Social justice and the Australian Catholic bishops

In this essay I am attempting to review the main activities of the Bishops Committee for Justice, Development, Ecology and Peace under my watch. I have tried not to make the essay a mere apologia for the bishops, talking up their achievements and defending them against those critics who regarded the formation of the Committee in 1987 as a retrograde step, indicative of a lack of trust in lay Catholics. But I have tried to demonstrate that many effective and fruitful activities, always involving laity, were carried out during the Committee's now terminated life. I believe it should be recognised that the BCJDEP earned an honorable place in the history of Episcopal action in Australia in the social justice area.' - Michael Costigan