PERTH, WA: July 5, 1990
Registered by Australia Post Publication No. WAR 0202
Number 2695
POST ADDRESS: PO Box 50, Northbridge, 6000 W.A LOCATION: 26 John St, Northbridge (east off Fitzgerald St)
TELEPHONE: (09) 328 1388
Ballajura priest gets a whiff of the s weet smell of freedom in Russia
FAX (09) 328 7307
PRICE 60C A fter their experience of joining Pope John Paul at his morning Mass in the Vatican papal oratory, Father John Jegorow had the opportunity to introduce Bernie and Bernadette Lawrence of South Perth and explain the work they and Sister Emilie Cattalini do for the Antioch youth groups.
.. . . • '•: ..... ... .
• • . • .r
•
'• •
•
•
••
•
•
, „ ...
r
.:... . .•. •
:
. .. .
• • • ; ;.• ... ..... ..
•
•
•• •
.
......
• • .. •••••'•" • ***" : ' .. . .
.
•
• • 6 • • • ..... , 1• • • 1 do,
• Pages 6 and 7
Aiminnor
Bishops slam surrogacy report
Bishop Hickey
GERALDTON: Bishop Barry The Family Law Council Hickey has described the surrogacy r ecommended that surrogacy report of the National Bioethics a rrangements should be C onsultative Committee as prohibited. e xtraordinary. Speaking from the family Speaking as Chairman of the welfare aspect, Bishop Hickey Catholic Bishops' Committee for said: • "Surrogacy sounds a very Social Welfare he said: "The National Bioethics Con- compassionate way of helping an sultative Committee has rejected infertile couple, but it is full of the traditional legal principle that problems. the interests of the child are • "The main danger is that paramount. children will be treated as "In doing so the Committee has commodities. There is even talk of brought itself into conflict with payment for surrogacy. the Family Law Act 1975, the laws • 'The experience with adopof adoption in each state and the tion illustrates very well the reproductive technology legisla- sensitivities involved in parenttion in Victoria, South Australia hood and the identity and selfand Western Australia. image of the children adopted. "It opposes the recommenda- Those problems are compounded tion of every State Government in surrogacy. committee in Australia which has • "They open the way to a examined the issue." bewildering confusion of roles Bishop Hickey quoted the and enormous risk of conflict," he unanimous finding of the Family said. • "State Ministers should be Law Council which held that, as a matter of public policy, very wary of adopting the surrogacy arrangements are consultative Committee's recomcontrary to the welfare and mendations. They will create more problems than they solve." interests of the child.
Churches closer
CATHOLICS SHOW INTEREST IN A NEW LOOK COUNCIL SETUP
ADELAIDE: The Catholic Church looks like being able to join a revamped national ecumenical body of churches and the process could be completed by 1992. A report recommending the setting up of a new body was approved in principle by the Australian Catholic bishops in May and last week in Adelaide the Australian Council of Churches accepted the report.
is the target because the next general meeting of the ACC takes place in June 1992 and the Australian Catholic bishops will hold one of 1992
their half-yearly meetings in May that year. A joint Catholic-ACC working party will discuss a plan of action, prepare resources for consultation, consider comments and try to develop a format for the new national body. The Lutheran Church has also signalled its preparedness to look at a new national body of churches. "We'd want to safeguard our confessional position," said a Lutheran spokesman. "At the same time we'd certainly want to work together as much as we possibly can with other Christians and other
Christian denominations within this country. "That's our avowed intention." Anglican Bishop Richard Appleby, the ACC co-chairman of the working party said it was now a matter of exploring the relationship that will evolve between the Catholic Church and the ACC member churches. "There will be a process of consultation but the general advice we're getting is: 'Don't make it drawn out. Get things moving'," Bishop Appleby said. Options are to make a completely new start or to make major alterations to the present ACC
constitution, he said. Cardinal Clancy, president of the Australian Catholic Bishops conference was in Adelaide last weekend ahead of the ACC general meeting. 'The idea is to set up a new structure, a new body that would be comprehensive, to which all churches, including the Catholic Church would belong and in which they would have equal membership. "Our unstructured relationships have progressed to the point where a structured body is called for. It would seem to be the next logical step."
• More on Pages 2 and 3 14