Best of 2023

04 January 2024

RELIGION

Best of 2023: The Empty Honour Board
- Michele Gierck
- 11 January 2024
In his latest book, The Empty Honour Board: A School Memoir, Martin Flanagan reckons with the legacy of abuse in the Catholic Church by looking back at his experiences at boarding school in Tasmania. In an interview with Michele Gierck for Eureka Street, Martin talks about the process of uncovering what happened all those years ago.
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ECONOMICS

Best of 2023: The future of work is transhuman
- David James
- 11 January 2024
AI and transhumanism will continue to transform economic life on the planet. Rather than trying to stop it, which will fail, the counterattack should instead be to repeatedly insist on the obvious: that the ‘I’ in AI is not human intelligence, and that the ‘humanism’ in transhumanism is not human.
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INTERNATIONAL

Best of 2023: The Israel-Hamas War in perspective
- Alan Dowty
- 11 January 2024
In the midst of the fifth and deadliest war between Israel and Hamas, a retrospective analysis uncovers a history of missed chances and rising extremism that fueled this crisis. From Netanyahu's policies bolstering Hamas to declining support for the two-state solution, the situation raises a pivotal question: could a different approach have averted this catastrophe?
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AUSTRALIA

Best of 2023: Can we curb misinformation while retaining freedom of expression?
- Frank Brennan
- 11 January 2024
As the government drafts legislation to stem the rising tide of misinformation circulating online, the nation debates: will these measures sufficiently regulate online content and curb potential harms or threaten freedom of expression? This moment is a critical test for the integrity of Australia's public discourse.
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RELIGION

Best of 2023: Celebrating 100 years of Teilhard de Chardin's 'Mass on the World'
- Michael McGirr
- 11 January 2024
In the realm of intellectual giants, Einstein's acclaim often overshadows luminaries like Pierre Teilhard de Chardin. A century after the publication of 'The Mass on the World', this Jesuit priest's reflections remain challenging, spotlighting his quest for a singular reality binding all existence.
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ENVIRONMENT

Best of 2023: The heat will kill you first
- David Halliday
- 11 January 2024
How will a warming planet impact us? In conversation with Eureka Street, longtime climate journalist and contributing editor for Rolling Stone Jeff Goodell discusses two decades of covering climate change, examining the effects a superheated world, and how humanity will need to adapt.
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MEDIA

Best of 2023: Thanks to Stan Grant, public intellectual
- Andrew Hamilton
- 11 January 2024
The departure of Stan Grant from his role at the ABC following racial abuse triggers collective dismay and brings to light the deeply rooted issue of racism in Australia. His exit from public life is a sobering reminder of the societal toll of bigotry, and underscores the urgent need to safeguard our public intellectuals.
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AUSTRALIA

Best of 2023: He walks among them
- Arnold Zable
- 11 January 2024
I spent memorable hours yarning with Father Bob and I accompanied the Father Bob McGuire Foundation food van on some of its nightly forays to parts of the city to provide sustenance to those in need. Invariably Father Bob would turn up at some point in the evening to lend his inimitable presence to the show.
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RELIGION

Best of 2023: The first Australian Aboriginal Liturgy
- Brian McCoy
- 11 January 2024
Fifty years ago, the Aboriginal Liturgy was the first attempt by the Catholic Church in Australia to re-shape the Mass, and was the first time we had witnessed and experienced Aboriginal people expressing their Catholic faith in ways that were culturally different from our own.
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AUSTRALIA

Best of 2023: How Australia's asylum seeker policy has evolved over thirty years
- Kerry Murphy
- 04 January 2024
Throughout recent decades of Australian history, the stance every government has taken on asylum seekers has reflected the shifting political landscapes and challenging humanitarian issues that have continually shaped Australia's response to those seeking refuge.
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AUSTRALIA

Best of 2023: Why did the referendum fail?
- Joel Hodge
- 04 January 2024
The Australian Indigenous Voice referendum has been rejected, as anticipated by many, with the meaning and consequences now up for debate. This debate may be as crucial as the referendum debate itself to determining the future of reconciliation and what it means to be Australian in the 21st century.
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AUSTRALIA

Best of 2023: Discerning the call to choose sides
- Andrew Hamilton
- 04 January 2024
2 Comments
In the war between Israel and Hamas it's essential to look beyond the simplistic dichotomies of good versus evil, exploring how historical, cultural, and political nuances shape the landscape of this enduring conflict. In a world quick to take sides, there's a need for deep understanding, underscoring the importance of balanced perspectives in seeking lasting peace and justice in a region torn by decades of strife.
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AUSTRALIA

Best of 2023: Bringing the country with us
- Frank Brennan
- 04 January 2024
As Australia approaches a pivotal referendum, voters face a critical choice: endorse a new chapter in the Constitution providing a 'First Nations Voice' or leave it untouched. Whichever way the vote goes, we will be left with a Constitution not fit for purpose in the 21st century.
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ECONOMICS

Best of 2023: Dawning multipolar world in global finance
- David James
- 04 January 2024
From Moscow to Beijing, a change in global finance looms, set to challenge the long-standing economic hegemony. This imminent shift could redefine global power structures, disrupt currency markets and international trade. Amidst this uncertainty, one thing is clear: the game of geopolitical chess is no longer played on a Western-centric board.
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ARTS AND CULTURE

Best of 2023: Tim Winton's wild nature
- David Halliday
- 04 January 2024
The name Tim Winton conjures up images of ocean surf and wild remote beaches. With four decades under his belt as Australia's most celebrated novelist, Winton has long explored the mysteries of the natural world in the pages of his novels. Now, speaking to Eureka Street, Tim Winton discusses his new documentary Ningaloo Nyinggulu and why we need to rethink our relationship to the wild.
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AUSTRALIA

Best of 2023: Voices beyond Yes and No
- Celeste Liddle
- 04 January 2024
Later this year, Australians will vote on a referendum to enshrine an Indigenous Voice to Parliament, but many Indigenous Australians remain undecided, reflecting the complexities of the issue. The debate over the Voice to Parliament extends beyond the referendum question to encompass broader concerns about the constitution, treaties, and achieving true equality.
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ARTS AND CULTURE

Best of 2023: In conversation with Helen Garner
- Paul Mitchell
- 04 January 2024
Arguably Australia’s most celebrated living author, Helen Garner has built a reputation as a fearless and unapologetic writer whose work has remained fresh and relevant for over 45 years. We sat down with Helen to explore the challenges of confessional non-fiction, her fondness for church, and her commitment to unsparing self-analysis.
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RELIGION

Best of 2023: Cardinal Pell's parting salvo raises questions for the Australian Church
- John Warhurst
- 04 January 2024
Last year, the late Cardinal George Pell anonymously published a memorandum that criticized Pope Francis and his vision of a synodal church and condemned the Synod as a ‘catastrophe’, Cardinal Pell's memo signals building tensions between different visions for the future of the Church in Australia.
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Best of 2023