost always condemning the laity to hell for even the most minor things. Once, the relationship between us and the clergy was rather formal, as many of the religious felt they were superior that us. This all changed after Vatican II as it liberated the church.
The changes made by Vatican II were essential, as society was becoming more liberal, and religion was becoming increasingly irrelevant with its old and conservative ways of practicing Catholicism. Without Vatican II, almost certainly the Church would have lost its appeal to the increasingly liberal societies of the late 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s and now. Vatican II stopped the Catholic Church from becoming an irrelevant part of our society, and now is stronger than ever. But, many Catholics, and Christians believe it is time for further reform as the undirected youth of today strays from the church.
Bibliography
Sheets:
Church Council
The Second Vatican Council
The First Vatican Council
Camille’s Story
Everyday Life before Vatican II
Books
To Know, Worship and love, Rev. P.J. Elliot, James Goold House Publications, 2002, East Melbourne. (Chapters 2- 4)
Video:
Brides of Christ, Australian Broadcast Corporation
John Bede Polding- John Bede Polding was born at Liverpool on the 18th of October 1794 and died at Sydney, 16 March 1877. During his life he contributed in many ways to the growth of Catholicism in Australia through many different events. He was the first Catholic Archbishop in Australia, although he was ordained in England. He came to Australia in 1835 ¡¨and at once set to work to organize his vast diocese. He found only three priests in New South Wales and one in Tasmania; these with the three or four Benedictine monks whom he had brought with him constituted the entire force at his disposal. Then, and for many years afterwards, he worked like one of his priests, saying Mass daily in various stations, often in the convict prisons, teaching the Catechism, hearing the confessions of multitudes, and attending the sick and dying. He obtained permission to give retreats in the prison establishments, and between 1836 and 1841 no less than 7000 convicts made at least ten days' retreat under his guidance.¡¨ Because of his good work the authorities began to bring every new shipload of Christian convicts to him, and he assisted all of them personally and attempted to help them before they were sent off to different places throughout Australia, showing his remarkable patience and acceptance for all people. ¡§In 1841 Bishop Polding revisited England and thence went on to Rome to report on his vicariate and petition for the establishment of a hierarchy, which was granted in 1842, the vicar Apostolic becoming first Archbishop of Sydney and Primate of all Australia. During this visit he was sent on a special diplomatic mission to Malta, and in recognition of his success therein was made a Count of the Holy Roman Empire and an assistant at the pontifical throne. In 1843 he returned to Sydney, taking with him a band of Christian Brothers, four Passionists, and some Benedictines. His return as archbishop aroused a violent storm among the Church of England party in the colony, but his gentleness and tact disarmed all opponents.¡¨ This displays some of the ways that Polding contributed to the forming of Christianity in Australia during its early stages. He also contributed to the founding of the benedict nuns in Australia. He brought the two founding Nuns, Scholastica Gregory and Magdalen le Clerc, to Australia, where they began Benedictine Monastic life for women on February 2nd, 1849.
This caused a lot of deaths during the Reformation period because the Catholic church decided to prosecute people for following and listening to what Luther had taught them about the real Catholic Teachings. The Council of Trent was a way to stop the teachings of Catholic traditions and state clearly the renewal of the Catholic life. The work of the council was concerned with the organisation of the Church. A seminary was going to be set up for the education of priests in each diocese. During the reformation a Catechism which is a clear summary of Catholic beliefs was set out to help reform the order of Mass throughout the Catholic world which priests then helped educate and teach this understanding to Catholics. Indulgence selling was abolished which means that it was no longer a way for the Church to scavenge money and the infamous Inquisition was
In the 2011 Religious Affiliation in Australia census data, ‘Catholic’ recorded the highest percentage of adherents, at 25.3%.
Australian’s choose not to recognise the religious meaning behind some of the most significant Christian holidays; Christmas and Easter, which when put simply celebrates the birth and resurrection of Christ. While people may s...
In Dr. Byrne’s article, “Roman Catholics and the American Mainstream in the Twentieth Century”, she identifies two transitional time periods in American history that have refashioned Catholicism. Dr. Byrne’s article focuses on the immigration of Catholics to America between 1840 and 1920. In Dr. Byrne’s article, she analyzes the immigration of Catholics during these centuries and concludes that each surge of immigration has contributed to the modernization of Catholicism. Dr. Byrne furthers her analysis by examining the paramount challenges that Catholic immigrants subsisted as they transitioned to the New World. Dr. Byrne feels the challenges that Catholic immigrants encountered in America during the 19th century were due to “demographic” confrontations. Dr. Byrne also believes the 20th century Catholic immigrants largely suffered ...
Before the Reformation, medieval Christians all worshipped under the same universal idea of Christendom. The catholic faith had existed for centuries (since 325 C.E. Constantinople, Council of Nicaea) without opposition to it legitimacy, but at the turn of 1500s new ideas on Christian belief erupted all over Europe causing a split between the Church. Christianity prior to the reformation was a part of the worshippers’ everyday life. Their home, work, and social lives were oriented around the Church, yet many 16th century Christians before the Reformation did not fully understand why. Most 16th century Christians were not educated enough to understand the mandatory sermons and mass services that were preached in the medieval church because these services were in Latin. Only the upper echelon of society were sophisticated enough to understand sermon. This upper crust included the clergy, nun, monks, monarchs, nobles, and the patricians which made up a small portion of the medieval population. The clergy consisted of the Pope (Top), Cardinals (princes of the church and electors of the pope), Bishop (overseers of the dioceses), and Priest (lowest and served at each parish). The clergy were the intermediaries between the laity and God and their most important job was to ensure proper following of the sacraments .
Corruption in the church was a huge reason why people left Catholicism, they did not want to be involved in an organization that allowed such awful things
...the church. In conclusion, because of the Reformation, churches have greatly changed, and are continuing to change to this day.
Having a religion change, many times, takes a toll on those who follow. This would include the hardships of the Protestant Reformation and the Catholic Reformation. Religious tensions were spreading throughout Europe, starting from the Protestant Reformation. Some of those who followed the Catholic church began to question how much was true and how many lies they were told to believe in. Many important Leaders of the Reformation stated their opinions about that Catholic church. These opinions would then be evaluated in the Catholic Reformation, The Council of Trent. Beliefs would be revised and practices would be evaluated. The core beliefs would still be Catholic, thus still different from a protestant beliefs. This led to officials of states
Between the years 600 CE and 1450 CE in Europe, there was only one thing that stayed constant, and it was the Roman Catholic Church. The church remained a major influence on the people of Europe and the majority of the region continued to believe every single thing that the church preached. The only thing that did not stay constant was who had the power over the church and how the church made sure that everyone was following their rules that they had created. The church had varying teaching over the course of many years. It was also used as a tool for the rulers of that time.
West A, 2012, 'The 2011 census, ethnicity and religion in Australia', ABC Radio national, 8 August
The Reformation was a decisive period in the history not only for the Catholic Church, but also for the entire world. The causes of this tumultuous point in history did not burst on the scene all at once, but slowly gained momentum like a boil that slowly festers through time before it finally bursts open. The Reformation of the Church was inevitable because of the abuses which the Church was suffering during this period. At the time of the Reformation, a segment of the Church had drifted away from its mission to bring Christ and salvation to the world. Throughout the Middle Ages, the Church had gradually become weaker because of abusive leadership, philosophical heresy, and a renewal of a form of the Pelagian heresy.
During the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries, vicars were under direct authority from Rome, and controlled the Roman Catholic Church of England. It was not until the early nineteenth century, under Pope Pius IX, that the Church decided to split England into several smaller districts, each headed by a bishop. London papers began following the growth and leadership change of the Roman Church in England. One article in The Times stated that "Rome had mistaken the High Church renewal, the Oxford Movement, within the Church of England for a Romeward move" (qtd. in Bowen 148). Several bishops tried to explain to The Times and its readers that the new hierarchy was simply a matter of church government and had nothing to do with politics or national life in England. The Roman Catholic Church thought that it would be better for their congregations to have a local bishop they could rely on, rather than having nearly all of the control in Rome.
It all started in 1859. Australia was slowly becoming populated with European pioneers who sought the newness of the great, unsettled continent. However, there were a few things from home from which they just couldn’t part.
...y the catholic leaders held meetings in Trent for 18 years and examined catholic religion. The only real change that they actually made was indulgences were no longer for sale but were given.