The Holy Father has appointed the Most Rev Timothy Norton SVD, Auxiliary Bishop of Brisbane, as the third Bishop of Broome.
Originally from Sydney, Bishop Tim has been the Auxiliary Bishop of Brisbane since 2022. Prior to this, he the was Director of the Australian Province Society of the Divine Word.
Speaking from the Synod in Rome, Catholic Archbishop of Sydney Most Rev Anthony Fisher OP was quick to celebrate the news.
“I congratulate Bishop Tim on his appointment as Bishop of Broome.”
Archbishop Fisher said Bishop Tim’s previous ministry has ensured he is the perfect bishop to take up the role.
Bishop Tim has spent many years working as a missionary and he will bring this long experience, as well as his missionary instincts in leading the diocese of Broome.
Australian Catholic Bishops Conference President and Archbishop of Perth, Timothy Costelloe SDB, said Bishop Norton would bring “energy, enthusiasm and vision” to the Diocese of Broome.
“Having lived and worked in rural and remote areas of Australia, as well as overseas, he brings with him a love for the Indigenous people of our nation, a heart for the poor and marginalised, and a ‘down-to-earth’ approach to the needs and realities of our time,” Archbishop Costelloe said.
The diocese of Broome spans 773,000 square kilometres (an area bigger than France) and has a population of about 36,000 people spread across remote towns and isolated Indigenous communities.