Greetings of peace and Happy Passover because today is the last day of Pesach.
Yesterday was Earth Day, but given the urgency of our global situation, let’s make every day Earth Day.
As the sign on the Quaker Meeting House in Melbourne says, ‘Killing the Planet is Against our Religions’… our religions do not allow the destruction of the earth’…
Yesterday was Earth Day, but given the urgency of our global situation, let’s make every day Earth Day.
As the sign on the Quaker Meeting House in Melbourne says, ‘Killing the Planet is Against our Religions’… our religions do not allow the destruction of the earth’….
What is RfP International doing in this matter? The priority of the organisation is to support the protection of native forests and the planting of trees: see https://www.rfp.org/priority-sustainable-environment/
My apologies that this newsletter is so early for the month of May… there are a number of important events over the next few days that some of you may be interested in knowing about.
Many good wishes for a peaceful month as any of us who are interested join in Mindful in May: https://www.mindfulinmay.org/
Holy Days in March 2022
| Date | Event | Religion |
| April 23 | Peasch Ends | Judaism |
| April 24 | Pascha (Easter day) | Orthodox |
| April 27 | Yom HaShoah Holocaust Remembrance Day |
Judaism |
| April 29 | Ninth Day of Ridvan | Baha’i |
| April 29 | Lailat al Qadr | Islam |
| May 3 | Eid-al-Fitr | Ramadan ends |
| May 16 | Vesak | Buddhism |
| May 24 | Declaration of the Bab | Baha’i |
| May 29 | Ascension of Baha’u’llah | Baha’i |
| June 3 | Pentecost | Christianity |
Raising Peace Network
This Anzac Day Weekend, 23rd – 25th April 2022, leaders in peace, diplomacy, and justice will speak on the most critical topics within the peace-security nexus: First Nations’ perspectives, climate change, AUKUS, and alternatives to war.
Each session will comprise a discussion between panellists, a Q&A with the audience and an informal chat afterwards to debrief on lessons learned.
Registrations essential. Please register here to reserve your spot.
As we face an increasingly complex and worrying world, the Australian Government is putting most of its resources into a militarised approach to assuring our security. But there are other ways to do this. Over the ANZAC Day long weekend Raising Peace presents a series of discussion about how we can assure a secure and peaceful Australia – and region – for all.
Sikh Community
We would like to invite you to our Interfaith Gathering 2022 at the Baha’i Centre of Learning, 1 Tasman Hwy, Hobart Tas 7000 on Friday 29 April 2022 from 3.00pm onwards.
Guest Speaker will be Baba Joginder Singh Ji
RSVP Tuesday 26 April 2022
Enquiries: Gurleen Kaur 0407 831 889 or 0401 207 171.
Download a Flyer for this event.
The Shift Network:
Most of us live in our heads, completely disconnected from our bodies. Every day, we miss out on experiencing the body as our portal to living in the present moment and finding true happiness.
In my new 7-week course,Cultivate a Body of Light through Sacred Sufi Dance,you’ll discover the wisdom of your body as the material aspect of your soul that it truly is — the gateway to the infinite, and the vessel through which your whole life unfolds.
This journey of coming home to your body will be nothing but blissful and magical because we will dance it!
In our time together, we will activate and balance the 7 Chakras through the dance and movement that correspond to each Chakra. We will journey into Sufi wisdom that teaches us how to embody love in the world.
Our sessions will be perfumed with the love poetry of Rumi. As you cultivate a true sense of belonging in your body, you will get in shape and feel energized all day long. If you are ready to dance to transform your world and shift to living a more vital, creative, and fulfilling life, I will meet you on your dance floor!
Cultivate a Body of Light With Sacred Sufi Dance: A Mystical Journey Through Your Chakrasbegins on Thursday, April 21, but recorded sessions are available if participants begin late.
A Warming Planet in Covid Times
From Emeritus Professor Joseph Camilleri OAM
This coming Tuesday marks the beginning of our 7-week series. Many are attending. I will be presenting the series in person at University College, Parkville, Melbourne. You are also welcome to join us online.
Here is the program for the opening session (times in AEDT):
26 April A warming planet in Covid times: Lessons not yet learnt
6.00 Welcome
6.10 Prof Joseph Camilleri’s address Seeing through the fog
6.30 Prof Camilleri in conversation with the Rt Hon. Helen Clark
New Zealand Prime Minister for 9 years; Head of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) for 8 years; co-chaired the WHO inquiry into the Covid pandemic – pioneering report released last May.
An unequal, warming planet in Covid times: Implications for governance
Followed by questions from participants
7.10 Discussion in small groups:
The conversations we have: Some intriguing questions
7.30 Break
7.45 Exercise: Mapping human networks
8.00 Prof Camilleri in conversation with Dr Jeremy Baskin
Senior Fellow, Melbourne School of Government, University of Melbourne; has been a Fellow of the Program on Science, Technology & Society at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, a Fellow at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Societies in Cologne, and has worked at the University of Cambridge’s Institute for Sustainability Leadership. His most recent book is Geoengineering, the Anthropocene and the End of Nature (2019)
Living with Climate Change. Living with Covid. Is that it?
Questions and comments from participants
8.45 Preparing for next week
8.55 Close
A varied, equally stimulating and engaging program will follow in coming weeks. I hope you can be part of it.
Joe
Emeritus Professor Joseph A. Camilleri OAM
La Trobe University, Melbourne
Fellow, The Academy of the Social Sciences in Australia
Managing Director, Alexandria Agenda Pty Ltd
President, Conversation at the Crossroads
Personal website https://www.josephcamilleri.org/
Navigating Life at the Crossroads
Pax Christi presents Navigating Life at the Crossroads, a seven session combination of combines lectures, presentations by world experts in their respective fields, Q&A, debates, role play, small conversation groups, brainstorming sessions and skilling workshops from 26th April to June 7th 2022.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of darkness.” – Charles Dickens, Tale of Two Cities 1859
Conversation at the Crossroads presents an innovative series to stimulate, inform and upskill. It combines lectures, presentations by world experts in their respective fields, Q&A, debates, role play, small conversation groups, brainstorming sessions and skilling workshops.
Hosted by Professor Joseph Camilleri, the series comprises seven 3-hour sessions run on consecutive Tuesdays from 26th April to June 7th 2022.
Participants are strongly encouraged to enrol in the series as a whole, and so fully benefit from the program, which is designed to:
- Make sense of the national and international challenges we face and how they connect at a time of unprecedented change.
- See how these challenges relate to everyday life, in personal relations, study, work, and community engagement.
- Explore the practical steps we can take – personally and collectively – towards a more promising future.
- Acquire the skills that facilitate respectful, informed and productive conversation with people of diverse backgrounds.
We live in a world that is in chaos and we need to learn to navigate a clear pathway, to make sense of many inter-connected realities; we need to be exposed to different ways of looking at our world and being able to analyse the many challenges we are facing today. More importantly, we need to become skilled at having conversations with others that will lead to serious and effective social change.
This Course is not just another webinar series with good speakers. It is many-faceted and has been carefully planned to allow for much interaction among the participants. It does have outstanding presenters giving input, but it has more than this: It affords a real opportunity for participants to share their insights and experiences, and to extend their networking and influence. Here is a link to the website which contains details about the series:
Soul Food
Dear Friends,
Soul Food is hosted at the Baha’i Centre of Learning for Tasmania, 1 Tasman Highway Hobart (behind the ABC Ample free parking) on the first Sunday of each month at 3 – 4 pm with delightful musical interludes. It is a free community event, refreshments are served and all are welcome. For more information please call 62347654 or Val mobile040408078
The theme for 1 May 3.00-4.00pm will be Fountains of Friendship.
We do hope you will join us.
The Soul Food Team
O My brother! A pure heart is as a mirror; cleanse it with the burnish of love and severance from all save God. Bahá’u’lláh
Jewish Community Council of Victoria:
Yom HaShoa 2022 – Holocaust Commemoration
Remembering Together – Yom Hashoah Virtual Commemoration.
The JCCV is calling on our entire Jewish community to remember together!
This year’s commemoration is an inclusive virtual community commemoration with poignant testimonies, the participation of a range of Jewish students, and messages of support from communal members, leaders, and affiliates.
Apr 27, 2022 07:30 PM in Hobart
Relaxing Deeply, Thinking Positively
Relaxing Deeply, Thinking Positively: a gentle program to calm anxiety and create a positive pattern of thinking. Available via Zoom.
This program is a series of sessions over three continuous weeks: Mondays 2, 9 and 16 May 2022, 1.00-2.00pm.
To obtain a Zoom link, book with Terry on sussfam@bigpond.com or phone 6272 6521. Download a Flyer for this event
Australian Religious Response to Climate Change
Greetings from the ARRCC divestment group.
Protect our planet with your finances (Gas and Electricity)
- What is impact of your gas and electricity usage on the planet?
- What simple steps can you take to reduce that impact?
Come learn, share and discuss within an Australian Religious Response to Climate Change multifaith group on aligning your finances and faith to protect the planet by divesting from fossil fuels.
This standalone session is part of series that cover other aspects of finance such as Banking, Superannuation, Insurance, and Shareholder actions.
Sessions are 90 minutes on zoom.
Book your session on Gas and Electricity – Utilities for either of these sessions:
- Tuesday 5th April 2022 from 12 NOON – 1:30 PM AEST ACT/NSW/TAS/VIC/QLD (11:30AM SA/NT), (10AM WA), or
- Thursday 7th April 2022 from 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM AEST ACT/NSW/TAS/VIC/QLD, (7:00PM SA/NT), (5:30PM WA).
There is a lot that we can do to ensure that our big financial institutions and energy utilities are divesting from fossil fuel industries, and investing into renewable sources.
Best wishes
Jamie Cox and Sue Ennis
Members of Australian Religious Response to Climate Change Divestment Group
https://www.arrcc.org.au/
Contemplative Studies Centre
A conference in Melbourne and online, organised by the Contemplative Studies Centre, University of Melbourne: Contemplative Practice for the 21st Century
Summary – International Conference of Mindfulness – Asia Pacific 2022 (cvent.com)
Relaxing Deeply, Thinking Positively
Relaxing Deeply, Thinking Positively: a gentle program to calm anxiety and create a positive pattern of thinking. Available via Zoom.
This program is a series of sessions over three continuous weeks: Mondays 2, 9 and 16 May 2022, 1.00-2.00pm.
To obtain a Zoom link, book with Terry on sussfam@bigpond.com or phone 6272 6521.
Download a Flyer for this event
Parliament of the World’s Religions
The Parliament of the World’s Religions is deeply saddened by the violent attacks around and inside the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem. We especially deplore acts of violence done within a sacred space, as occurred at Al Aqsa Mosque this past Friday.
Dear Friends,
You are being called. Last fall, we came together virtually in a time of crisis, but there is more work to do. This is why I am proud to announce that the theme of the 2023 Parliament of the World’s Religions is “A Call to Conscience: Defending Freedom & Human Rights.”
Super Saver offer end on 30 June 22 $225USD
The 2023 Parliament Convening in Chicago will address the threat of climate change, the dignity of women and girls, the rights of Indigenous peoples, engaging the next generation, peace, justice, the reduction of inequalities, and more. The Parliament continues to use the word “parliament” according to its archaic meaning: a safe place for civil discourse. It will be a place of open minds and open hearts where we can all express the wonder and dignity of our religious and spiritual traditions against the backdrop of the majestic beauty of Lake Michigan. But we could not do all this without addressing the foundational issue of our time; the threat to freedom and human rights. We must defend freedom and human rights together and find solutions to the rise of autocracy in our world
News Links
Who wins when politics and religion collide:
Catholic Bishops say that Australia has a moral duty to take 20,000 more refugees from Afghanistan:
Bishop Huggins about Climate Change and the Federal Election
In peace,
Terry
Convenor RfP Tasmania Branch
Vice Chair, Religions for Peace Australia
Phone 6272 6521
