Articles

Is terrorism a threat to us all?

21 Oct 2015  |  Author: Bishop George Browning  | Theme: Civil society and politics; Religions and dialogue

Terrorism is one of those words that is in almost daily usage by the media and there is a tendency for it to be used when it is not necessarily appropriate. (Was the Martin Place violence terrorism, if so what was the aim of it? Was it rather the final act in the life of a very disturbed and needy human being who aligned himself with any group from a bikie gang to a religious sect)? So what is terrorism and what is it not? Terrorism is not any form of random violence, it carries very specific meaning.
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Contours and prospects for Indigenous recognition in the Australian Constitution

16 Oct 2015  |  Author: Fr Frank Brennan  | Theme: Indigenous reconciliation; Civil society and politics

It is a great honour for one who is not a judge to be asked to deliver the AIJA Oration in Judicial Administration. Being the son and grandson of judges and having no prospect of ever being a judge, I am humbled to be at this podium if only briefly this evening under the auspices of the Australasian Institute of Judicial Administration. I join with you in paying respects to the Wurundjeri and Boonerwrung peoples of the Kulin nation, the traditional owners of the land on which we meet. In this splendid venue, I join with you in thanking Chief Justice Michael Black who dedicated such energy to ensuring that a court's architecture could speak to people of justice and the rule of law.
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Newstart is not living up to its name

14 Oct 2015  |  Author: Toni Hassan  | Theme: Civil society and politics; Leadership and institutions

What do multitasking and the low level of Newstart have in common? New research suggests they both do something to our brain, and in Anti-Poverty Week the new Social Services Minister, Christian Porter, ought to pay attention. As our new Prime Minister is fond of telling us, our future is increasingly tied up in technology (when has it not?). It inevitably means more multitasking. These days employers email us at night. We shop for shoes at our desks. We arrange business meetings while at the supermarket. Our children flip between devices while doing their homework. As more and more things fight for our attention our mental bandwidth shrinks.
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Two cheers for the parish

13 Oct 2015  |  Author: Fr Scott Cowdell  | Theme: Leadership and institutions; The Arts, Sciences and Culture

I’ve been asked to speak about the parish style of Christian community, and its future, because of course parishes face a lot of challenges today. Still, I believe in the parish way of being Church: two cheers for it, I say. I’ll tell you why I think two cheers are appropriate, and what might turn my confidence into a full-throated three cheers. To set the scene for my reflections, let me tell you about a day out that my wife and I had in Houston, Texas, in July, when we visited two very different chapels. I’ll call this first section 'Houston, We Have a Problem'.
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I consume therefore I am

13 Oct 2015  |  Author: Toni Hassan  | Theme: Civil society and politics; Public theology and ethics

Buying is much more American than thinking, pop artist Andy Warhol once quipped. On last month’s visit to the United States, Catholic Pope Francis, generated an enormous market for ‘things’, both spiritual and commercial. It was thick with irony. While personally devoted to simplicity, Francis unleashed a hunger for products that surpassed what is usually associated with rock tours.
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