Three people broke into the Adass Israel Synagogue in the early hours of December 6 and began pouring accelerant. They were disturbed by worshippers, who were inside studying, but still lit the fire before fleeing. They used brooms to spread the accellerant. The Adass Israel community have received significant support from the community at large, as well as local and international interfaith groups, who have travelled to Ripponlea, Victoria, to express their support.
The annual Victorian Mosque Open Day will be back on the 15th of February from 10:00am. Mosques in Victoria look forward to hosting visitors with dozens of local mosques ready to open their doors to the whole Victorian community.
The Victorian Council of Churches has issued a statement on the Hamas-Israel ceasefire deal. Previously, the Victorian Council of Churches has told, inter alia, “In the land sacred to the three great Abrahamic religions, the ongoing cycle of violence and revenge must be broken, or the children of today’s children will still suffer in the same way. Justice and peace can only come about when those involved look in their enemy’s face and see a fellow human, whose dignity is no less than theirs and whose life has the same value as their own.”
The Australian Council of Christians and Jews, the Sisters of Our Lady of Sion Australia, and the International Council of Christians and Jews will host a gathering at Trinity College Theological School on Sunday 2 February and at Temple Beth Israel, Tuesday, 4 February for people interested in interfaith dialogue and encounter. This event will take place in conjunction with a visit from the board of the International Council of Christians and Jews.
A Christian Bishop, a Leader of Muslims in Victoria and a Progressive Rabbi from East Kew all address the heinous attack on the Adass Israel Mosque in Ripponlea, Melbourne. These faith leaders – together they declare, “We seek to stand together at times like this“.
An attack was made on the Jewish Community of Elsterwick-Ripponlea with the fire-bombing of the Adass Israel Synagogue, early morning of 6 December. Congregants were inside at the time, and one was burned in escaping. Religious for Peace Australia does not endorse violence of any kind, nor violence in support of any cause. We are people of Peace. We remain people of peace – here in Australia – no matter what is occurring overseas in whatever theatre of conflict. The scourge of antisemitism must be eradicated from Australia.
The Victorian government has unveiled long-awaited legislation to overhaul the state’s anti-vilification laws, the culmination of more than five years of work. The justice legislation amendment (anti-vilification and social cohesion) bill 2024 was introduced to parliament on Tuesday and will be debated in the new year.
The Contemplative Studies Centre at the University of Melbourne will host an enlightening talk by Cyprian Consiglio, a Camaldolese Benedictine Monk on Wednesday 13 November from 5.30-7.00pm. This is an in-person event.
St Francis of Assisi left his mortal coil on 3 October 1226; within two years he was made a saint. He is the patron saint of ecology and the environment, and is most famous for his prayer, “Lord, make me a means of your peace“. St Francis of Assisi is honoured as a Saint and a beacon of world peace in many religions. Bishop Philip Huggins reflects on what it means to be human, to Christian – or indeed a person of any faith – and to move past the cycle of revenge into the cycle of forgiveness. Each day when the Sun rises, we can begin again, with love.
Multi-faith communities are calling on Australia’s major political parties to commit to divesting from coal and gas, as community-members gather for a week of climate action.
A suggestion has come to mind about walking together for world peace. When Australians what to change something, they get together, make their placards about peace, and walk together purposefully. We have done this earlier, with our interfaith and multifaith friendship walks, as Bishop Philip Huggins recalls. Perhaps we could walk again – in these days of a fractured world. A meditative exploration follows … Silent, Meditative Multi Faith Peace Walks?
