Parish Administration
Parish Clergy
- Fr Thomas Chirackal MST – Parish Priest
Singleton Parish Pastoral Council Members
Parish Office
- Mrs Erica Janssen – Parish Secretary
- Parish Office open Tuesday to Friday – 9am to 3pm.
Singleton Finance Council Members
Branxton Parish Pastoral Council Members
Branxton Finance Council Members
Fr Thomas Chirackal MST.
Parish Priest
Fr Thomas is from Kerala state in India. He belongs to The missionary society of St Thomas the Apostle (MST). He was ordained as a priest on 2 January 1981. After ordination he worked as a missionary in various dioceses in different parts of India. He then went to work in Kigoma diocese in Tanzania for 9 years. After returning to India in 2002, he served as the regional director of Alphonsa region of MST, President of Sangli Mission Society and Episcopal Vicar in the diocese of Kalyan. Later he was elected councillor of the Society.
At the invitation of Bishop Bill Wright, he came to serve in the Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle in 2015. Before becoming the Parish Priest of Singleton and Branxton in 2018, he served in Blackbutt North and Wallsend-Shortland parishes as Assistant Priest. He also serves the Diocese as member of the Council of Priests and College of Consulters/Trustees.
Pope Francis
Pope Leo XIV is the 267th and current Pope of the Catholic Church, a title he holds ex officio as Bishop of Rome, and sovereign of Vatican City. The first Augustinian Pope, Leo XIV is the second Roman Pontiff – after Pope Francis – from the Americas. Unlike Jorge Mario Bergoglio, however, the 69-year-old Robert Francis Prevost is from the northern part of the continent, though he spent many years as a missionary in Peru before being elected head of the Augustinians for two consecutive terms. Robert Prevost chose the papal name Leo XIV in honor of Pope Leo XIII, whose social teachings and advocacy for workers’ rights were a major influence on him. Prevost also cited a desire to continue the legacy of Leo XIII, who was known for his work on behalf of the working class during the Industrial Revolution.
Bishop Michael Kennedy
Bishop Michael Kennedy was installed as the ninth Bishop of Maitland-Newcastle on Friday 17 March 2023 at Sacred Heart Cathedral, Hamilton.Born in 1968 in Wagga Wagga, Bishop Michael Kennedy is the youngest of nine children born to John and Fidelma Kennedy.Following his education in Wagga Wagga by the Christian Brothers, Bishop Michael Kennedy undertook a Diploma of Education at the Sydney Catholic College of Education and taught for several years at Xavier Catholic College in Albury.In 1992 he commenced seminary studies at Vianney College in rural New South Wales and, in 1994, he continued his academic studies at the Urban College of Propaganda Fide in Rome, attaining a Licentiate in Sacred Theology and also then a Diploma in Mariology from the Marianum Pontifical School.Ordained a priest in 1999, he held various positions in the Diocese of Wagga Wagga including as Assistant Priest and Parish Priest, Rector of Saint Francis’ Residential College at Charles Sturt University, Lecturer in Moral Theology, Mariology and Church History at Vianney College, Diocesan Director of Vocations, Member of Diocesan Council of Priests and College of Consultors, Diocesan Catholic Schools Commission member and Vicar Forane.Bishop Michael Kennedy most recently served as the tenth Bishop of Armidale from February 2012 to March 2023. Additionally, in November 2012 he was appointed the Apostolic Administrator of the Wilcannia Forbes Diocese, a position he held until July 2014. He has served on various Bishops Commissions and Councils and is currently a member of the Bishops Commission for Social Justice, Mission, and Service.