Two-year course prepares clergy, laity for ministry in tribunals

The students, comprised of clergy and laity, spent two weeks in classes learning the practical ministry of being auditors, assessors, advocates and defenders of the bond in tribunals dealing with marriage nullity and dissolution cases.

The Institute of Tribunal Practice was established in 1978 to educate people about the ministry of the Catholic Church, primarily concerning the Church’s laws and procedures that relate to the annulment of marriage through the judicial processes, as well as the non-judicial processes regarding the dissolution of marriage.

The Institute offers a two-year programme for those who work in Catholic tribunals. It is now affiliated with the Catholic Institute of Sydney, and is governed by the Canon Law Society of Australia and New Zealand.

Students are required to attend a two-week live-in session in both Stages I and II – currently held at St Joseph’s Spirituality Centre in greater Sydney – followed up by practical assignments in the praxis of the ministry of tribunals. Upon successful completion of the programme, students are awarded the certificate of achievement, and work in their local tribunal offices.

Some continue with further studies in canon law at ecclesiastical universities such as St Paul University, Ottawa, Canada.

This year, nine students attended in person, and five students through Zoom. On May 9, after completing classes and the assessment, students returned to their dioceses to put their knowledge into practical application.

Pope Francis desired to make the Church’s ministry of mercy and justice as accessible to people as possible, and the more people who are formally trained in this ministry, the more that desire can be put into practice. 

FULL STORY

Students do course on Church law and ministry in marriage nullity and dissolution (Institute of Tribunal Practice)