A Country Bishop Looks Towards 2000

Barry Collins

The diocese of Wilcannia-Forbes takes in the western half of NSW and though it is nearly as large as France it is only about one third the size of the diocese of Geraldton. The parishes of Deniliquin (1861), Wentworth (1871) and Bourke (1872) are those the longest in use.

The diocese, however, was established under Bishop John Dunne as Wilcannia further down that river in 1887 when that town was a thriving port built to cater for the sheep and wheat trade on the Darling and Murray Rivers.

Though the diocese bore this name it was Broken Hill, which grew with the development of the mines early this century, that was chosen to be the Cathedral city.

The death of the first bishop, the only one to have the singular title of Bishop of Wilcannia, gave the Australian bishops the opportunity to address the quandary of the boundaries of the diocese and to speak of its viability as a diocese.

It was decided at that time that the diocese would be made more viable if the diocese of Bathurst were to cede five parishes to the western diocese. When this happened the double name of Wilcannia-Forbes was adopted.

During the late 1980s and early 1990s further discussions were undertaken by the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference and the senate of priests of Wilcannia-Forbes with a view to assessing the boundaries. As a result of these the decision was made to leave the boundaries as they had been for the previous 70 years.

Conversations about the boundaries, especially when carried on at a distance from the site of the topic, often miss the reality of the isolation and the pressures caused by it on members of a parish. For the religious, the nearest convent of their order may be a four hour drive. The traditional city golf day for the priests may involve similar travel, and even then there is no certainty that the neighbouring priest is a golfer.

Every now and again, areas covered by the diocese score a mention in the National news or Capital city newspapers. This usually is as a result of drought covering whole or part of the area, a flood that has just ripped through a town or cut off roads, or the establishment of a special traditional church in which visiting 'Latin Mass priests' might minister to the preferential needs of some of the faithful.

During May of this year floods almost as high as the 1990 floods which destroyed Nyngan covered the area again, though missing the town, but the media centres of the North Coast were stronger and closer, so those rains were the ones which were reported.

The diocese has about 33,000 Catholics and 414,000 sq kms, and so it is a long way between Catholics. There are twenty parishes, and so the closest parish churches are forty km apart. In other places the drive between presbyteries can take up to two hours . There are, of course, many more kangaroos than either parishes or priests. Only the Cathedral parish has more than one priest.

The twenty parishes cater for fifty-seven Mass centres. This number of parishes is as many as the diocese has ever had. Thus the history of the diocese is the story of the station church and the home Mass and Mass in the Country Women's Association or Progress Hall or School of Arts. This tradition is as old as the diocese and continues strongly today.

Sunday -- The Lord's Day

The regular celebration of Sunday Mass in the isolated Mass centres has been the basis of the sacramental life of those who live in these secluded areas. This tradition has allowed many generations of Catholics to be enculturated into the ways of the faith.

Another aspect of this story is that a percentage of people brought up in this environment have grown to an understanding that they were only bound to Mass when the priest came and so were inclined to see an obligation to attend Mass on the fourth Sunday of each month. Most priests are aware of the story of the penitent who confesses in the city milieu 'I missed Mass on the fourth Sunday twice'. In those places where Mass was said only on the fifth Sunday, they saw their obligation as once every three months.

The Catholic context

Those well known practices of Catholic piety that built religious devotion in cities were also part of the supporting aspects of religious life in the country. Statues and holy pictures are as much a part of the Catholic family as elsewhere and, likewise, are becoming less common as in more populous areas.

As a new bishop coming only recently into the diocese I was struck by a number of indicators pointing to the vitality of the liturgical life of the diocese. Nearly every town has a Catholic Church or in its absence an identifiable place where worship can take place. Only one parish lacks a Catholic primary school, though there are but two high schools.

There is a well organised and conducted school system, with a staff of teachers many of whom have moved from other parts to teach in the diocese. The special educational needs of isolated children are addressed in almost every school. Many aboriginal students attend within the usual classes. In Bourke and Wilcannia special programs have been established to meet the educational and cultural needs of the children and to meet the expectations of the parents. These ministries often put pressures on priests, religious and lay teachers as they grow in an understanding of differing expectations and will require continued study and prayer into the future.

All churches have been adapted to conform to current Liturgical practices. At every Mass, lay faithful are available to read lessons and prayers of the faithful and often parish notices. Church buildings are well kept and reflect the living community even though the numbers of people attending in some of the smaller centres may be as low as between ten and twenty where Mass is celebrated only monthly. Many parishes have extraordinary ministers of the Eucharist to conduct services in the absence of the priest or to take Communion to the house-bound.

The lay faithful are obvious in nearly every parish and town by the ever present work of the St Vincent de Paul Society. Mostly there is a very close relationship between the store and the case load of the local conference.

The drought of the 1990s threw up a picture of the independence of the farmer. Many were unable to meet the costs of living when no cheque had come in or no work was available. But a lot of these people were unwilling to seek assistance from any of the usual support groups. Many people from areas beyond the diocese were most generous financially, but it took much skill on the part of the bishop, aided by principals and priests, to identify people in real need. The arrival of rain and some relief saw people returning what had been given so that it was available for next time, when others may be in need.

An interesting observation about the priests currently working in this diocese, which is totally rural and depends economically, exclusively on rural activities and mining, is that very few grew up on a farm or had parents who worked in the mines. Many are the sons of those whose work brought them to the diocese from 'away', that is in professions like teaching or policing. Most other are the sons of 'town folk'.

As towns become smaller and offer less of these services even the traditional source of priestly vocations in the diocese is at risk.

On the other hand, many of the religious sisters who followed a religious vocation in the diocese were the daughters of farmers and grew up on farms. Perhaps there is material here for a serious study.

A plan is born

In 1993 Bishop Warren established a committee of priests and engaged a Religious Sister of Mercy as a facilitator to ask the question and pose answers to it. 'What shall we do should the numbers of priests drop below the number of parishes?'
The Committee for Parishes without Resident Priests was thus established. Contact was made with every parish and priest and a number of options were examined and costed and evaluated in any number of ways.
In its work, this committee, as well as touching on the hopes and fears of the people and the priests of the diocese also contacted people and committees around Australia who were facing similar dilemmas.
A strong recommendation laid before the bishop was that as far as possible every parish be retained. He was advised that the administration of such parishes that were to be without a resident priest should be in the hands of non-ordained people except for those matters where a priest was required by theology and church law.
In its discussions with the clergy and parish groups, the committee introduced Canon 517 #2 to some who had never heard of Canon Law. This canon initiated the concept of a priest 'moderator'. This priest has a spiritual and pastoral guidance of the parish but others are responsible with him for the further conduct of the parish. It was considered a preferable approach to have a parish authorised to continue in this manner rather than to amalgamate parishes with neighbouring ones, with the danger of doubling the work of priests. The concept has been accepted but the reality is still being developed.
This diocese has no house of clerical religious within its boundaries. Hence, the availability of 'supplies' or priests to act as locum during holidays for the clergy became more acute in this diocese than it has in places closer to the Eastern seaboard.
During the study by the committee, priests were permitted to have vacations even though no locum was available and in the majority of parishes the lay faithful, often assisted by religious sisters, conducted Sunday Liturgies of the Word with Holy Communion.
This innovation caused all the people of God to ask a number of questions. What has happened to all the priests who used to come out here to fill in? Is a Communion service the same as the Mass? Who is allowed to be a special minister of Holy Communion? Can these special Ministers conduct a Good Friday service or give ashes on Ash Wednesday?
More emotional among the riddles were 'what about reconciliation?', 'Who will do the funerals?' and 'What of the Anointing of the sick?'
There is yet another practical and pastoral query which revolves around marriage 'within the church' when there is no priest available. In some towns, as in the cities, there are Catholics, both men and women, authorised by the Government as civil ministers. Every day brings a new question.

The recommendation in action

The committee considered all the information available to it and the needs of the diocese and the importance of collaborative ministry at all levels. It recommended further that in the diocese a person (or persons) be engaged for the ministry of pastoral planning both for the diocese and for the parishes.
An understanding of the close connection between the work of pastoral planning and Adult Religious Education was a spin-off from the wide consultation that had taken place over these two years. The conversations showed up many of the areas in which priests have been involved as a matter of course over the years without much publicity.
Thus: who prepares people for marriage, and for the Baptism of their children? Who shall initiate the RCIA, plan the funeral service, and be available to listen to people in the front parlour, or after Mass on Sunday? What of the role of the priest in the school and on the parish school board?
Indeed an answer to almost every one of these questions had an aspect about it of 'we are not yet ready to handle such matters and there is a need for us to learn more about church, leadership and people'. Adult Catholic Religious Education presented itself as a priority, together with pastoral planning.
If the senate on advice from the Pastoral Planning Committee directed the bishop to choose a parish to be without a resident priest, he would have to be convinced that the parish had within it the skills of such leadership and spirituality.

A plan in action

In the event, two Dominican sisters have become part of the diocesan structure and are in the process of establishing a Pastoral Formation Program throughout the diocese. It is hoped this will empower lay people in every parish to understand their role in the present and future church. Such an understanding and growth in spirituality will empower them to be confident in accomplishing those ministries which are proper to the lay person and also in undertaking those extraordinary tasks required in the absence of the priest.
A most pleasing finding was the fact that in all places lay people were willing to be trained to lead Sunday Liturgical services in the absence of the priest. While numbers attending Sunday services often dropped when priests were not present the trend was not all that significant.
The conduct of services on Sunday in the absence of a Priest raises yet another challenge for the far-flung dioceses of Australia. If a service can be celebrated in the larger towns when a priest is not present, what of those smaller and more isolated places, where a priest comes only once a month? Why not a gathering of the community on those other Sundays when no priest is present?
One of the best kept secrets of church law is hidden in the words in the Code of Canon Law which encourage the lay faithful to gather as a praying community on every Sunday regardless of the presence of the priest. This recommendation is contained in Canon 1248 paragraph 2. It speaks of the gathering of the whole community, or of a number of families or of the family itself, to make the day sacred through a partaking in a Liturgy of the Word. This suggestion has not been widely heard or at least heeded.
However, in a number of places, groups of people have initiated extra services over and above those celebrated when priests were available.

The lay teacher

One of the obvious gifts to the church of the 1990s in the diocese is the professional fulfilment of their ministry by lay teachers. The introduction to the Australian church of professional training for lay teachers in Catholic schools was an innovation in the late 1950s especially in Sydney, Melbourne, Brisbane and Canberra. This breakthrough in church thinking has had a spin-off, certainly in this diocese.
In most places, it is the lay teacher in the parish school who has had the best opportunities to study the changing church and has the skills to prepare the children for the Sacraments.
In many cases these committed people, in a voluntary capacity, have become real leaders in the community, and have been an outstanding support to the parish, to parents, and indeed to the priest, as sacramental programs have moved more towards a parish or family based format. This energy expended by lay teachers has been somewhat in contrast to the laissez-faire attitude of many parents who have followed the bad example of their city brothers and sisters in dropping away from church attendance.

Towards the future

The current situation raises a number of questions for all members of the diocese.
Why are there not more young men from our diocese in the seminary ? If lay people can do these things, are priests as necessary as we thought? If I have been a priest for thirty years does the fact that others are called to perform these ceremonies and take leadership roles in the community mean that my time working as a priest has been wasted? What is the role of the ordained priest? And what of the relationship of ordained priesthood to the common priesthood of all the baptised? What can be done to develop and implement a truly collaborative model of the church which might lead it into the next century?
Here is not the place to attempt to answer these questions, but to reflect on the mystery that faces the bishop, priests, religious and lay faithful, the elderly and the children as well.
As one looks to the future the distances are not going to be any less, the smaller towns may well become smaller, the rural economy will rise and fall as in the past. The people who remain in the diocese will still require ministry. The development of hi-tech communications will make some aspects of life a little easier for many, but all the answers are not to be found in this source.
The availability of the sacraments will be a big question. The need for ongoing Adult Religious Education, the preparation for Baptism, and the other sacraments of initiation, is seen as urgent. There is a need to address the question of a truly Catholic spirituality and the Church's teaching on family life and social justice. The call to holiness during the isolated day on the tractor or caring for the children at home, are also questions. All these sit on the table of the senate of priests and the bishop in this diocese as in many others.
Our prayers are that every member of the diocese will be empowered to make the best use of the gifts of the Spirit for the ongoing establishment of the kingdom of the Lord in these parts, as we look with joy and hope to the future with an optimism about the influence of our present planning and the fruits of the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000.

Bishop Barry Collins DD - Bishop of Wilcannia-Forbes since 1994
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