Archbishop named Governor General

Brisbane

Australian prime minister John Howard in April appointed Anglican Archbishop Peter Hollingworth of Brisbane to the post of Governor General of Australia.

The appointment was criticized as a blurring of the line between church and state. Addressing this issue, Archbishop Hollingworth, 66, said he does not plan to practice ministry in a public way during his five-year term. He will take office on June 29.

Archbishop Hollingworth served for 25 years with the Melbourne-based welfare agency, the Brotherhood of St. Laurence, becoming its head in the 1980s. He became Archbishop of Brisbane in 1990 and was named Australian of the Year in 1992.

However, he seems to have become quieter on social-welfare issues in recent years, wrote columnist Peter Charlton in the Courier-Mail, who also said Archbishop Hollingworth possesses “a facile style with which he can tailor his message to his audience.”

Staff