The Filipino Chaplaincy in Sydney was established in February 1981 when Cardinal James Freeman certified Fr. Renato Paras SVD as Chaplain of the Filipino community in New South Wales. Fr. Paras had arrived in Sydney in November 1980, having been assigned by the Divine Word Missionaries here for pastoral work among the growing population of Filipinos in the state. He thus started his assignment as the first Filipino Chaplain in the history of Filipino migration in Australia.

Fr. Renato Paras at 4th Sunday mass 22 August 1993

The early history of the Filipino Chaplaincy is closely intertwined with that of the Filipino Catholic Organization of Sydney (FILCOS) particularly with the Blacktown chapter. The establishment of FILCOS Blacktown occurred in relation to the formation of the Basic Christian Communities which in turn were formed due to the Family Rosary Crusade. This crusade started in 1981 when the image of Our Lady of Fatima was brought to Filipino Christian households for the recitation of the Holy Rosary.

Filipino Chaplain Fr. Renato Paras and several community leaders saw the need for a structure that would promote fellowship among Filipino Christian families who were mostly new arrivals in this country within the framework of the Family Rosary Crusade. Thus the concept of Basic Christian Communities (BCC), each composed of a number of households in one geographical area, was born. Fr. Renato as chaplain was spiritual adviser of the BCCs while FILCOS served as the administrative arm for running this structure. BCC started with the formation of the first community - St. John the Evangelist Community in Marayong - in 1982 and grew to around 30 communities within the boundaries of the Blacktown local government area in the 90s.

Frs. Renato Paras and Nards Mercene during mass celebrating the Feast of the Immaculate Conception

The continued migration of Filipinos to Australia saw growing communities not just in Blacktown but also other areas in Western Sydney, in Sydney and in NSW. In 1986, Fr. Menardo Mercene (Fr. Nards) was appointed as the second Filipino chaplain. He was based at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Parish in Bossley Park and shared with Fr. Renato various pastoral duties and the task of building cohesive communities in the framework of Christian values. Liturgical activities were held throughout the year, including annual fiestas, community fiestas, Bible sharing, recollections and traditional celebrations for Christmas and Lent in Bankstown, Blacktown, Fairfield, North Shore area and Parramatta.

The geographical jurisdictions of the chaplains became more clearly defined with the creation of the Diocese of Parramatta. At this time, Fr. Renato was designated Filipino Chaplain in the Diocese of Parramatta while Fr. Nards was designated Filipino Chaplain in the Archdiocese of Sydney.

Bishop Bede Heather (left) and Fr. Ben Macajes during 1996 Carols by Candlelight mass

In February 1993, Fr. Renato Paras resigned from the Filipino chaplaincy to be incardinated into the Diocese of Parramatta. He was succeeded by Fr. Benjamin Macajes SVD who arrived in Sydney in July 1993 after a posting of 8 years in Argentina. During his term, Fr. Ben promoted the idea of Sandiwaan (Solidarity) amongst all the existing Filipino religious groups and FILCOS Blacktown Chapter settled into its revised role in the Chaplaincy as simply one of these established organizations.

Fr. Ben concluded his term as chaplain in June 2001 when he had to attend a 5-month pastoral-biblical study in Rome after which on his return to Australia he became the chaplain of the Filipino community in Brisbane. During the period when the position of Chaplain in the Diocese of Parramatta was vacant, Fr. Nards and other Filipino priests assisted with masses and pastoral duties.

Fr. Leonardo Dublan Jr.(Fr. Bong) assumed the role of Filipino Chaplain in April 2002. He has since actively embarked on a program of liturgical activities that enhance the participation of the Filipino chaplaincy in the direction set by the Diocese of Parramatta.