New wave of conservatism as migrants bolster Catholic Church

IN 2003, religious writer Chris McGillion authored a book on the Australian Catholic Church called A Long Way from Rome in which he argued that while the church in Australia had changed radically, Rome had not. 

Ironically, McGillion's liberal analysis was published just before a stern warning from Pope Benedict that Australia was one of the few countries in the world where true secularism had taken hold, the church being pushed out of the "public square", and possibly in danger of extinction.

Either way, the events of the past few years, and particularly in the Queensland diocese of Toowoomba this month, would seem to confirm it is more than the tyranny of distance that separates the Australian Catholic Church from Rome.

The removal of Bishop William Morris of Toowoomba has been a drawn-out affair that goes back nearly 10 years, and has been played out against a nationwide background of the usual ills of the church in most developed Western countries: an increasing liberalisation in doctrinal matters, disaffected congregations, a decline in practice, particularly among the young, and a dearth in vocations which, having reached its nadir, is possibly improving.

Add to this a quota of sex abuse scandals and you have a situation where the church's internal upheavals are regarded as fair subject for comment by the secular press.

Morris first got into real trouble as early as 1993 over his drawing up of guidelines allowing the use of general absolution in the diocese. Critics saw it as the thin edge of the wedge for taking away the sense of personal sin.

His acrimonious dispute with formidable Nigerian-born Cardinal Francis Arinze, prefect for the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments, should have rung warning bells. It is an interesting caution for foolish people who think a new world cardinal would be a more progressive candidate for the papacy. On the contrary, the new world is far more conservative than the old.

Meanwhile, back in Queensland, which in the past had been a bastion of old-fashioned Irish-Catholic tradition, there is a growing group of dissatisfied conservatives, sometimes referred to by the radicals as "restorationists".

Toowoomba is not unique.

The reaction against do-it-yourself liturgies and make-up-your-own doctrine is understandable when one looks at the most extreme example, the complete break with orthodox sacraments practised in Brisbane by Peter Kennedy.

Consequently, a polarisation is emerging in the Catholic Church between doctrinal and liturgically orthodox minorities (some championing a revival of the Latin mass) and the mainstream, infected in various degrees with irreverence, lax practices and, in its most extreme manifestations, heresy.

Pity the confused everyday middle-of-the-road Catholic.

To non-Catholics these divisions seem unimportant because Morris was, and is, popular and in one particular area an effective and decisive pastor. Although the sex abuse scandals have not been as catastrophic in Australia as they have been in the US and Ireland, it has been because of the foresight of the so-called conservative Cardinal George Pell in setting up mechanisms to deal with them.

However, Morris was one of the few Australian bishops to act personally and immediately in the matter of child sexual abuse by a former teacher in a Catholic school. Controversially, he insisted on sacking a principal who failed to take action over his suspicions about a teacher who was later convicted of rape, and for this Morris rightly won plaudits from the Toowoomba flock.

Since the announcement of Morris's sacking on May 2 his situation has become something of cause celebre in the secular press, and there has been a general outpouring of sympathy in mainstream congregations for him in places as far from Toowoomba as Canberra and Sydney, including impromptu sermons greeted with applause. Sources close to the hierarchy say half of an informal meeting of bishops wanted to send a letter of protest to Rome on behalf of Morris.

That the simmering discontent of the Australian hierarchy has bubbled over on this issue is not surprising. The church in Australia, both priests and laity, partly because of its origins in the Irish convict-descended underclass, and its traditional links with the Labor movement, has always emphasised social action over doctrinal purity.

Since the 70s the Australian church has moved rapidly to the Left, with doctrinal orthodoxy almost gone in many institutions, especially schools. It is a phenomenon of a church under the thrall of secularism that although the schools are bursting with kids, there are no babies crying any more in church on Sunday.

Nevertheless, the Catholic Church is still influential in Australian public life.

That is partly because Catholics make up the biggest religious denomination in Australia (about one-third of the population) and partly because of the huge numbers attending Catholic schools: at least one-third of the total school population attend Catholic schools and in some places such as Canberra, a bastion of the green Left, it is 50 per cent.

However, this influence is in inverse proportion to its doctrinal strength and to the numbers of practising Catholics, who have dwindled, says the 2006 census, to about 11 per cent.

One reason suggested for this decline is the very liberalism that has flourished since Vatican II, which Australians embraced enthusiastically.

The results were pretty disastrous, particularly with the next generation, who have received a particularly poor quality of catechesis and have been exposed to a very substandard liturgy.
The results show in the lack of priests, with 20 per cent fewer in 2005 than in 1971.

Many priests left in the wake of post-Vatican II liberalism and there was a steep decline in vocations. Ten years ago numbers ordained in Sydney had dwindled to single figures.

However, recent figures are now showing a steady increase. For example, there are now 50 at the Good Shepherd seminary in Sydney and last year 35 were ordained.

The reason for this is twofold. First there has been an influx of Catholic immigrants, particularly in Sydney and in Melbourne. The new face of Australian Catholicism is largely Asian, Vietnamese, Filipinos and Indians, particularly in city congregations. Along with this is a revival in conservative practices in Australia, particularly among these groups. This seems to be an indication of something that is obvious across the world.

The church's decline is most obvious in the liberal parishes, with a younger, more vibrant group among the more doctrinally orthodox conservatives.

This is happening across Australia.

This was starkly illustrated during Sydney's World Youth Day in 2008 when, to the shock of many, young people from across the world brought their own orthodox brand to Sydney.

Morris's Toowoomba spruikers should take heed.

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