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Keywords: Stray Thoughts

  • MEDIA

    On lying

    • Michele Frankeni
    • 15 October 2024

    Two years ago to the month, I wrote in this column of my despair and disgust of the impunity with which society leaders and politicians didn’t just shade the truth, but buried it six-feet deep and then gleefully stomped on it. In the past week, a couple of things reminded me of that piece and about the role truth plays in our public discourse. It reminded me how fragile our grasp on reality has become, and why that matters.   

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  • RELIGION

    Gerry O'Collins: Seeking the good, true and beautiful

    • Julian Butler
    • 26 August 2024

    Gerry had a wonderful way of making people feel welcome. He wanted to see people at their best and his company allowed others to be so. Gerry’s life was peopled by some of the most significant figures in the global Church, and in political and cultural society more broadly, but he wore those connections lightly. 

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  • AUSTRALIA

    Taking measures

    • Andrew Hamilton
    • 25 October 2023
    1 Comment

    Stray thoughts are ideally as light as leaves drifting in the wind, which land without making a mark. This week, however, thoughts and words drop as heavily as the hearts of Indigenous Australians after the Referendum on the Voice and the families killed in Israel and Gaza. Prose doesn’t cut it.

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  • INTERNATIONAL

    Cheers for the five-hat royals

    • Michele Frankeni
    • 22 May 2023
    1 Comment

    During the Coronation of King Charles III, six family members from households scattered across the world unite via Messenger to share real-time commentary. The occasion was less a celebration of tradition than a moment of cross-continental bonding, reminding us of the enduring power of human connection.

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  • INTERNATIONAL

    Cave at the Coronation

    • Julian Butler
    • 16 May 2023
    1 Comment

    Unlikley relationships surfaced at the Coronation as Nick Cave, rock star and writer, arrived walking alongside Rowan Williams, former Archbishop of Canterbury. Cave's journey, shaped by the loss of his son, has revealed the transformative power of finding solace amidst tragedy and forging unexpected connections.

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  • INTERNATIONAL

    A little more conversation a little less action

    • Michele Frankeni
    • 17 April 2023

    Dutch supermarket chain Jumbo has introduced 'Kletskassa' or 'chat checkouts' for customers who want a little conversation with the cashier. In today's automated world, where human interactions are increasingly impersonal, small moments of human connection can make a big difference in combatting loneliness in our communities.

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  • INTERNATIONAL

    Happy International Women's Day

    • Michele Frankeni
    • 15 March 2023

    International Women's Day highlighted progress and setbacks for women's rights, with stories of unequal pay, abuse, and education denial. Education and literacy are vital to gender equality, but global access is still limited. As we celebrate the journey towards gender equality, let's remember the distance that remains.

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  • AUSTRALIA

    Death notices

    • Julian Butler
    • 08 March 2023

    From RSL clubs to beloved aunts and uncles, the death notices page is a tapestry of stories. How can we publicly share the death and celebrate the life of those for whom we are responsible, and how do these accounts weave together to form a picture of our community?

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  • INTERNATIONAL

    Saying goodbye

    • Michele Frankeni
    • 07 February 2023
    1 Comment

    When she felt she could not fulfil her duties as a leader with the energy and commitment that it required, Jacinda Ardern stepped away from the job. She made a point of saying that though there will be speculation about her walking away, it was nothing more complicated than the job required more commitment than she felt able to bring.

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  • AUSTRALIA

    The case for holidays

    • Andrew Hamilton
    • 31 January 2023

    They take us to unexpected places, to wonder at the beauty of places we have passed by and, dangerously, to ask ourselves where we want most deeply to sail. Holidays can be the call of the Sirens who schemed to lure Odysseus on to the rocks. But they can also be the request that drew Peter to take Jesus into his boat.

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  • AUSTRALIA

    Navigating the tensions of our national holiday

    • Julian Butler
    • 27 January 2023
    2 Comments

    Amidst concern for the painful experience of First Nations peoples on Australia Day, and a desire for justice I find myself bouncing between question of moving the date, and all the strands of what the day means and represents.

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  • AUSTRALIA

    Best laid plans and parks

    • Andrew Hamilton
    • 12 December 2022

    Parks are gifts, not only of nature but of people who have recognised how important they are for good human living and have guarded them. Recent generations have been less generous in providing parks and in protecting them from encroachment. At a time when the survival of the earth as we know it depends on our treasuring the beauty and delicacy of the natural world, such neglect is disrespectful.

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