Paul Bird
C.Ss.R. (born 1949) is the
Roman Catholic Bishop of Ballarat.
Bird was born in
Newcastle, New South Wales
Newcastle ( ; Awabakal: ) is a metropolitan area and the second most populated city in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It includes the Newcastle and Lake Macquarie local government areas, and is the hub of the Greater Newcastle area, w ...
, on 17 July 1949. He attended Catholic primary and high schools in the Newcastle area. He joined the formation program of the
Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer
The Redemptorists officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer ( la, links=no, Congregatio Sanctissimi Redemptoris), abbreviated CSsR,is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brother ...
in 1968 and studied at the
Redemptorist
The Redemptorists officially named the Congregation of the Most Holy Redeemer ( la, links=no, Congregatio Sanctissimi Redemptoris), abbreviated CSsR,is a Catholic clerical religious congregation of pontifical right for men (priests and brother ...
seminary at
Wendouree
Wendouree () is a large suburb on the north western rural-urban fringe of the city of Ballarat, in Victoria, Australia. It is the second most populated suburb in the City of Ballarat with a total of 10,376 inhabitants at the .
It is named af ...
near
Ballarat
Ballarat ( ) is a city in the Central Highlands (Victoria), Central Highlands of Victoria (Australia), Victoria, Australia. At the 2021 Census, Ballarat had a population of 116,201, making it the third largest city in Victoria. Estimated resid ...
for four years before completing his studies at the
Yarra Theological Union in
Melbourne
Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...
. He was ordained as a priest on 17 May 1975 and appointed Bishop of Ballarat on 1 August 2012.
In 2016, Bird stated that the estate of a former Bishop of Ballarat,
Ronald Mulkearns
Ronald Austin Mulkearns (11 November 19303 April 2016) was the bishop emeritus of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Ballarat in Ballarat, Australia, a diocese in the ecclesiastical province of Melbourne. He resigned as bishop on 30 May 1997. The Roy ...
, had been left to the diocese and would be set aside to help victims of child sexual abuse committed by priests in the diocese. As bishop, Mulkearns had facilitated moving the priests to different parishes.
See also
*
Roman Catholic Church in Australia
The Catholic Church in Australia is part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the spiritual and administrative leadership of the Holy See. From origins as a suppressed, mainly Irish minority in early colonial times, the church has grown ...
References
Roman Catholic bishops of Ballarat
1949 births
Living people
People from Newcastle, New South Wales
{{Australia-RC-bishop-stub