2008 CRA National Assembly

Almost a quarter [24.7 per cent] of the Australian population was born overseas.  This far exceeds the percentages for other major settler countries such as New Zealand, Canada and the United States. The percentage of overseas born Australian Catholics is even higher, at 26.7 per cent.

 

Of all the religions in Australia the Catholic Church has been most affected by migration. Some major and regional city parishes can include up to 30 nationalities; most Catholic parishes in Melbourne and Sydney are in suburbs heavily populated by migrants. The most active church communities often are ethnically based. Our clergy are more multicultural, as are many of our religious congregations.

 

And given the Government's policy of resettling migrants and refugees in regional areas it will become increasingly a reality for most Australian dioceses.

 

But we do not seem to have accepted this reality in a constructive way. Our parishes, schools, hospitals even congregations have become increasingly multicultural but we have not seriously analysed the reality and planned for the future.

For many people in the Church the growing multiculturalism of the Church is seen as a problem. But it is a mistake to approach all these issues simply as problems.

 

Religious, priests and people from overseas bring special insights and sensitivities that we Australians need.

 

There is increasing fear of the stranger in Australia, leading to isolation and defensiveness. Like all societies we tend to narcissism and self-absorption and we badly need to listen to our minorities and dialogue with those we fear.

 

Religious could have a special role in this ministry to our culture. We are committed to community. We have international contacts. We have substantial involvement with migrants and refugees. Many of us have lived happily and creatively in multicultural environments and we have probably been more successful at integrating our overseas brothers and sisters into our communities than dioceses have been.

 

Reflecting on our experience might enable us to make a valuable contribution to the Australian Church and model a truly multicultural Church.

But multiculturalism also brings serious challenges, challenges for which we are ill prepared because we often do not understand culture and cultural transitions and we do not have the skills, such as cross-cultural communication. Cultural adaptation, language, pastoral practice, attitudes to lay people, especially women are among these challenges.

 

We bring brothers and sisters into the country without understanding and appreciating what is happening to them and how we are also being changed.

 

We need to prepare ourselves and provide orientation and formation for people coming from overseas. We need to listen to these people to learn how we can be more welcoming.

 

This is true not only for individuals but also for the way we [CRA] welcome, encourage and enable small, largely ethnic congregations.

 

We are all making progress and we all have insights as well as struggles. We probably need more networking, sharing, listening, reflection, models and training if we are to become a rich welcoming multicultural Australian Church.

Some of the sub-themes under consideration include: Understanding the reality; appreciating culture and cultural transitions; new ecclesiology and theology for pastoral care in a multicultural Church; networking to support and form our recently arrived brothers and sisters; developing understanding and skills for ministry in a multicultural context; supporting and learning from migrant chaplains and pastoral agents and  how can CRA be more welcoming to small, largely ethnic congregations?

 

In consultation with the CRA Council, the working party will narrow the scope of the assembly so that realistic and practical outcomes may be achieved for the leaders.