Brisbane Catholic Rowena McNally has been awarded an honorary doctorate from Australian Catholic University for her dedicated service to the Church across two decades. Source: The Catholic Leader.
Ms McNally was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Doctor of the University (Honoris Causa) on April 16.
Ms McNally has been a member of Catholic organisation boards for the past 20 years, helping to shape the Church’s approach to governance, professional standards and health care.
She said the work agencies and institutions did was “part of the mission of the Catholic Church”.
“The Church’s fundamental function is to lead all humanity towards God and the extraordinary Redemption taking place in Jesus Christ’s suffering and crucifixion for us, and His Resurrection,” Ms McNally said.
“Without our mission and Catholic identity, we diminish Christ’s Church and we become, as Pope Francis put it, just another non-government organisation.
“How we, as Catholic organisations live out our mission is a measure of our authenticity as a ministry of the Catholic Church.”
In 2005, Ms McNally was appointed director of Professional Standards for the Catholic Church in Queensland, managing Queensland’s Towards Healing process.
She became the first female chair for Catholic Health Australia in 2012.
Ms McNally is chair of the Mercy Partners’ Mercy Community Services ministries in Southeast Queensland, Central Queensland and North Queensland, on the board of advisors of St Elizabeth Hospital in Hyderabad, Pakistan, a committee member of Cherish Life Queensland, and is the Australian Chapter Coordinator for Fondazione Centesimus Annus – Pro Pontifice, a foundation established by St Pope John Paul II in 1993 to promote Catholic social doctrine.
Ms McNally is also a board member of St John Henry Newman College, Tarragindi. The college will offer a classical education with a primary school, Years Prep to 3, opening in 2026 and a secondary campus following in years to come.
Ms McNally said she was “astonished” to receive an honorary doctorate for her service to the Church.
“It was completely unexpected,” she said.
A former corporate and banking lawyer and national president of the Australian Corporate Lawyers Association, Ms McNally said swapping a successful career in law to work with Catholic agencies in health, education and mission wasn’t a sudden or conscious decision but “an invitation from God”.
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Rowena McNally ‘astonished’ to receive an honorary doctorate for her service to the Church (The Catholic Leader)
