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Keywords: Bruce Duncan

  • ENVIRONMENT

    Opportunities on a crowded planet

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 05 July 2011
    14 Comments

    Unless countries are prepared to implement draconian birth-control policies like China's, realistically there is no alternative but to prepare for a world of 9 billion people. But the increase in global population need not provoke a catastrophe.

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  • ARTS AND CULTURE

    No apologies for Howard's unjust war

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 20 December 2010
    7 Comments

    With no hint of regret or apology, John Howard has defended his decision to join the 2003 invasion of Iraq. He gives no consideration to the just war criteria. This is not surprising, as on all these principles the case for a just war fails.

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  • AUSTRALIA

    Don't despair of election 'race to the bottom'

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 06 August 2010

    The election has been plagued by trivial spats and personality conflicts, to the neglect of policies based on the values of equity and social justice for everyone. This reinforces the importance of church and community groups being more active in their social advocacy.

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  • INFORMATION

    Disagreeing with Gerard Henderson

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 12 March 2010
    1 Comment

    Dr Henderson does Maritain a grave injustice in so cavalierly dismissing him as favouring the 'you-beaut idea to advocate Catholic/communist dialogue'. Maritain was strongly opposed to communist ideology, but he also recognised it contained positive elements, some of which he said were drawn with the Gospels.

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  • INFORMATION

    Santamaria and the bishops in politics

    • Gerard Henderson
    • 11 March 2010
    2 Comments

    Towards the end of his life, the French philosopher Jacques Maritan thought it was a you-beaut idea to advocate Catholic/communist dialogue between the Vatican and Stalin's heirs in Moscow. Santamaria made mistakes, yet on the issue of Soviet totalitarianism he was smarter than Maritan. 

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  • AUSTRALIA

    Rosemary Goldie and the Santamaria Split

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 10 March 2010
    12 Comments

    In July 1953, the Vatican's agent Rosemary Goldie — who died on 27 February — met Santamaria but was unable to convince him of the need to keep Catholic Action out of direct political involvements. She was dismayed by the Movement's defiance of clear directives from the Holy See.

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  • RELIGION

    Pope's fighting words for a world in crisis

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 07 January 2010
    8 Comments

    In his World Day of Peace statement for 2010, the Pope again highlights the urgency of responding to climate change. Pope Benedict has had major problems in communicating this message, notably a lack of journalistic expertise to make his documents more readable.

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  • RELIGION

    Pope confronts economic injustice

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 10 July 2009
    4 Comments

    The Pope's encyclical on social teaching is not a strident critique of capitalism, but it does confront abuses in the global economy. Benedict is critical of the free market ideology which extolled wealth creation but ignored the need for equity and social justice.

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  • RELIGION

    The popes versus the free market

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 02 April 2009
    7 Comments

    In his forthcoming response to the global financial crisis, Pope Benedict does not have to reinvent the wheel. Catholic social writings have long insisted that economics must be directed to serve the good of everyone, not just the rich.

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  • ARTS AND CULTURE

    Obama vs the 'ethic of greed'

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 30 January 2009
    6 Comments

    Obama embraced Christianity because of his involvement with church groups, sustaining the moral vision of oppressed blacks. He has sketched a vision of social renewal that overlaps closely with Catholic and Christian social thought.

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  • RELIGION

    Reality check for antisocial Church

    • Bruce Duncan
    • 02 October 2008
    15 Comments

    There is tension in the churches between those focused on piety and those engaged with social justice. Benedict's document on globalisation will presumably stress that concern for social justice is essential to the Church's mission.

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  • AUSTRALIA

    Between overs

    • Morag Fraser
    • 07 July 2006

    Welcome to our Summer issue. As we prepared this holiday edition it was raining in Victoria.

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