The celebration phase of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia ended on Saturday, July 9, as Archbishop Timothy Costelloe formally closed the Council and celebrated the closing Mass.

Carrying Forward the Plenary Council

At Pentecost 2023, the Bishops Conference published Carrying Forward the Plenary Council: As we continue the journey together. The document invites Catholic parishes, schools and other communities to pray about, reflect upon and review what they are already doing, or could be doing, in relation to acting on the commitments the Council members made in the decrees (see below for the Council decrees). 

As Plenary Council vice-president Bishop Shane Mackinlay wrote, Carrying Forward the Plenary Council “can help us continue with the synodal journey, walking together and encountering the face of Christ in each person”.

Click the button below to download Carrying Forward the Plenary Council.

During the second general assembly, more than 35 motions were put to a consultative and a deliberative vote. Those motions that received a qualified majority in the deliberative vote – two-thirds of voters eligible and present – were passed by the Plenary Council. They were confirmed as the decrees of the Plenary Council.

After the November 2022 meeting of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference, the decrees will be sent to the Apostolic See. In accordance with canon 446 of the Code of Canon Law, decrees are not to be promulgated until they have been reviewed by the Apostolic See. They will be promulgated in the Australasian Catholic Record and the website of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference in accordance with its usual practice. The decrees will oblige six months after promulgation.

The introduction to the Motions and Amendments document also received a qualified majority in the deliberative and can be read here.

Click on the links below to open the decrees (subject to final corrections).

Decree 1

Reconciliation - Healing Wounds, Receiving Gifts

Decree 2

Choosing Repentance - Seeking Healing

Decree 3

Called by Christ - Sent Forth as Mission Disciples

Decree 4

Witnessing to the Equal Dignity of Women and Men

Decree 5

Communion in Grace - Sacrament to the World

Decree 6

Formation and Leadership for Mission and Ministry

Decree 7

At the Service of Communion Participation and Mission – Governance

Decree 8

Integral Ecology and Conversion for the Sake of Our Common Home

Decree 9

The Implementation Phase of the Fifth Plenary Council

Decree 10

The Decrees of the Fourth Plenary Council of Australia

Click here to read the terms of reference for the implementation of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia.

Click the link below for more information on the voting that took place during the second assembly.

Relive the Second Assembly

Many stories and videos were shared during the Council’s second assembly. Click here to read stories and click here to watch videos, including daily Masses, highlights videos and media.

Plenary Council Members approved a concluding statement at the end of the second assembly. Click here to read the statement.

Timeline

The timeline below describes key moments in the Plenary Council journey, including the lead-up to the second assembly and beyond. We invite you to walk this journey with us.

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