Catholic Archdiocese

 

Perth Archbishop highlights tremendous contribution of women

Perth Archbishop Timothy Costelloe SDB has today echoed the message of International Women’s Day, Tuesday 8 March, calling on all Catholics to embrace the achievements and skills women bring to the life of the Church.

Women, said Archbishop Costelloe, make up a significant number of those who lead and bear witness to the faith communities of the Archdiocese of Perth and beyond.

“The contribution of women in the life of the Church in Perth is truly tremendous,” Archbishop Costelloe said.

“This year’s theme is an excellent opportunity to welcome and give thanks for the women who put themselves at the service of the Church, including in our parishes, agencies, schools and organisations.

“We are all called to announce the Gospel and women equally share that responsibility to announce to all people the love that God has for each and every one of us,” he said.

The theme for International Women’s Day 2022 is #breakthebias, emphasising the need for a world free from bias, stereotypes and discrimination, in addition to a world where difference is valued and celebrated.

“Despite the challenges imposed by COVID-19, we will continue to do our best in our daily lives to bring about change, in our homes, our workplaces by showing our support and solidarity to the task at hand,” Archbishop Costelloe emphasised.

Archbishop Costelloe continued by highlighting the tremendous work of Perth Archdiocesan agencies and services that are led by women, including Catholic Outreach, Centacare Employment and Training, the Centre for Liturgy, Identitywa, the Western Australian Professional Standards Office, Catholic Youth Ministry, Aboriginal Catholic Ministry, the Office of Christian Initiation, the Justice Ecology and Development Office and the Personal Advocacy Service.

These agencies and services play a significant role in offering support through the Church in the areas of employment, education, people affected by homelessness, financial burden, disability, liturgy, youth ministry, social justice education, faith formation, ministry to Aboriginal peoples, unemployment, family, domestic and partner violence.

“Each of the women leading these agencies are widely recognised within the life of the Church as women who are great examples of the many ways in which the Archdiocese of Perth is living the values of the Church, centred on the gospel, sometimes in very challenging and difficult circumstances,” Archbishop Costelloe explained.

“They also show that there are many amazing people out there doing extraordinary things.

“It is important that we continue to learn from each other and embrace all the different ways we can come together as one Church,” he said.

COVID-19 restrictions have this year prevented staff from the Archdiocese coming together for the occasion.

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Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow

Advancing gender equality in the context of the climate crisis and disaster risk reduction is one of the greatest global challenges of the 21st century.

Women are increasingly being recognized as more vulnerable to climate change impacts than men, as they constitute the majority of the world’s poor and are more dependent on the natural resources which climate change threatens the most.

At the same time, women and girls are effective and powerful leaders and change-makers for climate adaptation and mitigation. They are involved in sustainability initiatives around the world, and their participation and leadership results in more effective climate action.

Continuing to examine the opportunities, as well as the constraints, to empower women and girls to have a voice and be equal players in decision-making related to climate change and sustainability is essential for sustainable development and greater gender equality. Without gender equality today, a sustainable future, and an equal future, remains beyond our reach.

This International Women’s Day, let’s claim “Gender equality today for a sustainable tomorrow”.

 

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UN Women Australia

Virtual IWD Event 2022

 

For over 30 years, UN Women Australia has hosted Australia’s pre-eminent International Women’s Day (IWD) fundraising events, drawing together people from diverse backgrounds to celebrate global achievements, agitate for change and raise life-changing funds to support the world’s women and girls.

In 2022 we’ll be celebrating under the International Women’s Day theme, Changing Climates: Equality today for a sustainable tomorrow– a theme that recognises the contribution of women and girls around the world, who are working to change the climate of gender equality and build a sustainable future.

Attending our official IWD events is a fantastic way to celebrate women’s achievements and show your friends, family, colleagues and community that you support the world’s largest movement for gender equality.

Join us virtually on Friday 4 March 2022 to celebrate the women leading change every day and highlight the actions we can all take to create a brighter, more equal future.

Guests joining virtually will be able to explore all the UN Women Australia events around the country via our interactive virtual hub – far more than just a streaming platform or zoom call. You will be able to access our full IWD 2022 program of speakers, including the headline speakers in the main auditorium and breakout rooms streaming the local live events. You will also be able to immerse yourself in UN Women stories and projects, and make a life-changing donation. This interactive experience and our speaker content will be available to view until midnight on Sunday 13 March.

Date: Friday, 4 March 2022
Perth: 8:30 am – 12:00 pm (AWST)
Brisbane: 10:30 am – 2:00 pm (AEST)
Sydney, Canberra, Melbourne: 11:30 am – 3:00 pm (AEDT)
Venue: Online – links will be supplied 48 hours before the event

For any questions regarding tickets and access to our events please contact tickets@unwomen.org.au

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International Women's Day

IWD 2022 campaign theme: #BreakTheBias

Imagine a gender equal world.

A world free of bias, stereotypes, and discrimination.

A world that is diverse, equitable, and inclusive.

A world where difference is valued and celebrated.

Together we can forge women’s equality.

Collectively we can all #BreakTheBias.

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International Women’s Day

8 March 12:00 am – 11:59 pm AEDT

 

Pope Francis is making small but significant steps towards greater inclusion of women in decision making and leadership roles in the Church. He has amended Canon Law so that women may be officially recognized as exercising the ministries of Lector and Acolyte. And he has appointed a woman as Under-Secretary to the Synod of Bishops – with the right to vote. This is a good day to pay attention to women’s contributions in our local Church too. Here is a list women theologians in Australia and New Zealand 160+ Australian and New Zealander Women in Theology You Should Know About

In 2020 we marked the twentieth anniversary of the Australian Bishops’ response to research on the participation of women in the Catholic Church in Australia. The research results were published as Woman and Man: One in Christ Jesus (Harper Collins, 1999) and the Bishops’ Social Justice Sunday Statement for 2000 was titled Woman and Man: the Bishops Respond. In 2019 the Office for Social Justice published a collection of essays marking these anniversaries. Titled Still Listening to the Spirit: Woman and Man Twenty Years Later, the book was a collaboration with the Office for the Participation of Women.

In their foreword to the collection, Archbishop Christopher Prowse and Bishop Vincent Long Van Nguyen acknowledge:

… twenty years down the track, women are still listening to the Spirit and seeking to engage the whole Church in a conversation about a more fulsome development of the participation of women in the Church, for the sake of us all, and for the sake of the Reign of God.

There is unfinished business from the action commitments made by the bishops in 2000. There is also an opportunity to contribute to the communal discernment process of the Plenary Council 2020. This collection of essays enrages creatively with both of these elements of the present moment.

Archbishop Christopher Prowse and Bishop Vincent Long, Foreword, Still Listening to the Spirit

Buy Still Listening to the Spirit: Woman and Man Twenty Years Later here. Download the discussion guide for the book here.