Queensland Synod News

The decision by Pope Benedict XVI to authorise a wider use of the old Latin Mass has been welcomed as offering a possibility of healing a rift with traditionalists, but has also faced criticism that it might open up new divisions within the church. "Pope Benedict XVI has tried to heal a painful wound within the church," said French Cardinal ...

The Church of England’s governing general synod has agreed to support the drawing up of draft code for endorsement by all 38 churches that belong to the worldwide Anglican Communion, as an attempt to provide a way of settling internal rows. The code, called a "covenant", would set out the shared beliefs of Anglican churches and a process for dealing ...

The dean of Manchester Cathedral says he is not satisfied with an apology issued by the Sony Corporation for using a representation of the interior of the cathedral as a backdrop for a violent video game. "We asked Sony to withdraw the game. It has refused to do this. We asked Sony to make a substantial donation to community groups ...

“Life Together” is the theme for the National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA) 6th National Forum to be held at the Uniting Church’s Alexandra Park Conference on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast Centre from 13-17 July. Life Together is the title of a book by the German theologian Dietrich Bonhoeffer. More than 60 years after his martyrdom at the hands of ...

The McKay Patrol has been awarded a Queensland Country Credit Union Community Grants to the value of $10,000. The Queensland Country Credit Union, which started in Mt Isa and has an ongoing commitment to rural Queensland, has given the money to help support the Patrol, mostly assisting with air craft repairs and maintenance. North Queensland Presbytery Chair Rev Bruce Cornish ...

The Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress (UAICC) of the Uniting Church has revealed that Government’s statistics on Indigenous child abuse are worse in Victoria than in any other State but yet Indigenous communities in the Northern Territory will still be singled out to endure the Government’s harsh emergency response measures.  National Administrator of the UAICC Rev Shayne Blackman said ...

The Vatican is expecting mixed reactions to a papal document that will allow for wider use of the traditional Latin Mass. According to the Holy See, Pope Benedict XVI will release the document, titled "Summorum pontificum", on 7 July. Its aim is said to be to make it easier for priests to celebrate the Latin Mass, sometimes called the Tridentine ...

Isothermal winter-wear cassocks for priests, and MP3 bell chimes were two of the items on display at SACROEXPO, a trade fair of church supplies in Poland, sponsored by Roman Catholic leaders and the Polish Ecumenical Council, which groups other denominations. "This event, the largest in Europe, is a source of satisfaction and hope," Cardinal Paul Poupard, president of the Vatican’s ...

The high court in Tokyo has rejected the appeal of a Christian teacher, who was reprimanded for wearing a ribbon that she says stood for her pupils’ freedom from being required to show allegiance to Japan’s national anthem and flag. "I take this [court’s] decision as a warning about the future direction of this country," said Miwako Sato, a 53-year-old ...

The Church of England has welcomed Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s proposal to parliament to remove the prime minister from the process of choosing the church’s bishops in the future. "I welcome the prospect of the church being the decisive voice in the appointment of bishops, which the [denomination’s] general synod called for 33 years ago," Archbishop of York John Sentamu ...