Catholic Life, February 2018 - Page 5
School governance no longer with priests IN a first for Victorian Catholic education, new governance arrangements are in place for Catholic schools in the Diocese of Sale for the start of the 2018 school year. Among the significant changes announced by Bishop of Sale, Bishop Patrick O’Regan, parish priests will no longer be the employer of staff in Catholic primary and secondary schools. While it is an exciting new direction for Catholic education in Victoria, the shift has not been solely prompted by the Royal Commission into Institutional Child Sexual Abuse which handed down its findings and recommendations late last year. Moves to change the governance structure of Catholic schools in the diocese have been discussed at a senior
level for around 10 years. All parish priests in the diocese gave the changes their full support in May, and principals, who have also strongly backed the new arrangements, will continue to manage the schools in collaboration with their local communities but with oversight from the Catholic Education Office as a delegated authority from a board of directors. Bishop O’Regan said the new governance model would better meet the changing needs of parishes and schools in the 21st century. “Parish priests will be able to focus on the pastoral, spiritual and faith formation aspects of their vital roles in schools and parishes, without having to deal with legislative compliance which has become increasingly complex in recent years.
Living Liturgy popular
Photo lab pioneer gets Aust. Day OAM
THE Living Liturgy publication produced by diocesan pastoral coordinator Sophy Morley continues to expand its influence. The electronic newsletter is published seven times a year and is available free within Sale Diocese but was so popular that 12 months ago it was offered elsewhere on subscription. There are now 78 paid subscribers from other dioceses in Australia and New Zealand. Living Liturgy is a valuable resource for musicians, liturgy groups, priests and schools as it has a planning guide for each Sunday and the major feasts of the liturgical year, as well as providing up-to-date liturgy news and resources.
Narre Warren rebuild progressing WORK is progressing on Our Lady Help of Christians Church at Narre Warren with a possibility that the extensive rebuild may be completed in time for Easter. The $3.4 million reconstruction project was originally to have been completed several months ago but there have been various unavoidable delays. Masses have been held in the Don Bosco Primary School hall for more than 12 months. Parish priest Fr Brendan Hogan said he hoped everything would be ready for Easter but it was “touch and go” at this stage. The redevelopment will allow up to 900 people to be seated in the church at peak periods when doors at the rear could be opened up to narthex and parish centre. A new parish administration centre has also been constructed.
A WELL-known Newborough parishioner who pioneered fast photo processing in Victoria has been honored in the Australia Day honors list. Mathijs (Matt) Broeren, 89, was awarded an Order of Australia Medal for services to business, particularly photography. Mr Broeren emigrated to Australia from the Netherlands in 1952, a year after his fiancé Nelly had made the same journey with her parents and siblings. He started work with the State Electricity Commission in Yallourn that year but after a few months when there was an economic downturn, he was made redundant along with all other new Australians working at the power station. Photography was one of his hobbies and so he fell back on that, knowing that many of the immigrants living in the Latrobe Valley, would want photographs to send back to their families in Europe. In those days films were dropped into local chemists for onforwarding to Kodak’s processing plant in Coburg, and it usually took two weeks to get the black and white prints back.
“This decision was made after long and thoughtful discernment and discussion with Catholic education and other key stakeholders,” said Bishop O’Regan. As part of the review process initiated by Bishop O’Regan two years ago, various models governing Catholic schools in other Australian dioceses were examined. After lengthy consideration and extensive advice from both civil and canon lawyers, Bishop O’Regan accepted the new governance model. A company limited by guarantee, Diocese of Sale Catholic Education Limited, has been established to operate Catholic schools in the Sale Diocese. It was established under the auspices of the Bishop as the sole company
Mr Broeren went to the chemists to Moe, Yallourn and Morwell and offered them a 24 hour turnaround on printing and so his business took off with the bathroom being converted into a dark room and the bath carrying pots and pans of chemicals. Many more chemists came on board and so he had to employ staff to help him and this led to the founding of his Focus photography processing business. In the late 1960s color photographs began to take over from black and white and so he extended his laboratory. He travelled overseas to study the latest developments and set about making his own developing and processing machines. He was the first to introduce one hour processing in Australia, and in the 1980s he began building mini labs and establishing the Photo Express franchise Australia-wide. He established another arm of his business called Prosomat and even sold processing units to his competitors such as Kodak and Ilford. At the height of his business he and his wife employed about 120 people through the
member while a board of directors has been appointed to run the company under the Corporations Act 2001. Another benefit of the new governance arrangements will be more consistent employment practices between schools, as there will be a single employer. The company, as the employer, will delegate dayto-day responsibility and management of the schools in the diocese to the Director of Catholic Education, who becomes the chief executive officer of the company. Director of Catholic Education in the Diocese of Sale, Maria Kirkwood, thanked Bishop O’Regan for initiating the review. “This is an exciting and welcome change to Catholic school governance in the Sale Diocese, “said Ms
Mathijs Broeren thriving Focus and was the largest employer in the MoeNewborough area. The advent of digital technology spelled the end for film processing and so in 1995
Pope Paul VI sainthood? THE Congregation for the Causes of Saints last week approved the second miracle needed for the canonisation of Blessed Pope Paul VI. The next step is for Pope Francis to also give his approval, with an official decree from the Vatican. The miracle attributed to the cause of Paul VI is the healing of an unborn child in the fifth month of pregnancy. The case was brought forward in 2014 for study. The mother from Verona, Italy, had an illness that risked her own life and the life of her unborn child, and was advised to have an abortion. A few days after the beatification of Paul VI on October 19, 2014, she went
to pray to him at the Shrine of Holy Mary of Grace in the town of Brescia. The baby girl was later born in good health, and remains in good health today. The healing was first ruled as medically inexplicable by the medical council of the congregation last year, while the congregation’s consulting theologians agreed that the healing occurred through the late pope’s intercession. If Pope Francis issues a decree approving it, the date of the canonisation will be set and according to some Vatican observers, may take place in October, during the Synod of Bishops on the youth. The first miracle attributed to Paul VI’s intercession also
Kirkwood. “Bishop O’Regan, the Canonical Administrators, parish priests and principals deserve great credit for being open to the proposed changes and supporting the new governance model. “Catholic schools in the Sale Diocese will only grow stronger under these new arrangements and will continue to serve families who want a Catholic education for their children.” All Catholic schools will be covered by the new model except Catholic College Sale which is co-governed by the diocese and Marist Schools Australia, and Lavalla Catholic College, Traralgon, which is governed by Marist Schools Australia on behalf of the diocese.
involved an unborn child with a serious health problem that posed a high risk of brain damage.
Mr Broeren closed the Focus empire and retired. Mr Broeren became heavily involved in the Catholic Church when the Newborough church was built in 1955, serving on the parish council for 25 years, including terms as chairman, and he was also a member of the church choir for many years. He is also a former president and member of Moe Rotary Club.