Motions and Voting
During the second assembly of the Fifth Plenary Council of Australia, the Council’s 277 Members – bishops, priests, religious and lay people – will all vote on the dozens of motions that have emerged from the four-year journey.
On each of the first four days of the second assembly, the Members will consider, reflect upon and pray about two sections of the Motions and Amendments document that was published on June 30.
This document reflects the ongoing discernment undertaken by Members, assisted by the Council’s Drafting Committee, during the month of June, building on the earlier Framework for Motions document. The Motions and Amendments document incorporates changes that have been made that did not require motions, and shows marked-up text where amendments to motions will be proposed during the assembly. That applies to six sections of the document, with text in red to denote which possible changes will be considered.
A marked-up version of the document is also available, showing all amendments that were made to the Framework for Motions document by the Drafting Committee.
The outcomes of the Members’ voting on the final version of motions can be found below, across the General Introduction and the eight parts of the Motions and Amendments document.
Voting Outcomes Announced on July 5 (General Introduction and Parts 1 and 2) — DOWNLOAD NOW
Voting Outcomes Announced on July 6 (Parts 3 and 4) — DOWNLOAD NOW
Voting Outcomes Announced on July 7 (Parts 7 and 8) — DOWNLOAD NOW
Voting Outcomes Announced on July 8 (Parts 4, 5, 6, 9, 10 and 11) — DOWNLOAD NOW
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).