Catholic Diocese of Broome

In March this year, the Bishops of Australia went to Rome for their Ad Limina visit - a reference to the edge or the threshold - referring to the tomb of St. Peter where they celebrated Mass and prayed that God might bless their various Dioceses and their people back home in Australia. Almost all of the Australian Bishops were present together living within the Vatican and joining together for various functions and visits. Some of the visits were to Church dicasteries or offices - such as the Congregation for Education or the Congregation for Divine Worship or the Pontifical Council for Media.
The highlight of the visit of course was the meeting with the Holy Father. Each Bishop spent six or seven minutes speaking privately with the Pope. Later in the week the Australian Bishops met as a group with the Holy Father in one of the audience halls within the Papal palace.
Bishop Saunders said that this was his second Ad Limina visit in the time he has been Bishop. "The weather was cold…at least when compared with the Kimberley.", he said. "However, the meeting with the Holy Father was a warm and memorable encounter. He was interested primarily in three things. Firstly, he asked me about the well-being of family life in the Kimberley. Secondly, he wanted to know if we had any vocations to the priesthood in the Diocese, and then he asked about the Aboriginal people of the Kimberley and Australia. What struck me was his deep concern for our spiritual and physical welfare. He wished prayerful greetings for all Kimberley people to be passed on."
When asked about his visit to his predecessor Bishop Jobst, who lives in retirement in Austria, Bishop Saunders said: "The Bishop looked very well and is enjoying good health. He too passes on his best wishes and blessings to the people of the Kimberley. He hopes to come for a visit some time after his eighty-fifth birthday. We look forward to that next year."