Priestly Life

  • Celibacy and Sexuality
    - Fr John wrote "In this article I do not wish to discuss the wisdom or otherwise of the Church's practice. Whatever we feel about it, whether we feel that the decision corresponds with our own experience of priesthood, or whether we feel mystified, hurt and angry, the practice has been strongly reaffirmed."
  • Institutional Alienation
    - This was a talk given to the Ballarat priests at their Annual In-Service Week, Ballarat, April 1994
  • Maintenance or Mission
    - This was a Submission to Meeting of Priests in Ballarat by Fr John on 13th November 2002
  • Post-Seminary Formation
    - In May 1990, Fr John was invited to give an address to the Meeting of the Australian Catholic Bishops’ Conference as they prepared for the international Synod on Priesthood scheduled for October in Rome. He was asked because of his role at the national level with the Ministry to Priests Program promoted by the Catholic Institute for Ministry, and his familiarity with the research carried out in many of the Australian dioceses on the psychological and spiritual situation of priests
  • Priests moving forward together
    - This is the text of a letter written early in 1994 to the team members of the Ballarat diocese’s Ministry to Priests Program by Fr John McKinnon in his role as Diocesan Director of the Program. In addition to being the Program Director within the diocese, John had also worked half-time at the national level. At the time of writing, John was also Chairman of the diocese’s Pastoral Planning Taskforce.
  • What Do Priests Expect of the Bishop?
    - This is the text of a talk given by Fr John McKinnon to the Anglican and Catholic Bishops in Victoria early in 1997.
  • Rural Clergy Formation
    - This is the response written by Fr John McKinnon in May 1997 to a questionnaire prepared by a sub-group appointed by the Diocesan Council of Priests to explore the changing needs of rural clergy
  • A Closer Look at Australian Priests
    - A Reflection on the Report “The Profile of the Priests of Australia”
  • Pressures in Priests’ Lives
    - Text of a talk given to the diocesan and congregational Directors of Continuing Education for the Catholic Institute of Ministry, at Canberra, on 3 August 1989.
  • Priesthood in Australia today
    - Realities and Challenges, NCP Convention Melbourne 13 May 1985