Jesuit Refugee Service – Australia and the University of Western Sydney have released their report on the experience of homelessness and exclusion from housing experienced by people seeking asylum. The report found that the policies of the Federal government forced people seeking asylum into continual financial stress that detrimentally affected people’s ability to have housing, one person even staying in a small room in a car park in exchange for work.
In his message to COP26, Pope Francis said that “now is the time to act, urgently, courageously and responsibly.” Dr Sandie Cornish suggests that rather than being a cause for despair, the modest outcomes of COP26 should serve as a call to renewed action by every part of society. She reflects on COP26 and enrolling in the Laudato Si’ Action Platform.
The Australian Catholic Bishops Conference invites you to participate in A Day of Pray for Myanmar on 28 November. After decades of violence and trauma, the people of Myanmar they have now been under military rule for most of 2021. An initiative of Pax Christi, the day of prayer will see members of all faiths pray for peace and hope. A liturgy resource has been created and an ecumenical event has been planned for 7.30pm AEDT.
The International Day of People with Disability is on 3 December. The theme for the day is ‘Leadership and participation of persons with disabilities toward an inclusive, accessible and sustainable post-COVID-19 world’. Over 4.4 million people in Australia live with a disability and this United Nations observed day aims to increase awareness, understand and acceptance of people with disability and celebrate their achievements.
In this reflection from Andy Hamilton SJ, he reflects on how Advent and times of fasting and feasting reflect the difficult and joyous times in our own lives. While we wait for the joy and celebration of Christmas, we may experience difficulty, but we wait in hope for Emmanuel. Just as Jesus’ coming gives us hope in the dark, our compassion and care for others, particularly refugees and asylum seekers experiencing difficulty, can be that hope.
The Australian Catholic Anti-Slavery Network (ACAN) have released their compendium report from 45 different Catholic agencies called the ACAN Modern Slavery Statements. Over 400 million people are in slavery like conditions, and ACAN has been created to eradicate modern slavery from the supply chains of Australian Catholic agencies, in line with the Pope’s and Federal governments commitment to end modern slavery by 2030.
Today, the World Day of Prayer for the Poor, the Vatican’s Dicastery for Promoting Integral Human Development announces the launch of the next phase of the Laudato Si’ Action Platform. The ACBC Office for Justice, Ecology and Peace has played a key role in its development as a member of the Parishes and Dioceses working group.
Fr Richard Lennan, Professor of Systematic Theology at Boston College, addressed the First Assembly of the Plenary Council as one of its expert advisors. He explained that we need an ‘integral ecclesiology’ to parallel Pope Francis’ ‘integral ecology’.
In a media statement on 14 October 2021, Bishop Long welcomed the end of the Australian offshore detention program in Papua New Guinea. However durable solutions are needed for those refugees and asylum seekers who do not wish to settle there, and the program continues in Nauru.
Bishop Vincent Long, Chair of the Australian Bishops Commission for Social Justice, Mission and Service has written on the Nuclear Submarine deal by the Federal Government with the United States. “The Australian Government’s decision to buy nuclear-powered submarines has brought to the surface once again big questions around how governments should spend money, particularly during a pandemic.”