The Joint Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade has commenced an inquiry into international armed conflict decision making with the terms of reference referred by the Minister of Defence, the Hon Richard Marles MP. Religions for Peace Australia has made a submission to the Inquiry.
News
Prayers and Sacred Reflections responding to Floods in Australia
In the latter part of 2022, parts of Australia’s east coast were hit with ongoing flooding, just one week after the declaration of a rare third La Niña. Torrential widespread rain and storms across much of the inland south-east caused major flooding from already full waterways across southern Queensland, inland New South Wales and northern Victoria.
In response to the damage and suffering caused to those in flooded townships – and in small towns – and in the byways of regional Australia and Tasmania, Religions for Peace Australia will conduct Prayers for the welfare of all involved and affected, and for all who are suffering ongoing dislocation and illnesses.
Prayers and Sacred Reflections responding to Floods in Australia will take place online on Tuesday 13 December at 7:30pm. Participants will attend from all states.
No, it’s not too early for a Christmas tree.
Mine has been up for ages
When the world is going to hell, you reach for the familiar and the comforting. Even if it leaves you covered in needles… in these days after the Pandemic and Floods, drought and whatever other pestilences that assail us here in Australia, it is meet and fitting to bring good cheer into our home and our life.
Colonial Bondage: Liberating Theological Education by Prof. Anne Pattel-Gray
On Wednesday 2 November 2022, Professor Anne Pattel-Gray delivered her inaugural Professorial Lecture entitled, “Colonial Bondage: Liberating Theological Education”. The event was held at St Paschal Chapel in Box Hill, the land of the Wurundjeri nation.
World Council of Churches celebrates COP27 decision to support climate-vulnerable communities
The World Council of Churches has participated in every COP since the establishment of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC). The World Council of Churches delegation to COP27 co-convened interfaith and ecumenical discussions and services, co-organised and contributed to side events, and participated in a range of actions, amplifying faith, youth, and Indigenous perspectives.
The Witchcraft Act saw thousands executed and tortured. Now Scotland is doing something about it
Today, witches are the stuff of light-hearted kids books, cartoons and Halloween costumes. But there is a dark history behind their place in pop culture.
Around 2,500 people — mostly women — were executed in Scotland between 1563 and 1736 under the country’s Witchcraft Act.
Now, hundreds of years later, the Parliament of Scotland is doing something about it — starting with a public apology. The apology affirms the proper attitude to gender and the role of women in society.
Forget $3000 caskets, meet the guy who paints cardboard coffins in Canberra
Tender Funerals is a not-for-profit, largely volunteer-run funeral company with operations in Sydney, the Illawarra region, and the Mid-North Coast. Giving the family maximum control at a low cost is their unique selling point. A cardboard coffin like the one in his garage wholesales for $135 at Daisy Box Australia. Tender Funerals adds a small fee and sells them to members of the public to decorate as they please.
Domestic violence in the church – guiding survivors to healing and hope
“Take a stand for the survivor, challenge the abuser and contest dismissive attitudes, while always seeking the safety, sanity and dignity of the survivor with your words and behaviour.”
This quote is from Renew, an Australian Guide for Christian Women Survivors of Domestic Abuse, published by Anglicare, which aims to be a helpful resource for survivors and for those who walk alongside them.
“It’s a place that they can find helpful, practical information,” says Lynda Dunstan, Anglicare Family and Domestic Violence Adviser, who is the Australian Editor of Renew, an adaptation of Restored, UK’s handbook for Christian women survivors of domestic abuse.
NSW religious leaders unite to help end domestic violence
More than 70 prominent religious leaders representing all major faiths signed a declaration on Tuesday with the NSW Government to help end domestic violence.
World AIDS Day prayer service
On 1 December, World AIDS Day will mark more than 40 years since the first outbreak of the epidemic; however, in 2021, every two minutes, an adolescent girl or young woman (15-24 years old) acquired HIV.
Canberra: Attorney General references Religious Discrimination Bill at Interfaith Breakfast
Discussions about religious freedom in Australia should aim to unite the nation rather than divide it, guests at the Australian Catholic University’s sixth Parliamentary Interfaith Breakfast have heard.
Over 160 guests, including around 50 faith leaders and 50 parliamentarians, gathered for the Parliamentary Interfaith Breakfast at the National Press Club in Canberra on 24 November 2022, after a two year hiatus due to the pandemic.
Attorney general Mark Dreyfus gave a speech at the 6th interfaith breakfast event where he spoke about the government’s plan for a religious discrimination bill.
UN Alliance of Civilisations: Morocco Meeting
At this transitional moment for humanity, it is important to uphold mutual respect, unity, and solidarity, the senior UN official promoting cross-cultural understanding and cooperation has stated. Miguel Ángel Moratinos, High Representative for the UN Alliance of Civilizations (UNAOC), was speaking ahead of the start of its 9th Global Forum, which opens in Fez, Morocco, on Tuesday.
