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Towering over us, as we gather here this afternoon, is a stark reminder of the stalemate that relations between Israelis and Palestinians seem to have reached – the wall. In a world where more and more borders are being opened up – to trade, to travel, to movement of peoples, to cultural exchanges – it is tragic to see walls still being erected. How we long to see the fruits of the much more difficult task of building peace! How earnestly we pray for an end to the hostilities that have caused this wall to be built! On both sides of the wall, great courage is needed if fear and mistrust is to be overcome, if the urge to retaliate for loss or injury is to be resisted. It takes magnanimity to seek reconciliation after years of fighting. Yet history has shown that peace can only come when the parties to a conflict are willing to move beyond their grievances and work together towards common goals, each taking seriously the concerns and fears of the other, striving to build an atmosphere of trust. There has to be a willingness to take bold and imaginative initiatives towards reconciliation: if each insists on prior concessions from the other, the result can only be stalemate.
Pope Benedict XVI,
Aida Refugee Camp,
Bethlehem, 13 May 2009
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The Christian vision of creation makes a positive judgment on the acceptability of human intervention in nature which also includes other living beings, and at the same time makes a strong appeal for responsibility. In effect, nature is not a sacred or divine reality that man must leave alone. Rather, it is a gift offered by the Creator to the human community, entrusted to the intelligence and moral responsibility of men and women. For this reason, the human person does not commit an illicit act when, out of respect for the order, beauty and usefulness of individual living beings and their function in the ecosystem, he intervenes by modifying some of the characteristics or properties. Human interventions that damage living beings or the natural environment deserve condemnation, while those that improve them are praiseworthy. The acceptability of the use of biological and biogenetic techniques is only one part of the ethical problem: as with every human behaviour, it is also necessary to evaluate accurately the real benefits as well as the possible interventions that have forceful and widespread impact on living organisms, with the responsibility of significant long term repercussions, it is unacceptable to act lightly or irresponsibly.
Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church
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Social Justice Sunday is 27 September. The Bishops’ Social Justice Statement is titled And You Will Be My Witnesses: Young People and Justice. It will be launched in mid-September. A summary and order forms are now available at http://www.socialjustice.catholic.org.au/
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NAIDOC Week is an annual celebration of the culture and the contribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. It runs from July 5 to July 12. This year’s theme is Honouring Our Elders, Nurturing Our Youth.
Celebrations in Brisbane will include:
- Northside Community Fun Day, Koobara Pre-School, Beams Road, Zillmere, Thursday 9 July, 10 a.m. – 3 p.m., with entertainment, stalls and children’s activities, gold coin donation entry
- Family Fun Day, Musgrave Park, South Brisbane, 9 a.m. – 3 p.m., Friday 10 July with music, dance, arts and crafts, food, stalls and children’s rides, gold coin entry.
To find out more about NAIDOC Week, go to http://www.naidoc.org.au/
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July 5 is Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Sunday in the Church. It is a day when the Church celebrates the culture and contribution of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. The National Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Catholic Council (NATSICC) has produced liturgical resources for this year’s celebration. You can find them, along with resources for previous years, at http://www.natsicc.org.au/liturgy.htm
The Commission has also issued a release urging Catholics to find out more about the achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Australians. To read the release, go to http://cjpcbrisbane.wordpress.com/
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Please join Australians for Native Title and Reconciliation (ANTaR Qld) in a series of discussion nights as part of the Learning More Program. The program will be one night a fortnight throughout August and early September. Discussion topics will include films, books, issues and reconciliation. Everyone is welcome. Please call Mark on 3844 9800 or email the office to register your interest at office@antarqld.org.au.
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The Commission has called on Premier Anna Bligh to re-think her Government’s decision to sell a number of public assets. The Commission feels that the State Government has rushed the process and not allowed the community to examine the detail of the proposal, to hear a range of expert opinion and express its views about the long term impact of these sales. For the text of the release, go to http://cjpcbrisbane.wordpress.com/
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 The Refugee Council of Australia recently released The Search for Protection: Resettled refugees reflect on seeking asylum in Asia and the Middle East. The study found that many refugees in South-East Asia and the Middle East are living in constant fear of arrest and
deportation and regularly experience harassment and exploitation, regardless of whether they have UN High Commission for Refugees registration or not. You will find a link to this report on the front page of the Council’s web site at http://www.refugeecouncil.org.au/ |
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The 2009 Queensland Climate Summit will be held on the weekend of 25 and 26 july at the Innes Room of the Students Union Building at the University of Queensland, St Lucia. The summit will run from 9 a.m.to 5 p.m. each day. Registration is open to any organisation or individual interested in community-led action on climate change and who wants to help build a strong community-based climate network in Queensland. For more details and registration, go to http://www.climatesummit.org.au/qld/.
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Anti- Poverty Week runs from 11 to 18 October. It aims to raise awareness about the causes and consequences of poverty locally and globally and to promote action to address it. Parishes, schools and groups are encouraged to organise events and activities during the week. You can download useful promotional material, fact sheets and other resources at http://www.antipovertyweek.org.au/ . If you would like an electronic resource kit to help you organise an event, either contact the Commission at arndtp@bne.catholic.net.au or the State Facilitating Committee for the Week at qld@antipovertyweek.org.au
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The situation for displaced civilians after the end of the civil war in Sri Lanka remains very grim. Aid agencies and independent observers still do not have free access to camps in the north of the country. The Commission is continuing to urge the Federal Government to take strong action to protect the human rights of Sri Lankans affected by the conflict and we urge you to continue to send messages to MPs and Senators asking for action to:
- Enable free access of aid agencies to camps for internally displaced people
- Undertake an independent investigation of human rights violations committed during the civil war
- Establish a process to address the grievances of Sri Lanka’s Tamil minority
This will only remain a matter of importance for the Federal Government if MPs and Senators continue to receive expressions of concern and calls for action from constituents. So, please send brief e-mails to Senators and MPs asking them to urge the Government to support the above actions. The contact details for all MPs and Senators can be found at http://www.aph.gov.au/,
The e-mail addresses for some of the Queensland Senators you may wish to approach are:
Senator Brett Mason senator.mason@aph.gov.au
Senator Mark Ferner senator.ferner@aph.gov.au
Senator Sue Boyce senator.boyce@aph.gov.au
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5 – 12 July
NAIDOC week
19 July
North Pine River Winter Walk – from 10 a.m. at Petrie, finishing with optional BYO barbecue, phone 3425 3138 or email earthlink@mercy.org.au to register your interest.
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