Vol 34 No 23

18 November 2024

RELIGION

How the Synod quietly redefined disability in the Church
- Justin Glyn
- 30 November 2024
2 Comments
The Synod on Synodality has quietly rewritten the Church’s relationship with disability, shifting from a legacy of marginalisation to a vision of equality and dignity. This historic move acknowledges past failings while championing the rights of disabled people as full participants in faith and society. But does the rhetoric match reality?
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AUSTRALIA

Housing is a human right. It's time it became law
- Kevin Bell
- 29 November 2024
2 Comments
With unaffordable housing pushing families into impossible choices, homelessness affecting 120,000 people, and systemic inequities deepening, we must ask: What kind of society do we want to build — and for whom?
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ENVIRONMENT

Can an economy prosper without endless growth?
- Phil Jones
- 28 November 2024
1 Comment
Infinite economic growth on a finite planet is a paradox we can no longer ignore. As environmental crises deepen, solutions like the Steady State Economy offer a roadmap to balance sustainability and prosperity. Yet, transitioning from growth-centric systems raises hard questions: Can we create an economy that values life over profit?
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INTERNATIONAL

What's it like being Donald Trump?
- Mark Beeson
- 28 November 2024
2 Comments
What does Donald Trump’s improbable return to the White House have to do with the mysteries of consciousness? Quite a lot, actually. From the psychology of a man shaped by relentless egotism to the social dynamics of his base, we scrabble for insights into what a Trump second term could mean for our fractured world.
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ENVIRONMENT

How Laudato Si’ inspired a global movement for sufficiency
- David Ness
- 28 November 2024
2 Comments
As the climate crisis deepens, there's an urgent need for a global shift toward fairness, equity, and living well within our planet’s limits. Drawing from Pope Francis’s Laudato Si’, sufficiency thinking offers a critical, overlooked pathway to global equity and sustainability.
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ENVIRONMENT

On worldbuilding
- Michael McVeigh
- 28 November 2024
Following an underwhelming COP29 climate summit, many are grappling with a collective climate despair in light of sobering news that the 1.5-degree warming target is no longer achievable. How should we confront such a reality while working to build a better, more sustainable world with a sense of hope?
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AUSTRALIA

Could re-thinking charities solve the cost-of-living crisis?
- Joe Zabar
- 28 November 2024
As cost-of-living pressures weigh heavily on Australians, could mission-driven organisations like charities and not-for-profits disrupt markets by prioritising people over profit? Empowering these organisations to compete in key markets may result in more equitable systems that address community needs.
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AUSTRALIA

What happened to the Greens?
- Erica Cervini
- 25 November 2024
4 Comments
Once seen as the champions of climate action and progressive politics, the Greens are now grappling with internal chaos, falling poll numbers, and a disillusioned voter base. From controversies over identity politics to disputes about housing and Middle East policies, the party is facing a critical question: What do they stand for today?
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AUSTRALIA

Inviting in and locking out
- Andrew Hamilton
- 25 November 2024
4 Comments
Social Inclusion Week invites reflection on our shared humanity amidst deep divides. From childhood cliques to culture wars, the tension between inclusion and exclusion is a paradox rooted in belonging. Can we overcome fear and forge connections across difference, or will anxiety keep us apart? The answer shapes our society’s future.
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AUSTRALIA

The spirituality of KFC
- Michael McGirr
- 22 November 2024
3 Comments
There’s this other place that is neither heaven nor earth but which you might find in the car park of the third busiest KFC in Melbourne, waiting for your son to finish his shift. A bin beside the car is overflowing with all the packaging that comes with fast food, not to mention the remains of poor dead chooks whose life it is hard to imagine.
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INTERNATIONAL

Don Watson's elegy for an imperfect union
- Barry Gittins
- 22 November 2024
1 Comment
Before the U.S. election, Don Watson predicted the electoral victory of Trump in his essay High Noon, an exploration of a divided America teetering on the edge. Dissecting the economic, racial, and cultural forces that led to a Republican landslide reveals an imperfect union at its most vulnerable.
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INTERNATIONAL

The human cost of war
- Michele Gierck
- 21 November 2024
2 Comments
The war reports we hear on the news often focus on statistics: casualties, destruction, and key figures lost. But the true cost of conflict lies in the long-term human suffering. For those living through war, the trauma endures long after the fighting stops.
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ARTS AND CULTURE

A guitar that sings to the universe
- Warwick McFadyen
- 21 November 2024
David Gilmour’s latest album, Luck and Strange, emerges as a meditative masterpiece, steeped in themes of time, mortality, and the currents of life. With Gilmour’s unmistakable playing style, the album channels the introspection of an artist reflecting on paths taken and those left behind.
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INTERNATIONAL

Reading the entrails of an election
- Andrew Hamilton
- 21 November 2024
5 Comments
As Australia watches the U.S. navigate its Trump-era transition, we wait in uncertainty. Any interregnum period is a time for rethinking, for wondering about our own nation, and not just for focusing on another. It is a time to rethink what we have taken granted about what is for the good of Australian society.
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RELIGION

Astute stewards: Implementing the Synod
- Bill Uren
- 20 November 2024
7 Comments
Will the recommendations of the Synod on Synodality inspire lasting change or risk losing momentum? With bishops balancing tradition and reform, the coming year will determine whether this moment becomes one of true transformation.
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ARTS AND CULTURE

Gladiator II: Are you not entertained?
- Eddie Hampson
- 20 November 2024
1 Comment
Ridley Scott’s Gladiator II promises grandeur. Paul Mescal dazzles, Denzel Washington commands, and sharks make their sword-and-sandals debut. But spectacle overshadows story in a sequel that’s more baffling than breathtaking. Are we entertained? Sort of.
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INTERNATIONAL

Is America ready for a tycoon President again?
- David James
- 18 November 2024
4 Comments
Donald Trump's first term, marred by impeachments, bureaucratic resistance and a pandemic, offered few answers as to how a businessperson might navigate the complexities of Washington. Now, as he returns to office, Trump’s business instincts — and their implications for governance — are once again under scrutiny.
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RELIGION

Why don't we hear about violence against Christians?
- Michael McVeigh
- 18 November 2024
7 Comments
Religious persecution often fades from public view unless it fits a political agenda. Yet Christians worldwide continue to face existential threats, from systemic repression in China to deadly violence in Nigeria. It’s worth reflecting on the cost of indifference and what it means to advocate for justice beyond our culture wars.
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Vol 34 No 23