“Before we speak about strategies, ministries, leadership, culture or programs, we need to encounter Jesus again.”

That was the opening message from Wollongong’s Bishop Brian Mascord at the Renewed and Sent parish summit, held in Campbelltown from October 1-3.

Bishop Mascord opened the event by highlighting the need for individual renewal and renewal of the entire Church.

“Renewal begins with Jesus,” he said. “We need to let Jesus renew our hearts. We need to allow the Holy Spirit to breathe life in us again.”

The parish summit, which was hosted by the Diocese of Wollongong and Divine Renovation Australia, attracted more than 650 participants.

Attendees included parish priests, religious, lay leaders, volunteers and diocesan staff from all over Australia, with others travelling from New Zealand, Fiji and the Philippines for the event.

Bishop Mascord thanked the attendees for their commitment and faith.

“You are a powerful sign of the love that God has for us and God’s people because of your belief and your faith in possibility,” he said.

“You have come because you care about the Church, you care about your parishes, you care about the mission of Jesus, a mission that has been entrusted to each and every one of us.”

Individuals, parishes and communities have an immense opportunity at this time, Bishop Mascord said, as the world witnesses a significant movement towards faith.

“For a long time much of our conversation about the Church has understandably focused on decline – fewer people at Mass, young people drifting away, an ageing Church, parishes facing fewer resources,” he explained.

“Those realities are true and we should not ignore them, but they are not the whole story. Because in 2026 we are also seeing something else.

“People are searching, asking questions about faith, enquiring about becoming Catholic. Across dioceses we are seeing growing numbers of catechumens and people seeking to enter the life of the Church.”

God’s work in the hearts of many should be a source of great joy for us, Bishop Mascord added, but it should also cause us to consider what someone searching for God will encounter when they enter our parishes.

“Will they find a community alive in faith?” he asked.

“Will they find people who know and love Jesus? Will they find a place where they are welcomed, known and accompanied? Will they find a Church turned outward, ready to share the hope that we have received, in genuine outreach and care for the lost and the isolated, the widow and the orphan?”

During the three-day summit, Divine Renovation founder Fr James Mallon, CEO Brett Powell and director of coaching Matt Regitz delivered keynote presentations, while a wide range of local speakers presented workshops on various topics.

There were also times of prayer and fellowship throughout the event, with Mass each morning and opportunities for Adoration and confession.

Executive director of Divine Renovation Australia Ramesh Navaratne expressed his sincere gratitude to the organisers and attendees of the summit.

“What we have shared is not a set of programs to file away,” he wrote in the event booklet. “It is an invitation into a genuine shift, from maintenance to mission, from managing what we have to going out for those not yet with us.

“My prayer is that it feels like something you are ready to carry home and begin.”

Videos from Renewed and Sent can be found via Shalom World here.

Images: Jazz Chalouhi

Words: Matthew Biddle