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	Priest to Fight Sacking in Court By Michael Mckenna The Australian February 23, 2009 http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,25092631-2702,00.html SACKED Catholic priest Peter Kennedy will this week continue his fight against the Brisbane diocese in the civil courts unless he is reinstated, after he rejected mediation talks and defiantly conducted Sunday mass for more than 1500 parishioners at St Mary's church. Despite Archbishop John Bathersby last week dismissing Father Kennedy and appointing Father Ken Howell to lead the St Mary's parish, an estimated 1600 people spilled outside the church yesterday morning to support the rebel priest. Father Howell - Dean of St Stephen's Cathedral and a liturgy expert assigned to temporarily replace Australia's first sacked Catholic priest - had intended to say mass. But police advised against it, and Father Howell stayed away from the church amid fears of unrest, possibly violence, after a letter containing a bomb threat and a mention of St Mary's church was allegedly sent to Dr Bathersby last Friday. The Australian understands that lawyers for Father Kennedy will today send a letter to Dr Bathersby demanding that he back down from sacking the parish priest or they will challenge the decision of the Brisbane diocese in the civil courts. Central to their claim is the allegation that Dr Bathersby breached canon law by failing to give Father Kennedy enough time to defend himself against allegations that he was conducting services that were "not in communion" with the church. The letter follows the failure of an ex-parte application in the Supreme Court to block his sacking late on Friday night. Yesterday's hour-long service was a celebration in defiance, with Father Kennedy leading the mass in prayer and hymns - including the protest song We Shall Not be Moved - before imploring Dr Bathersby to visit the church. "It is sad he is not here today because if he was here, he couldn't possibly move against this community," Father Kennedy told the service. "We are a Vatican II community - at least, we try to be." After mass, Father Kennedy rejected a weekend offer from DrBathersby for mediation talks and warned that he would not engage with the archbishop unless his decree to sack him was withdrawn. "If the archbishop wants to mediate, he has to mediate with the community," Father Kennedy said. "He has unjustly sacked me, and in sacking me he has sacked the community. He never tested the accusations made by the vigilantes. "I take my authority from the people, and if they didn't want me, then I would go." Dr Bathersby sacked Father Kennedy after a dispute over the use of lay people and politically correct language in services, which has divided the Brisbane diocese for years. In a statement issued at the weekend, Dr Bathersby said an independent mediator would most likely be called in to solve the impasse. "The church is fully entitled to have this decree obeyed and to have its ownership of the St Mary's church respected," Dr Bathersby said. "In this difficult situation, I believe a sensible next step would be to have an experienced, independent and eminent mediator meet with the archdiocese and Father Kennedy to attempt to achieve a peaceful and dignified outcome to the current impasse." Father Kennedy rejected the idea of a parish member resorting to bomb threats, saying no one wanted a confrontation but rather understanding. Parish member Tadgh Carter agreed. "I don't think it would be coming from this community," Mr Carter said. "It's not the way we do things."
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