Keynotes
The Pilgrims of Hope: Transformed through Sacrament & Song Conference features five Keynotes from internationally acclaimed composers and liturgists and two blocks of Mini-Keynotes presented by leading Australian voices.
Rita Ferrone
Rita Ferrone is an independent scholar, writer, and speaker on issues of liturgy and catechesis in the Roman Catholic Church. The adult catechumenate has been a special focus of her work. She is the author of several books on liturgy, including Pastoral Guide to Pope Francis's Desiderio Desideravi (Liturgical Press), and Liturgy: Sacrosanctum Concilium (Paulist), and is a contributor to the intercontinental commentary, Vatican II: Event and Mandate (forthcoming). She is also co-author of the adult liturgical formation resources Foundations in Faith and Living the Eucharist.
Rita is a frequent contributor to Catholic periodicals, both scholarly and general, and is a columnist for Commonweal magazine, a lay journal of opinion. Her views have also appeared in the mainstream media, including CNN International, and the Washington Post. She is married, and lives in New York.
Keynote 1
Friends on the Way
The image of the journey has long been associated with the Christian life and is crucial to understanding liturgical renewal as a movement of faith. We will unpack this metaphor of journey to provide insight and hope for the future. Where are we going? Who travels with us on this journey? What is the guiding star that leads us onward? How do we find joy along the way?
Keynote 2
Can Liturgy Change the World?
In difficult and perilous times, what does the liturgy have to offer for the healing of the world? By understanding clearly how liturgy is the key to the Church’s mission, we can become better ambassadors of Christ’s reconciling presence, and more deeply committed to evangelisation and social justice.
Rev Dr Ricky Manalo CSP
Rev. Ricky Manalo, CSP, Ph.D., is a Paulist priest, composer, theologian, and missionary. He was honoured with the 2018 Pastoral Musician of the Year Award by the National Association of Pastoral Musicians. His educational journey includes studying composition and piano at the Manhattan School of Music, theology at the Washington Theological Union, and liturgy, culture, and sociology at the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley, CA.
Fr. Manalo’s first book, Chanting On Our Behalf (revised edition, Pastoral Press, 2015), received a first-place award from the Catholic Press Association. His music, primarily published by Oregon Catholic Press, is known for its diversity in style and for pioneering and popularizing Asian Catholic liturgical music in the United States. His compositions have been featured during the Papal Masses of John Paul II, Benedict XVI, and Francis. Notably, his Mass of Spirit and Grace was chosen for Pope Francis’ Eucharistic celebration at Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on February 5, 2019. Fr. Manalo has been invited to speak and perform across six continents, offering academic lectures, keynotes, pastoral workshops, as well as preaching, presiding, and concerts. When not traveling the world, he resides at St. Paul the Apostle Church in New York City.
Keynote 1
Sacred Rituals, Sacred Sounds: Rediscovering the Centrality of Ritual Music in Liturgical Worship
Exploring the integral role of music within liturgy, this keynote will delve into how music serves not just as an accompaniment but as a vital expression of the sacred rites. Drawing from the rich tradition of sacred music, we will rediscover that the key to understanding full, conscious, and active participation in the liturgy is located in our approach to ritual, fulfilling the vision of Sacrosanctum Concilium. This keynote aims to offer a renewed understanding of the sacred role of music in worship and how it continues to shape the spiritual lives of the faithful.
Keynote 2
Many and Great: Transformative Inclusion through Intercultural Liturgical Music.
Ricky will examine the concept of ‘hybrid identities’ through the lens of intercultural liturgical music. Drawing on his journey as an Asian-American composer and liturgical theologian, delegates will be engaged in singing and exploring a number of hymns which will be used as case studies to provide context and to offer the chance to explore the role of music as a tool for navigating complex identities and fostering inclusivity within liturgical worship.
Rev Dr Richard Leonard SJ
Fr Richard Leonard is a Jesuit priest. He has degrees in arts and education, as well as a Master’s degree in theology. Fr Richard did graduate studies at the London Film School and has a PhD from the University of Melbourne. He directed the Australian Catholic Office for Film & Broadcasting for 22 years. Dr Leonard is an Honorary Fellow of the Australian Catholic University and has been a visiting scholar within the School of Theatre, Film & Television at UCLA and a Visiting Professor at the Pontifical Gregorian University in Rome.
Fr Richard has served on juries at the Cannes, Venice, Berlin, Warsaw, Hong Kong, Montreal, Brisbane and Melbourne International Film Festivals and he has lectured on faith and culture all over the world. He is presently the parish priest of North Sydney/Lavender Bay/Kirribilli. Fr Richard has been published in America Magazine, Eureka Street, US Catholics, is a regular columnist with The London Tablet and is often on ABC Radio. He is the author of 13 books including: Where the Hell is God?; What are we doing on earth for Christ’s sake?; What’s it All About? Living Lives of Faith, Hope and Love; Hatch, Match and Dispatch: A Catholic Guide to Sacraments; The Law of Love: Modern Words for Ancient Wisdom; and his latest book, Why God? has just been released.
Keynote
Anchored in Hope: Why Alleluia is Our Song
Among other things that the liturgical assembly and its song calls us to, it includes meaning, interconnectedness and a passion for this world while we look to the next. A hard sell these days! This address will explore the reality of the Australian landscape in which we celebrate hope – a message needed now more than ever before.
Mini-Keynotes
Mini-Keynotes are a new addition to our conference program. They are designed to give delegates the opportunity to hear from a number of inspirational and prophetic presenters in short 25 minute presentations. There are two mini-keynote blocks during the conference where delegates will choose between concurrent liturgy or music presentations.
Mini-Keynotes 1
Wed 1 Oct
4:25 - 4:55pm
Liturgy Mini-Key (MK 1-A)
Sacraments and the Pilgrim Church:
The Sacred Rhythm of Transformation, Renewal and Hope
This presentation will explore the sacramental economy as a dynamic interplay between kairos (God’s time) and chronos (human time). Through the sacraments the divine breaks into the temporal, interrupting and sanctifying the human experience through a dual dynamic of transformation and sustenance. Non-repeatable sacraments constitute moments of significant transformation while repeatable sacraments sustain Christian pilgrims with ongoing nourishment and healing. Further to this distinction, sacraments can also be organised according to their role in Christian discipleship (initiation, healing, communion) or in relation to stages of the lifecycle.
These models are not mutually exclusive, but work together to highlight the integral unity of the sacraments in making present God’s abundant grace and mercy throughout the pilgrim journey. While providing moments of profound personal encounter, the sacraments also shape and renew the mission of the Church, holding in hope-filled tension the ‘already’ and ‘not yet’ of God’s kingdom.
Dr Clare Schwantes
Dr Clare Schwantes is Director of Liturgy Brisbane and Chair of the National Liturgical Council. Her role includes preparing annual publications such as the Ordo and the Daily Mass Book on behalf of the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference. She manages the design and ongoing evolution of the electronic liturgy planning program, Liturgia, which is used widely in schools and parishes around Australia. Clare has a PhD from the University of Queensland, a Master of Theological Studies (Liturgy), Bachelors of Education and Psychology, and diplomas in Editing and Publishing. Clare is secretary of the Brisbane Archdiocesan Commission on the Liturgy, a member of the Australian Academy of Liturgy and is on the editorial boards of the Australian Journal of Liturgy and Liturgy News. She is the author of the recently released publication: From Page to Proclamation – Interpreting Scripture in the Context of Liturgy.
Music Mini-Key (MK 1-B)
Partners in Music Ministry
Many musicians find themselves serving in their local Catholic churches and schools but are often unsure why some music is more suited to liturgy and prayer in the Catholic tradition. Why is it more important to sing the Holy Holy than to sing a recessional hymn? Is the Responsorial Psalm meant to be sung rather than spoken? Do people need to sing? Why does it matter?
The Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy from Vatican II directs that musicians, singers and composers in the Catholic tradition be given a genuine liturgical and musical training. This short keynote will look at some of the ways that, as respected musician and liturgical theologian Kathleen Harmon SNDdeN reminds us, liturgical singing primarily enables us and the gathered assembly to enter more fully into ritual enactment of the paschal mystery. Music ministry transforms, supporting and shaping missionary discipleship.
Fiona Dyball
Fiona Dyball is a musician, educator and liturgist based in Melbourne, Victoria and is currently a PhD candidate at Charles Sturt University. Her work on prayer, liturgy and liturgical music is published in a range of books, journals and magazines including Australian Catholics, and her music is published by Liturgical Song. Fiona is a member of the National Executive of the Australian Pastoral Musicians Network, and Music Leader at Immaculate Conception Catholic Parish in Hawthorn. Her ministry across school, parish and tertiary settings seeks to empower the sung prayer and voice of the people of God.
Mini-Keynotes 2
Fri 3 Oct
11:30 - 12:30pm
Liturgy Mini-Key (MK 2-A1)
Liturgy Transforms – Pilgrims on the Margins
Pope Francis often calls us to share the gospel with the 'existential peripheries' of the world. There are many spaces and places of marginality, as there are marginal times in people's lives. Many have experienced the truly transformative power of the liturgy to welcome, include, connect, heal and nourish. Elizabeth Young rsm will share from her practice and documentation of liturgical ministry on the margins, which arose through an exploration of the value of the diaconate.
Elizabeth Young rsm
Elizabeth Young RSM is a Sister of Mercy and an instituted Catechist of the rural/remote Diocese of Wilcannia-Forbes in Australia. She has received a Bachelor and Masters in Theology, and completed tertiary studies in circus and teaching. Elizabeth has had ministry roles with youth, prisons, detention centres, parishes, dioceses and schools. Drawn to ministry at the margins, she is currently privileged to be a Parish Life Coordinator in the remote town of Wilcannia, alongside a number of diocesan roles. She also assists in teaching theology to women in Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands. In 2021, Elizabeth founded the blogsite, Liturgy on the Margins, and the group, Australian Catholics Exploring the Diaconate, to highlight existing diaconal ministry and to encourage creative responses to liturgical and sacramental needs.
Liturgy Mini-Key (MK 2-A2)
Why a Feast for the Mystery of Creation in the Western Churches: Hope for a Troubled World?
For several years, liturgical, systematic, and practical theologians have researched and dialogued the possibility of establishing an ecumenical Feast for the Mystery of Creation in the Western Christian calendars. As a member of the Oceania Working Group promoting the proposal, Ann-Maree will present the history of the proposal, provide a review of the theological and liturgical reasoning for the feast, and give an update on the status of the proposal globally in both the Ecumenical churches and Roman church conversations. If we feast on this mystery of creation, what do we need to do as Christians to take full advantage of this opportunity to bring hope to a broken world?
Dr Ann-Maree O'Beirne
Ann-Maree O’Beirne is a Sister of Mercy living in Bathurst, NSW, with a PhD in Theology, which explores the dialogue between Spirituality, Theology and Ecological Theology. She taught in Melbourne, Sydney and Dubbo secondary schools for fifteen years before joining the Sisters of Mercy in 2000. In recent years, Ann-Maree has tutored and lectured in Theology and Spirituality at ACU, CIS, and BBI-TAITE. She worked as a pastoral assistant and director of liturgy and music in the Cathedral Parish, Bathurst, and as an Ignatian spiritual director and retreat giver. Ann-Maree was a founding member of Rahamim Ecology Centre in Bathurst, holding several roles in the ministry until 2013. In 2024, she was invited to join a small working group to promote the proposal for the Feast of the Mystery of Creation in the Oceania region and she contributed to presentations for the Asia Bishops Conference and a meeting in Rome at the Synod on Synodality. Liturgy, ritual, and sacramentality are significant aspects of Ann-Maree’s working life.
Music Mini-Key (MK 2-B1)
Transforming Tomorrow's Leaders - A Call to Action for Mentors
Gen Bryant draws on her extensive experience mentoring young people in schools and parishes, highlighting the importance of cultivating leadership opportunities in both music and faith. She emphasises how intergenerational collaborations can provide vital opportunities for emerging leaders to thrive. Gen seeks to inspire attendees to invest in the next generation, creating a supportive environment where young voices can truly flourish.
Gen Bryant
Gen is an independent musician, composer, public speaker, and team builder, who has been involved in school and parish ministry across Australia for 20 years. Based in Melbourne, but not bound by borders, Gen connects, engages, and inspires communities through her involvement in, and development of, school workshops and concerts, faith formation days, sacramental programs, praise and worship gatherings, school retreats, and staff spirituality days. Gen is currently completing her Masters in Teaching and is determined to continue to build upon her knowledge and experience to help positively impact the lives of the youth in Australia. Over recent years, Gen has been mentoring other like-minded young Catholics with a similar passion and mission, forming an inclusive, energetic, and inspirational young ministry team, “The GB Team”. The GB Team is empowered with a mission to serve and walk humbly and compassionately with the next generation.
Music Mini-Key (MK 2-B2)
The Sociology of Celebration - Building communities of worship
There is too much talk in the Australian Catholic church of cutbacks and closures; of liturgies run by a few exhausted volunteers and parishes with small congregations hanging by a thread. This keynote argues for courageously developing liturgies where the work of the people is undertaken by as many as possible, growing larger, more committed communities of faith.
Dr Anthony Young
Dr Anthony Young is Coordinator of Culture and Solidarity at St Laurence’s College South Brisbane where he runs the liturgical music program, widely known for the enthusiastic singing of the students, as well as conducting choirs and teaching Music and English. Anthony is also Director of Music at St Ignatius Parish Toowong and serves on the Archdiocesan Commission of Liturgy in Brisbane. He has conducted several significant liturgies for the Archdiocese, often featuring massed choirs and orchestras. A recipient of a Spirit of Catholic Education Award, he works as a sessional lecturer in Musicianship at the University of Queensland and conducts the Queensland Conservatorium Chorus. Anthony’s work on singing and education has been published by ACER, Springer, and Oxford University Press, as well as the International Journal of Choral Education, The journal of the Australian National Choral Association and the National Kodaly Journal. Having contributed to music ministry in the Catholic Church for over 40 years, he remains strongly committed to nurturing congregational singing and to the evangelisation of young people through formation as church musicians.