John Bede Polding was born in Liverpool, England in 1794. Both his parents had died by the time he was nine. He was taken into the care of his uncle, a Benedictine monk, who arranged for his education with the Benedictine nuns in Liverpool and then at St Gregory’s in Shropshire. He made his first vows in 1812 and was ordained in 1819. He had various roles – Novice Master, Procurator, Head Teacher, Sub Prior and Teacher. He was a great loss to his community at Downside when, in 1834, he was made Bishop of New Holland and Van Diemens Land. He arrived in Sydney in 1835. He retired in January, 1874 and died on 16 March, 1877.
He was known as a pastoral man, who rode thousands of miles on horseback to visit Catholic families as the population spread quickly across Australia. He visited all the state capitals and was often away from Sydney for months, even years, at a time. The many ‘Polding Streets’ throughout the length and breadth of Australia testify to his care for his flock in the new colony. He was particularly concerned for the Aborigines, the convicts and the young women who came to Australia in those early days. His was a heart filled with compassion for the disadvantaged, the disempowered and marginalized.
This did not mean that he did not make mistakes. The new colony, where politics within the Church and the State was a challenge throughout his life, was not a place for the faint hearted.
Polding was also, in the Benedictine tradition a man who knew that education was of primary importance for the young. His was a dream of ensuring the best education possible within the schools that were established in his time.
On his death in 1877 there was great mourning, by both Catholics and Protestants, for a man who had worked hard and did not spare himself in his desire to bring Christ’s comfort to all.
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