The Cross speaks to us of how we find God in places where compassion is needed. Those places in our own hearts and circumstances where we feel most lost; those places of our deepest grief and regret. The Cross speaks to us of the presence of God, full of compassion and One from whom nothing Continue reading »
Religion and Faith
I never thought I’d see an inspiring Easter reflection in the usually secular, The Saturday Paper. But last Saturday (March 23) there was Stan Grant, writing on the Christian feast. Grant is a really thoughtful writer and his spirituality comes, he says, ‘from being born into a history of suffering’ as a First Nations person, Continue reading »
The best argument against having an explicit legislated or constitutional right of freedom of religion in Australia comes right out of the playbook of the No campaign during the referendum on a constitutional Voice for Indigenous Australians. There’s no particular problem of giving expression to one’s beliefs in this country, and almost any attempt to Continue reading »
Faith leaders should stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people and should call on the Australian government to condemn all violence that threatens a just future for the people of Palestine, Israel and the Middle East. This call comes from Pax Christi, an ecumenical Christian organisation. Pax Christi Australia has sent the following appeal to all Continue reading »
You would think that the suffering we are now seeing, including on and after October 7, would also compel international leaders to negotiate a peaceful future. There is no future in hate. In his vibrant State of the Union address the U.S. President, Joe Biden, referenced what he loves about America. This includes the way Continue reading »
One only needs head into the city on a Sunday in order to hear it: loud and vociferous condemnation of Israel and – together with it – the evils of Zionism as a political philosophy. But what is Zionism? I would imagine that many of those who so loudly condemn it would be hard placed Continue reading »
Every religion is rooted in core beliefs or dogmas but is judged or weighed by the character it espouses and the values with which it identifies. Belief is verified or condemned by the way life is lived. Christianity is known to espouse “love your neighbour as yourself” or, “do to others as you would have Continue reading »
Two years since the Russian invasion, Ukraine has faded from the headlines. But not in the Vatican and for the man who might be the next Pope. Tied down in a strategic frontline stalemate, Ukraine has faded from the headlines, especially after the October 2023 Hamas attack and Israel’s Gaza response. In a late-December 2023 Continue reading »
When our father was one of those Australian soldiers fleeing the advancing Nazi army in Greece, an aircraft suddenly appeared. He jumped into a ditch on one side of the road. Others of his mates jumped into a ditch on the other side of the road. The guns in the plane killed all those on Continue reading »
The invasion of Gaza, described by Pope Francis as ‘terrorism’, is causing strained relationships between Israel and the Vatican. One of the longest-term supporters of the Palestinians is the Holy See, the Vatican. Although the number of Christians in Palestine is small – 2.5% of the population of the West Bank (50,000), about 1,100 in Continue reading »