South Tuggeranong man to lead Catenian Association
South Tuggeranong man George Kazs
George Kazs, a member of Corpus Christi Parish, South Tuggeranong, ACT has become the first Australian elected to be Chairman of the Central Council of the Catenian Association.
The Catenian Association is an international fraternity of almost ten thousand Catholic laymen, with over nine hundred members in Australia.
Speaking at the commencement of his term of office, Mr Kazs said that the challenges facing The Catenians in the 21st century are similar to those faced by the wider Church. The most important of these are the challenges issued by Pope Francis in his first Apostolic Exhortation: Evangelli Gaudium.
“Discerning a Catenian response to Evangelli Gaudium led us to affirm that our Mission is to contribute to the realisation of Christ’s mission by improving the spiritual and personal lives of Catholic laymen through faith-based friendship. It also set us on a path of renewal and openness to a deeper engagement with the Church and society.
While our response to the Pope’s challenges may be different depending on whether it’s in Australia, Africa, Britain, Malta or India, the objectives will always be the same: to grow and develop the Church, to re-energise it, to draw people back to it and to strengthen its membership. The Catenians are called to this because we are part of the fabric of the Church.”, he said.
“Wherever we are, at the core of our response will be what the Association is about – faith based friendship. It’s about men forming such strong and enduring friendships that they get support when they need it, that they share experiences and that the spiritual and other aspects of their lives are enriched by those friendships. The challenge on our path to renewal is to discern how we share those friendships within the Church and society. ”