Brazilian (and Portuguese-speaking) Catholic Community - Multicultural Pastoral Care in the Archdiocese of Brisbane

Mass for You at Home (Mass online)

A growing number of Brazilians have been gathering to celebrate Mass in Portuguese language on the first Sunday of every month at St Patrick’s Church in Fortitude Valley. Other Portuguese-language speakers such as those from Mozambique, Angola, Timor and Portugal have also started joining in.

For many years, Fr Paul Mahony SM from Sydney has celebrated the monthly Mass in Portuguese language. In 2019, Fr Paul finished his term. Fr Clesio Mendes, in the meantime, celebrates Mass for the community. Further queries, please contact CMPC on 3324 3451.

Mass Times (Subject to COVID-19 restrictions; contact community)
5:00pm 1st Sunday at St Patrick’s Church 58 Morgan Street, Fortitude Valley
Enquiries: Brasileiros Catolicos em Brisbane

BACKGROUND

The Brazilian Community in Queensland Mission

It all started in 2006. I was Hospital and Prison Chaplain in Brisbane when I received a call from Biloela asking me if I could celebrate Mass there. The Rockhampton Brazilian Community (120km from Biloela) was also mentioned in this conversation. I don’t remember the exact date but I started visiting these two communities after that conversation including another one in Beenleigh (south of Brisbane). They all worked at Thys Brothers Meat Works. I went there every two months.

On the 17th of November 2006, during the first weeding at St Mary’s (north of Rockhampton), a manager from Beenleigh (an Australian married to a Brazilian) approached and made arrangmeents with the Directors of Thys Brothers to cover the costs of my expenses (flights and car rentals) which enabled me to continue celebrating Masses for these three Brazilian Communities in Biloela, Rockhampton and Beenleigh in 2007.

In 2008 and 2009, I was transferred to Walgett in northern New South Wales (700km from Brisbane) but continued celebrating Mass for these communities every two months. In 2010, I was transferred to Gladstone. I gradually reduced my work in Biloela and eventually finished my ministry there but I continued to celebrate Mass every month in Rockhampton and Brisbane.

I spoke to Fr Ken Howell, the administrator of the Cathedral of St Stephen (now Bishop) about the community’s situation and he offered us to hold our Masses at St Mary’s, South Brisbane. This church did not fit our needs at the time as we needed a place to hold our get together after Mass. In addition, this parish had a Mass right before the Brazilian Mass which made preparations difficult. The new Cathedral administrator, Fr David Pascoe, offered us St. Patrick’s Church in Fortitude Valley. This is where our community started to grow.

I continue my work with these communities for four years until 2014 when I was transferred once more, to Sydney. So then, I continued going to Rockhampton and Brisbane every month (except January). In 2016, I reduced my Rockhampton visits to every two months and eventually finished my ministry there in December 2018.

Shared by Fr Paul Mahony SM 1^st February 2019
(Fr Thomas Paul Mahony SM lived and ministered in Brazil for 18 years and speaks Portuguese fluently.)

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In 2015, a Brazilian couple saw an opportunity to formally establish the Brazilian Catholic Community in Brisbane. They started to promote activities widely (eg. Mass and Prayer Group) and, over time, the Community engaged in more activities that addressed the needs of Brazilian immigrants in Brisbane.

CURRENT ACTIVITIES

1^st SUNDAY	2^nd SATURDAY	4^th SATURDAY
MASS -5pm	PRAYER GROUP – 5pm	CHRISM – 2pm (Alternating monthly) Women’s Group and Men’s Rosary Group – 3:30pm Catholic Deepening Group and Family’s Rosary Prayer Group – 5pm

All events are held at St Patrick’s Church in Fortitude Valley (58 Morgan Street, Fortitude Valley 4006).

Mass (attended by approximately 100 – 200 people) – every first Sunday of the Month (incl baptism, wedding, first communion or chrism).

Prayer Group – every second Saturday of the month. The gathering consists of prayer, reflection and exchange of thoughts on chosen themes (biblical passage, examples of saints, or a personal testimony).

Confirmation/Chrism – on the fourth Saturday of the month followed by either the Women’s Group/Men’s Rosary Prayer Group or with Catholic Deepening Group/Family Rosary Prayer Group.

Women’s Group and Men’s Rosary Prayer Group – on the fourth Saturday of the month; sharing and discussion about women in the bible, their examples of faith/journey

Catholic Deepening Group and Family Rosary Prayer Group – on the fourth Saturday of the month, alternating. The Catholic Deepening Group is where members learn about the Catholic Church, its dogmas and theology.

MULTICULTURAL MASS – the Brazilian Community has been actively involved and participated since 2015 in the celebration of the annual archdiocesan Multicultural Mass at the Cathedral of St Stephen.

PAST ACTIVITIES
Confirmation/Chrism– 2016 with Bishop Joseph Oudeman and Fr Paul Mahony

Attended the Moogerah Passion Play at Lake Moogerah – on Good Friday, 14 April 2017 and Saturday, 31 March 2018.
First Communion – 2017
Events – Every year the community holds 1 or 2 fundraising events
Event 2015 – Feijoada – a day where a typical food from Brazil (feijoada) is on sale.
Event 2016 – Café Colonial/ Brazilian Brunch and bingo
Event 2017 – Festa Junina/Festa Junina is the term used to describe the traditional festivities that happen at the beginning of the Brazilian winter in June/July.
Event 2018 – the second edition of the Feijoada event