Religions for Peace New South Wales continues to meet regularly in the NSW Parliament House for prayer and reflection together with input from selected speakers. The Chair, Josie Lacey OAM, has also represented Religions for Peace at the World Assembly.
In the year under review, Religions for Peace NSW Branch has continued the quarterly meetings at Parliament House Sydney with interesting guest speakers as regularly reported on our website, together with photos RfP members have been involved in many forums and recently took part in the Anti-Slavery Australia and the Women’s Interfaith Network (WIN) Forced Marriage Interfaith Forum, hosted by the Hon Gladys Berejiklian, MP, in recognition of International Women’s Day.
As one of three national delegates, the Chair of RfP NSW Branch, Josie Lacey OAM, attended the World Assembly of Religions for Peace, with Des Cahill and Bante Sujato, in November of 2013. Ian Lacey also attended as an observer.
This was a large gathering, and an interesting one, Josie Lacey reports. Josie observed, “I wish I could have met with the regional Asia Pacific delegates. I did however meet and talk amongst many other interesting delegates, two Romanian delegates, a father (an Orthodox priest) and his son. Interesting because I was born in Romania, and lucky to get out when we did.”
Some weeks before the Assembly, the NSW Chair also received an invite to the Kaiciid Forum to be held at the same venue a few days earlier. This forum was hosted by King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia. The great philosopher of Interfaith professor Leonard Swidler was there. Josie reported that she felt very honoured to meet and spend time with him.
RFP NSW, unanimously agreed to send a submission on proposed amendment to the Racial Discrimination Act. The submission was written by Ian Lacey and has been sent and received by the federal Attorney General’s department. You may read this here.
Members of Religions for Peace NSW meeting at Parliament House
