Melbourne Archbishop Peter A Comensoli has welcomed a bipartisan commitment from Australia’s two major political parties to kickstart the restoration and revitalisation of St Patrick’s Cathedral and the surrounding precinct. Source: Melbourne Catholic.
Archbishop Comensoli thanked Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and the Minister for Multicultural Affairs Tony Burke for Labor’s $60 million election commitment to the cathedral project, and to Coalition shadow ministers Dan Tehan and Michael Sukka for matching that commitment yesterday.
“The generous commitment of both of the major political parties … will ensure that the cathedral precinct continues to be a place of spiritual and social outreach, as well a place of art, culture and education,” Archbishop Comensoli said in a statement yesterday.
He described St Patrick’s Cathedral in East Melbourne as a “light into the city”, having borne witness to “extraordinary growth and change of our city, state and nation”.
“St Patrick’s has been a part of Melbourne for over 125 years,” he said, and serves as “a sign of faith, hope and love for all who have come through her doors”.
“The generous commitment of both of the major political parties in our nation to the restoration and revitalisation of St Patrick’s will ensure that the cathedral precinct continues to be a place of spiritual and social outreach, as well a place of art, culture and education,” Archbishop Comensoli said.
“As the mother church of the Catholic faithful in Melbourne, St Patrick’s has provided a spiritual home to the waves of migrants who have come to call Australia home – Irish, Italian, Vietnamese, Filipino, Indian and so many more.”
The funding will contribute to a broader project that includes the restoration of the historic cathedral building and other heritage-listed buildings on the East Melbourne site, Archbishop Comensoli said, as well as providing much-needed community facilities, “ensuring that the cathedral continues to be a living place of worship and community well into the future”.
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Bipartisan pledge of $60 million to restore Melbourne’s St Patrick’s Cathedral (Melbourne Catholic)
