Reflection triggered by “that” deportation

#Bloganuary Writing Prompt: What is a cause you’re passionate about and why? News just broke of his deportationTennis can’t save his mixed reputationOz immigration brooks no mitigationOutrage and sorrow split more than this nation. Yet refugees linger long through the years Detained indefinitely for fleeing their fearsSplit from family, self, friends and their peersAll butContinue reading “Reflection triggered by “that” deportation”

Radical Palm Sunday

This Sunday’s Palm Sunday Walk for Refugees from Perth’s St George’s Cathedral will repeat a tradition that has grown over recent years. Palm Sunday events commemorate the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem riding the colt of a donkey – the ultimate symbol of peace. It was a high festival time in Jerusalem with pilgrims fromContinue reading “Radical Palm Sunday”

Can good arise from a mess?

I have spent a lot of time with people trying to find their way through chaos. Some situations are just so daunting you wonder if anyone can see a way through to the next step, let alone an exit to clearer space where the air is fresh and the whisper of freedom can be heard. Continue reading “Can good arise from a mess?”

Advent Voices – the subversive Magnificat

What a strong, evocative, celebratory song is Mary’s Magnificat! And it is highly political, even seditious. If an agent of either Caesar or Herod the Great had been eavesdropping on Mary as she visited her cousin Elizabeth, neither of these women would have survived to tell the story. Mary’s song, however, has become a trans-seasonalContinue reading “Advent Voices – the subversive Magnificat”

Holy Week Action

The story of Holy Week sometimes begins with Jesus “cleansing the Temple” – turning over money trading tables and driving out sacrificial animals being sold under extortion. An arresting offence, no doubt, and certainly would have been a factor in his eventual capture and trial a few days later. In Perth we see Holy WeekContinue reading “Holy Week Action”

What drives Palm Sunday Peace Parades?

On Sunday, many thousands will march for peace. In Perth, leaving from St George’s Cathedral at 1 pm, those gathered will join others around the country in marching for justice for refugees. Inspiration for Palm Sunday Marches has a long tradition of drawing on the story of Jesus riding into Jerusalem on the eve ofContinue reading “What drives Palm Sunday Peace Parades?”

New asylum seeker campaign ‘distasteful’ and ’embarrassing’

New asylum seeker campaign ‘distasteful’ and ’embarrassing’. Just when you think the Australian Government can do no worse in its cruel and dispiriting treatment of maritime asylum seekers, it pulls another rabbit out of the hat. This so-called low key cartoon strip campaign does little more than throw down a challenge to those desperate to fleeContinue reading “New asylum seeker campaign ‘distasteful’ and ’embarrassing’”

Three New Year Symbols

Scarcely had the New Year started to roll across the world’s last continent  than we on the first one were returning from a New Year’s Day service at Wesley Uniting, Perth. This is where we usually go when I have a Sunday off… it’s only a 15 minute drive, far enough away to feel we’veContinue reading “Three New Year Symbols”