MEDIA RELEASE

ACMICA member joins Government interfaith dialogue delegation

For Immediate Release
24/11/2004

Dominican sister and prominent Catholic interfaith advocate, Trish Madigan, has been invited by the Government to join a 10-person delegation from Australia to participate in a Dialogue on Interfaith Cooperation in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, 4-9 December 2004.

Sr Madigan is also secretary of ACMICA (the Australian Catholic Movement for Intellectual and Cultural Affairs), an organisation which has as one of its objectives the promotion of "ecumenical, interfaith and intercivilisational dialogue".

"I am very pleased that the Government has invited Sr. Madigan to take part in the Yogyakarta dialogue process," Convenor of ACMICA, Minh Nguyen said.

“There is no better person to represent Australia on matters of interfaith relations, particularly Christian-Muslim relations, than Sr. Madigan.

"I have every confidence that she will be an asset to the Australian delegation. I congratulate the Government for their part in the scheduled dialogue as I congratulate Sr Madigan on her nomination.

"I hope for the success of this important and much needed process, despite the controversy over the Government’s failure to consult with all relevant stakeholders", he said.

The dialogue on interfaith cooperation will be attended by around 120 representatives of different religious denominations from different countries in the region. The theme of the gathering is to be "Dialogue on Interfaith Cooperation: Community Building and Harmony".

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Trish Madigan – short bio:

Trish Madigan is a Dominican sister with pastoral experience in education and university chaplaincy. Since 1997 she has been at the forefront of many developments in interfaith relations in Sydney, especially those involving women. She is currently working with the Columban Centre for Christian-Muslim Relations and the Commission for Ecumenism, Broken Bay Diocese. She is a member of the Catholic Bishops Advisory Committee for Ecumenical and Interfaith Relations. She is also secretary of ACMICA.

Media contact: ACMICA