ARCHDIOCESE OF MELBOURNE REPORT:
 Tuesday 3 April 2012The President of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference Archbishop Philip Wilson yesterday welcomed the appointment of Archbishop Mark Benedict Coleridge as Metropolitan Archbishop of Brisbane. Archbishop Coleridge has served as the chief pastor of the Archdiocese of Canberra and Goulburn since 2006. Archbishop Coleridge replaces Archbishop John Alexius Bathersby who retired last year after serving the people of Brisbane since 1992. Archbishop Wilson said yesterday that he was delighted with the appointment of Archbishop Coleridge and extended his heartfelt prayers to the Archbishop and the people of the Archdiocese. “Archbishop Coleridge is an exceptionally talented pastor and will show solid leadership to the people of Brisbane. He has a great many gifts and wonderful human qualities. I will pray for him and the people of the Archdiocese in the coming weeks”, said Archbishop Wilson. Archbishop Coleridge said he was heartened that Pope Benedict and others had chosen him as Chief Pastor of the Archdiocese of Brisbane, and grateful to the Holy Father for the trust he placed in him. "Until recently, I never imagined that I would be appointed Archbishop of Brisbane, following in the footsteps of some remarkable men," he said. "Faced now with the call, I feel the need for a strength not my own. I will do my best, but that will not be enough. Yet the Lord equips those whom he sends in ways they could never equip themselves. "Therefore, peacefully and without reserve I put my life in his hands and at the service of the Church in Brisbane and Queensland. That service will be a great privilege. "I am deeply grateful for the grace of my six years as Archbishop of Canberra and Goulburn, and I will leave with unforgettable memories of people and places from Canberra to Bega, from West Wyalong to Cooma, from Gundagai to Goulburn and beyond. I will always be a small part of the Archdiocesanstory, but the Archdiocese will always be a large part of my own story." Archbishop Mark Coleridge was appointed the Archbishop of Canberra and Goulburn in 2006, after spending some years as Auxiliary Bishop of Melbourne. Archbishop Mark has held posts as Master of Catholic Theological College, Melbourne; Media spokesperson for the Archdiocese of Melbourne, and foundation President of the Forum of Australian Catholic Institutes of Theology. Appointed to Rome in 1997, Archbishop Mark worked in the Holy See’s Secretariat of State and was Chaplain to the late Pope John Paul II. He is currently Chair of the Roman Missal Editorial Committee and the International Commission for the Preparation of an English-language Lectionary. He chairs the Australian Bishops’ Commission for Liturgy and is a member of the Bishops’ Commission for Doctrine and Morals. He is also a member of the Pontifical Council for Culture. He has recently been appointed to the Pontifical Council for Social Communications. Archbishop Coleridge will be installed as Archbishop of Brisbane on 11 May at St Stephen’s Cathedral. Archbishop Coleridge said he would remain the Archdiocesan Administrator until his installation. "The Auxiliary Bishop will then assume that responsibility until the College of Consultors elects an Administrator who will be responsible for the affairs of the Archdiocese until my successor is installed," he said. |
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