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).
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.
#ListenToTheSpirit
Plenary Council Members experienced a wide range of emotions during the Council journey, and especially during the two assemblies. After the second assembly concluded, Members were invited to — if they wish — share a reflection on their personal experience, as part of a larger group drawn from the People of God across Australia.
Many members have agreed to have their reflections published on the Plenary Council website. Here are some excerpts from the reflections.
#listeningtothespirit #plenarycouncil
Day 7 – Saturday, 08 July 2022
Daily Sessions and Closing Mass Highlights
Photos by Fiona Basile
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Listen to the Plenary Podcast:
plenarycouncil.catholic.org.au/plenarypodcast/
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open.spotify.com/show/2gdkxo7YT2xCkGtKz6gNz8
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The four-year journey of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia will reach the second – and final – assembly in July 2022. At the Second Assembly, the 277 Council Members will consider the motions that have emerged from that national journey, with the goal of renewing the life and mission of the Church in Australia.
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The Plenary Members having their picture taken after the Closing Mass of the Second Assembly of the 5th Plenary Council of Australia.
To know more about the members, click here:
plenarycouncil.catholic.org.au/members/
Saturday, 9 July 2022
Photo by Fiona Basile
#listentothespirit #plenarycouncil