Category Archives: Morsels

Obituary for Bob Bellear, Australia’s only Aboriginal judge. Written by community member Peter Manning for the Sydney Morning Herald, March 17, 2005.

Australia is called a classless society. But Bob Bellear, who has died at 60, did what few other Australians have done: he rose from the very bottom rung to the very top. Not just from working-class and rural origins but from Aboriginal deprivation to become Australia’s first indigenous judge.

British vicars rarely grumble about people joining their congregations, but a number might be dreading a visit next month by a "mystery worshipper" – the Church of England equivalent of the restaurant critic.

In an unprecedented move, as many as 100 specially recruited researchers will turn up incognito in pews across London on April 24 to judge the quality of the Sunday service on offer.

The volunteers, using pen names such as "Church Mouse" and "Dunelm" to protect their anonymity, will then post their verdicts on the … Continue reading →

10 Steps to Quell Dissent and Maintain the Truth

…and maintain the Truth.

Power, fear, influence. And how to use them…

It would seem that Neocats, like many other creatures, are predisposed to marking out what they consider to be their territory.

Time and time again our pastors have insisted that St Vincent’s is not a Neocatechumenal Church. Last week a large sign was fixed to the Redfern Street facade of the old church, emblazoned with Kiko’s Madonna, the unmistakable sign of the Way [see Icons of the Neocatechumenal Way].

The community had not been consulted.

For more than 3 decades St Vincent’s Church, Redfern has offered comfort to grieving Aboriginal families who came, far too often, to bury their loved ones.

After Ted Kennedy’s departure, the various priests appointed to the parish have alienated the Aboriginal community to the point where, in the words of one of their spokespeople, they are made to feel as lepers in their own Church. You can imagine the grief felt by the whole St Vincent’s Community when it was made clear by Neocat priests Prindiville and Sudla that only "card carrying Catholics" could be buried from … Continue reading →

Our Neocat pastors regularly include the following advertisement in The Saving Word handout every Sunday:

Attention Married Conples
Is "listening" an area of your relationship where you’d like to develop better skills for yourself? Would you like to experience a deeper level of being listened to by your spouse? A marriage Encounter weekend gives you the opportunity to explore your listening behaviours.
Contact Bill and Ardell Sharpe 4283 3435

Perhaps the community would like to consider taking up a collection to pay for GP and DS – not to mention some … Continue reading →