Offering up our gifts

In the life of faith, each of us is called to offer up our gifts in the service of God and each other. Often, when we do this, God uses and somehow multiplies those gifts in surprising ways, taking us in new directions and on unexpected adventures.

This week, we share the news that our own Vicar General, the Very Rev Joe Caddy AM, has been called to offer his considerable gifts to the people of Cairns as their next Bishop.

We also celebrate the many gifts and generous service of those in Victoria’s Catholic community who were recognised in this year’s King’s Birthday honours.

And we hear from acclaimed Australian composer Prof Mary Finsterer, who spoke at last week’s Melbourne Catholic Professionals luncheon on the ways her Catholic faith and her music have come together and interacted in surprising ways, and on the enduring power of music to transform and inspire—a theme that Pope Francis also reflected on recently.
 
Melbourne Vicar General new Bishop for Cairns
On Thursday 6 June, the Archdiocese of Melbourne shared with great joy the news that Pope Francis had appointed the Very Rev Joseph (Joe) John Caddy AM, Vicar General of the Archdiocese of Melbourne, as the new Bishop of Cairns in Far North Queensland. In accepting his appointment, Fr Joe expressed his gratitude to the Holy Father: ‘I am deeply humbled by this appointment and wish to express my deepest thanks to all the Clergy and faithful of Melbourne.’
 
 
Local Catholics recognised in King’s Birthday honours
In the King’s Birthday honours list for 2024, a number of people from the Catholic community in Victoria have been awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for outstanding service in the areas of religion, health care, education, social welfare, and governance and advocacy. Among them are Veronica Blair and Gwen Fitzgerald of St Anthony’s Parish Glen Huntly, who have been offering free meals and warm hospitality to the broader community for more than 31 years.
 
 
Composer Dr Mary Finsterer speaks on ‘the power of music’
 On Tuesday 4 June, speaking at the second Melbourne Catholic Professionals (MCP) luncheon for 2024, acclaimed Australian composer Prof Mary Finsterer reflected on a career that has taken her in many directions, from Australia to the Netherlands and Hollywood, and from university to opera house, and concert hall to cathedral. Addressing 230 professionals from a range of fields, Dr Finsterer described how her Catholic faith and her music have come together and interacted in often surprising and inspiring ways.
 
 
Music teaches harmony with others, self and Church, Pope says
The Catholic Church should function like a choir where every member contributes his or her unique part to create a harmonious whole, Pope Francis said. Just as, in a choir or an orchestra, ‘one needs the others’ to create harmony, each person in the Church ‘is called to do his or her part well for the benefit of the whole community’, the Pope told choir members on 8 June.
 
 
Heart of hearts
Throughout June, we are invited to reflect on the Sacred Heart of Jesus. When we take the time to do just that—as Nimmi Candappa writes—‘we will be struck by the wonder of it: something sacred is something worthy of worship and reverence, something precious’. We might also find ourselves examining the state of our own hearts, and discovering that ‘true love involves courage—a willingness not only to have our hearts pierced for the sake of another, but to invest ourselves in relationship, to be vulnerable with the other, facing headlong the fear of loss, trusting that in all things, God is in control’.
 
Continue reading: Heart of hearts
 
Pay rise welcome but more needs to be done to address poverty
More than 2.6 million Australians have been granted a pay rise though last week’s decision by the Fair Work Commission (FWC) to raise the nation’s minimum wage. With the approved increase of 3.75 per cent taking effect at the beginning of July, Bishop delegate for the Australian Catholic Council for Employment Relations (ACCER) Michael Kennedy said that while the decision was welcome, employees who depend on a just and fair annual increment will continue to experience financial stress, and that the submission to the FWC by ACCER had sought a 4.9 per cent increase.
 
 
A safe haven for men’s health
From 10 to 16 June, we celebrate Men’s Health Week, aimed at raising awareness and promoting the support of men’s health and wellbeing. A unique aged care home in Melbourne’s north is filling a vital gap in the health system for marginalised men in Victoria. Corpus Christi Community Greenvale (CCCG) provides a safe haven for older men with a history of homelessness, complex health needs or addiction, helping ‘to stop the turntable of services, hospitalisation and street living that for many has been the norm.’
 
 
‘They were all fixed on what was a precious collection of beautiful, sacred musical works. And that’s the power that music has: to be a conveyor and a vehicle to bring people into an awareness of other realms—of spirituality.’
 
 
Dr Mary Finsterer
on seeing St Patrick’s Cathedral full of people for the concert of sacred music she curated for the Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in 2023
 
Upcoming events
‘A Serenade to Music’ featuring the Trinity Singers
Sunday 16 June 2024
3.00pm–4.00pm
The Trinity Singers present a program exploring the power of music through the ages. Spanning five centuries, and with Vaughan Williams’ Serenade to Music as its centrepiece, this concert will delight, excite and serenade the soul! Program: Byrd—Come Woeful Orpheus, Walmisley—Music, All Powerful, Vaughan Williams—Serenade to Music, Howells—King David, Todd—I ...
 
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God and Beer: ‘Religious freedom in Australia’ with Daniel Simon
Monday 17 June 2024
6.30pm–9.30pm
At the next God and Beer, we will hear from Daniel Simon of the Human Rights Law Alliance on current challenges to religious freedom in Australia. As Australia becomes more secular, Christians and people of other faiths find themselves increasingly having to function in environments that might be unsympathetic or ...
 
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Catholic Theological College online information session
Monday 17 June 2024
7.30pm–8.30pm
Join our online information session to learn more about study options at Catholic Theological College (CTC), and insights into student life. Whether you want to further your career or your knowledge of the Catholic faith, CTC has the right path or options for you. Meet our course advisors and ...
 
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Seventh ACMRO National Conference: ‘Welcoming seasonal workers in Australia’
Thursday 18 July 2024, 8.15am
– Friday 19 July 2024, 5.00pm
How faith communities can better welcome seasonal workers will be the focus of the seventh Australian Catholic Migrant and Refugee Office (ACMRO) National Conference, to be held at the Australian Catholic University campus in Melbourne. With the theme ‘Welcoming seasonal workers in Australia: Gift and Responsibility’, the conference will address ...
 
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Celebrating Liturgy Today: Exploring the Ritual Enactment of Faith
Monday 8 July 2024, 9.00am
– Thursday 11 July 2024, 5.00pm
Celebrating Liturgy Today: Exploring the Ritual Enactment of Faith (THLS606) is being offered through ACU’s Faculty of Theology and Philosophy. The unit will be taught by Prof Clare Johnson and guests over four full days (9am–5pm) and will be delivered live online via Zoom as a professional learning seminar and ...
 
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‘Poets and the Faith: Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Emily Brontë and Christina Rossetti’ presented by Philip Harvey
Tuesday 13 August 2024
6.00pm–7.30pm
St Peter’s Eastern Hill is hosting a series of talks about significant poets who have inhabited—or skirted the fringes—of the Anglican and Catholic traditions of Christianity. From Gerard Manley Hopkins to RS Thomas, from Emily Brontë to WH Auden, how did their poetry enrich and challenge their understanding of the ...
 
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Melbourne Catholic Professionals luncheon: Prof Helen Alvare
Thursday 15 August 2024
12.00pm–2.00pm
Join us for the third Melbourne Catholic Professionals (MCP) event for 2024, where Prof Helen Alvaré, international author and Catholic scholar, will join us as guest speaker. Prof Alvaré is the Robert A Levy Endowed Chair in Law and Liberty at Antonin Scalia Law School, George Mason University. She publishes ...
 
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‘Living with Joy’ Women’s Retreat with Fr Frankie Mulgrew
Saturday 17 August 2024
9.30am–4.00pm
The Catholic Women’s League of Victoria warmly invites you to a day retreat at the Catholic Leadership Centre. Fr Frankie was a professional entertainer in the UK before answering a calling to become a Catholic priest. The retreat commences 9.30am with Holy Mass, followed by adoration, Confession and three inspiring ...
 
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Knights of the Southern Cross—Archbishop’s Dinner 2024
Friday 30 August 2024
7.00pm–11.30pm
Join the Knights of the Southern Cross Victoria to celebrate the 24th annual Archbishop’s Dinner. The dinner is held each year to raise funds for the Priests Support and Education Fund. This fund was established by the Knights of the Southern Cross to assist in the funding and education of ...
 
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To learn more about upcoming events and opportunities, visit the Melbourne Catholic events page.

This newsletter is published by the Communications Office
of the Catholic Archdiocese of Melbourne.
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