Link Highlights | February 2017

Saturday, 4 March 2017 | Ethos editor

Link highlights – February 2017

Below is a selection of links to online news and opinion pieces from February 2017. To keep up-to-date with our posts, ‘like’ us on Facebook and/or follow us on Twitter.

The articles below are selected by the editor, Armen Gakavian, at his discretion. Neither the editor nor Ethos necessarily endorse the views expressed in these articles.

Film reviews

‘In these days when racism and sexism are highlighted all the more in our political leaders,’ writes Nils von Kalm, ‘this is a movie for our time.’

https://www.sightmagazine.com.au/reviews/on-the-screen/films/7056-on-the-screen-hidden-figures-confronts-some-hard-truths-both-historic-and-contemporary

Abortion

Trump's abortion funding ban provides an opportunity for organisations to consider whether there might in fact be other more compassionate, supportive, liberating solutions that they can offer to women, writes Rachael Wong.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/02/4613374.htm

Why do the abortion and refugee debates matter for America's common life? ‘The United States is fragmented. It is not a happy nation. The threats from without are really downstream indicators of a domestic strife which can feel like civil war by political proxy’, explains C.C. Pecknold.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/01/31/4612089.htm

Two researchers have argued that women have a right to abortion, but no right to kill a foetus. So what if the foetus could survive after removing it from the womb? Michael Cook writes.

https://www.bioedge.org/bioethics/rara-avis-in-terris-a-new-abortion-argument/12179

Does abortion have a ‘spiritual purpose’? No matter which side of the abortion debate you’re on, Kassi Underwood will challenge your beliefs, writes Jonathan Merritt.

http://religionnews.com/2017/02/14/this-womans-abortion-story-will-challenge-your-beliefs-no-matter-what-they-are/

More abortions would hurt more women. With every abortion, the toll is one dead, one wounded, writes Julie Borger.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18871

Asylum seekers, refugees and immigration

Should religious-minority refugees in the Middle East be prioritized?

Samuel Tadros writes that, while banning refugees based on their religion is morally repugnant, one that prioritizes the more vulnerable, even on the basis of collectively belonging to religious groups, is not.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/01/31/4612148.htm

Lawful or not, Trump's executive order on Muslim immigration is a blatant act of social division. The bigger task of opposition to Trump will be to resist not only his actions, but his categories of judgement, writes Anna Rowlands.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/01/4612516.htm

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/01/31/4612089.htm

Trump’s executive order will make it harder for Christians and other victims of the Islamic State to leave the Middle East, and make life more dangerous for those who stay, argues former Obama administration official Tom Malinowski.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/05/opinion/donald-trumps-phony-compassion-for-christians.html

We are deluding ourselves if we do not see Trump’s immigration ban as the culmination of policies which have been years in development, writes Justin Glyn.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50559#.WJz3FxKGP_Q

Trump is a test of Christianity in America.

A majority of evangelical Christians and Catholics may have backed Trump, but in the wake of the attempt to ban refugees and immigrants from majority Muslim countries, many Christians have swung against him, writes Toni Hassan.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/comment/what-type-of-christian-backs-donald-trump-20170209-gu92li.html

A comparison of Coalition and Labor government asylum policies in Australia since 2001 - February 2017 update, by Janet Phillips.

http://apo.org.au/node/73093

The term ‘genuine refugee’ is thrown around often, yet many take for granted the complicated process of how someone is deemed to be one. So, what is a refugee? And how does the Australian government make the decision? Mary Anne Kenny writes.

https://theconversation.com/explainer-how-australia-decides-who-is-a-genuine-refugee-72574

Bioethics

Is our hesitation over human-animal hybrids just a matter of own moral superiority? How does the Christian understanding of 'image of God' speak to this question?

https://theconversation.com/wary-of-human-animal-hybrids-its-probably-just-your-own-moral-superiority-72720

Capital punishment

The death penalty may well satisfy justice, but if so, that is all it does. For it cuts off abruptly the possibilities for a wrongdoer to discover the sort of redemption that transcends justice, writes Richard Shumack.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/03/4614005.htm

Alex C Smith responds to Richard Shumack’s Fifty Years Without the Death Penalty, Australia Should be Grateful.

‘What if the aim of punishment was to help the perpetrator fully comprehend the physical and psychological damage done - to deeply understand their actions from the victim’s perspective? ... Because of this, I don’t think the death penalty alone ever satisfies justice - at most it might be a step towards it.’

https://reforminghell.com/2017/02/12/engaging-shumack-justice-and-the-death-penalty/

Child abuse

Eternity Magazine speaks with Joanne McCarthy, the journalist who spearheaded the Newcastle Herald’s ‘Shine the light’ campaign on child abuse.

https://www.eternitynews.com.au/australia/shining-the-light-on-church-abuse/

Cities

The spatial layout of any environment can foster relational interaction or snuff it out, and public spaces shape certain social interactions. Michael Frost suggests the kinds of questions we should ask when exploring social interactions in our neighbourhood.

http://mikefrost.net/homepage/build-cities-cities-build-us/

Corporal punishment

The bishops are in denial that there is a connection between the caning of young men and a theology of the atonement, writes Giles Fraser.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/belief/2017/feb/09/the-churchs-strategy-on-protecting-the-child-is-designed-to-protect-itself

Domestic violence and sexual assault

While Thordis Elva And Tom Stranger's TED Talk on rape is to be celebrated, forgiveness is rarely the answer, writes Natalie Collins.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/thordis.elva.and.tom.strangers.shocking.ted.talk.why.forgiveness.is.rarely.the.answer/104652.htm

Should bystanders intervene in sexual harassment?

https://theconversation.com/bystanders-often-dont-intervene-in-sexual-harassment-but-should-they-72794

Disability

One of the biggest barriers to people with disability getting a job is the culture of low expectation, writes Kelly Vincent MLC from the Dignity Party.

https://probonoaustralia.com.au/news/2017/02/soft-bigotry-low-expectations/

Economics

The basic idea of trickle-down economics is that giving economic help to companies or people at the top of society should generate benefits for those in layers further down, explains Gigi Foster.

https://theconversation.com/explainer-trickle-down-economics-73062

Many Australians, including the Prime Minister, have expressed outrage at recent reports of Australia Post CEO Ahmed Fahour’s taxpayer-funded $5.6m paypacket. Nick Dyrenfurth writes.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/feb/17/self-regulation-is-dead-we-need-a-new-way-to-rein-in-excessive-executive-pay

End of Life

All human life is sacred, a wonderful gift of God. So we care for each person as well as we possibly can, doing our very best to make their lives as full of opportunity and as free of pain as we're able.

But in that sentence there are already caveats – it's full of ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’. What happens when resources don't stretch as far as we'd like and we can't educate or heal or care for everyone as these children of God need or deserve? Mark Woods writes.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/locked.in.patients.are.happy.what.does.this.say.about.the.right.to.life/104327.htm

So, what happens after a euthanasia or assisted suicide death occurs and the doctor is found not to have fulfilled one or more of the criteria set down in the law? There should be a charge of homicide, writes Paul Russell.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18820

If we are not free to end our lives, with assistance if necessary, then we are not free at all, argues David Leyonhjelm.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18829

What can we learn from Indigenous wisdom in the euthanasia debate?

‘The cultures of indigenous peoples are more cognisant of the need to protect the community as a whole, not just the claims of an individual person, which could be one reason they reject euthanasia’, writes Margaret Sommerville.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/16/4621305.htm

Environment

As renewable energy projects are rolled out in cities around the world, we spoke to companies and organisations working in the sector to find out what’s happening and what to expect.

http://www.dailyclimate.org/t/-4504614185913431166

Evil

People do evil when they stop thinking and find easy ways to define themselves, argues Hannah Arendt.

http://www.ethics.org.au/on-ethics/blog/february-2017/hannah-arendt-on-work-evil-politics

Food

Are You What You Eat? Christopher Mayes writes that eating is a set of social practices that structure ways of relating with others.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/20/4623027.htm

Food waste in the age of hunger, by Francine Crimmins.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50659#.WLN0BhKGP_Q

Forgiveness

While Thordis Elva And Tom Stranger's TED Talk on rape is to be celebrated, forgiveness is rarely the answer, writes Natalie Collins.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/thordis.elva.and.tom.strangers.shocking.ted.talk.why.forgiveness.is.rarely.the.answer/104652.htm

Gender

Trump, masculinity and class: without work, men feel no longer able to 'provide' for their families, feel worthless and emasculated, writes Colin Long.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50575#.WKGDnBKGM0o

Globalisation

Many defenders of globalisation express frustration at what they see as Trump’s ignorant and self-defeating backlash against its virtues. But they have no answer to the most pressing questions, writes David James.

http://eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50571#.WJz0zBKGM0o

Indigenous affairs

The Redfern Statement, spearheaded by the National Congress of Australia's First Peoples, calls for 'a more just approach to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs'.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-14/what-is-the-redfern-statement/8267146

Government inquiries offering creative solutions will not change anything without government action and funding of frontline community-based services, writes Kate Galloway.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50626#.WKQCvRKGP_R

In his Closing the Gap address, Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull said despite having successive state and Commonwealth governments committed to closing the gaps faced by First Australians, there was much more work to do.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-02-14/malcolm-turnbulls-closing-the-gap-address/8268982

Real progress for Aboriginal people is still not happening, and won’t happen until there is a Treaty, writes @IndigenousX host Steve Bunbadgee Hodder.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/feb/13/victories-for-indigenous-people-are-always-short-lived-thats-why-we-need-a-treaty-now

What is needed is a new relationship, and the best path toward one is being charted by Indigenous Australians in a series of dialogues on what constitutional recognition should look like and mean, writes Michael Gordon.

http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-opinion/shocking-close-the-gap-report-shows-need-for-new-relationship-between-black-and-white-australians-20170214-gucmo5.html

Have things improved since Kevin Rudd's apology to the Stolen Generations nine years ago? Luke Pearson explains 10 things you should know about the National Apology.

http://www.sbs.com.au/nitv/article/2017/02/13/10-things-you-should-know-about-national-apology

The premise of colonisation that Australia belonged to no one has informed the relationship between Indigenous people and the nation state from its very inception, and Indigenous sovereignty unsettles White Australia, writes Aileen Moreton-Robinson.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/21/4623659.htm

Inequality

Our governments are elected by the middle class to serve the middle class, and no major political party is interested in winning the vote of Australia’s poor, writes David Leyonhjelm.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18854&page=0

Justice

Food waste in the age of hunger, by Francine Crimmins.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50659#.WLN0BhKGP_Q

Law, human rights and free speech

Is Trump right to get rid of the Johnson Amendment, whereby churches lose tax exempt status if they speak for or against a political candidate?

Here’s an argument against: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/trump.wants.to.let.your.pastor.do.party.politics.heres.why.its.a.bad.idea/104389.htm.

And here’s an argument for: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/why.donald.trump.is.right.and.brave.to.get.rid.of.the.johnson.amendment/104397.htm.

The men and women who work for the federal government completed these and other tasks and then returned to their families, where perhaps they had dinner and read stories to their children before bedtime, writes Chris Edelson.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-airport-inhumanity-20170206-story.html

Trump’s Religious Freedom Order Won’t Help the Baker, Florist, and Photographer Federal protections will only go so far in the complicated tussle between faith and LGBT rights, writes Kate Shellnutt.

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2017/february-web-only/trumps-religious-freedom-order-wont-help-baker-florist-and-.html

Luther 500

Damian Thompson explains why he won't be celebrating the 500th anniversary of the Reformation.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/why.it.is.wrong.to.pretend.that.catholics.and.protestants.agree.reformation500/104328.htm

500 years after Luther, what is the relationship between evangelical Christians and the Roman Catholic church? The Evangelical Alliance has issued a statement looking at the ongoing points of divergence and convergence between the two parts of the Church.

http://www.eauk.org/church/tag/evangelicals-and-the-reformation-500-years-on.cfm

Moral philosophy

How liberal or conservative a person is predicts how likely they are to believe information about potential hazards, a new UCLA-led study has found.

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-02/uoc--pac020217.php

Ethics is the best guide through times of political instability, argues Simon Longstaff. Whether you find the new era exciting or frightening, you won’t survive it if you don’t know what you believe in.

http://www.ethics.org.au/on-ethics/blog/february-2017/frenzy-despair-navigating-our-new-political-era

In A World Of Fake News, Is Fake Theology Next? Jesus wasn't a refugee – at least not in the minds of the presenters of Fox & Friends, writes Martin Saunders.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/in.a.world.of.fake.news.is.fake.theology.next/104353.htm

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-airport-inhumanity-20170206-story.html

Is empathy a useful concept? Or is it, as Oliver Moody suggests, dangerous, causing us to help only the people we identify with?

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/the-times/empathy-is-a-hopeless-substitute-for-action/news-story/240bccaff6e417c4ddf1ae5dde163650

Surely empathy’s a good thing? Not necessarily, says Paul Bloom: it’s generally a bad moral guide, and can lead to indifference and even cruelty. Douglas Murray reviews Paul Bloom's Against Empathy: The Case for Rational Compassion.

http://www.spectator.co.uk/2017/01/surely-empathys-a-good-thing/

What do the Abrahamic religious traditions say about lying? Kimberly Winston writes.

http://religionnews.com/2017/02/16/thou-shalt-not-speak-alternative-facts-religion-and-lying/

Do facts change our minds? New discoveries about the human mind show the limitations of reason, writes Elizabeth Kolbert.

http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/t/6006592648193058025

Trump's 1984 is Turnbull's Animal Farm, writes Brian Matthews.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50644#.WKyhfRKGP_Q

Thomas More's personal identity was tied to his public persona, the totality of decisions he took in the presence of others. He engaged throughout his life in a ‘critical crowdsourcing’ of his identity.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/23/4624875.htm

Nationalism, patriotism and extremism

You cannot pledge allegiance to a nation state and its flag and the name of God, for God has no political boundary. A ‘Christian Nation’ is absolutely heretical, writes Sufjan Stevens.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/02/09/stop-repeating-the-heresy-of-declaring-the-united-states-a-christian-nation/

Because it fastens onto something that is inevitably a mixture of good and evil, love of country is always a mixture of gratitude, pain, joy, sorrow, pride, shame and sometimes guilt, writes Raimond Gaita.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/01/25/4609096.htm

Neurology

Humans are hard-wired to follow the path of least resistance, a new UCL study finds. What are the implications of this for moral categories such as 'laziness' and 'lack of self-control'?

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-02/ucl-hah022017.php

How your brain makes articles go viral: our brain determines what we want to read and share, such that brain scans from a small group of people can predict large-scale virality.

https://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2017-02/uop-hyb022217.php

Politics, society & ideology

Australia is a place that prides itself on the fair go. And yet, all is clearly not well. The state of the nation starts in your street, writes Hugh Mackay.

https://theconversation.com/hugh-mackay-the-state-of-the-nation-starts-in-your-street-72264

The problem with conservatism is not that ‘sometimes they’re far too slow to accept change’ but that on the great moral issues of our time they’re nearly always far too slow to accept change, writes Scott Higgins.

http://scottjhiggins.com/the-problem-with-conservatism/

Those who find themselves on the right in politics are often not very conservative, writes.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/feb/06/the-guardian-view-on-decent-conservatives-we-need-them?CMP=fb_gu

But in the end the Trumps and Bernardis of this new reactionary conservative movement will – without Jesus – head towards self-interest just as readily as the Left did, writes Stephen McAlpine.

https://stephenmcalpine.com/2017/02/08/bernardi-christianiti/

In these turbulent times, we need to respond to ressentiment - the self-poisoning of the mind - with what one scripture calls 'the more excellent way' of love, writes Martin E. Marty.

https://divinity.uchicago.edu/sightings/whats-ressentiment-got-do-it

Post-liberalism: led by Theresa May, the right has stolen a march on the left by appearing to break with the liberal economics of trickle-down wealth, arguing for a greater balance of interests among social groups at the service of the common good, writes Adrian Pabst.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/14/4619462.htm

Christians cannot just be content with a now challenged liberalism, whether economic or cultural. They must also regard with horror any atavistic or even neo-fascist alternative, writes John Milbank.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/16/4621192.htm

‘What if, instead of being volatile, the electorate knows exactly what it is doing?’

We need not remain tied to the conditions that have created the underlying malaise affecting the world. There is reason to hope that we might heal our political breach and make our world whole again, writes Simon Longstaff.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/09/4617134.htm

‘…you have to fight the cynics and the crazies and the creeps from the moment they appear. Do not think that you can ignore the extremes, as the centre left did, or buy them off, as Cameron thought he could.’

How the lunatic fringe conquered world politics: the left and the right ignored the extremists and we ended up with Brexit and Trump, writes Nick Cohen.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/feb/11/how-the-lunatic-fringe-conquered-world-politics-brexit-donald-trump

What are the signs of an existential crisis and what can we do about it? Ruth Ostrow writes.

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/life/world-gone-mad-prompts-return-to-a-state-of-existential-crisis/news-story/7be144aa170988f9efbcf22bcc93c127

The flames of hatred and division have long been burning in Australian politics, and everything is not OK, writes Tim Robertson.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50637#.WK4wgBKGP_S

We live in a time of great uncertainty and confusion. Events keep happening that seem inexplicable and out of control. And those who are supposed to be in power are paralysed.

HyperNormalisation, produced by British filmmaker Adam Curtis, is the epic story of how we got to this strange place and why we cannot understand them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-fny99f8amM

Liberalism and Boredom: How Peace and Prosperity Precipitated a Populist Revolt.

It is because liberal regimes seem so robust, so good at making sure things turn out alright no matter what we vote for, that people today feel so free to vote against liberalism itself, writes Thomas Wells.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/08/4616603.htm

Porgressives have been better at diagnosing the problem than charting a new course, and progressive parties have overwhelmingly failed to develop alternative policies, writes Josh Bornstein.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/commentisfree/2017/feb/25/just-as-neoliberalism-is-finally-on-its-knees-so-too-is-the-left

Political rhetoric such as Donald Trump’s resonates with people who see some groups as not only socially marginal but also as marginally human. This creates a cycle of mutual hostility, distrust and disdain, writes Nick Haslam.

https://theconversation.com/trump-and-the-cycle-of-dehumanisation-73319

Polling for Fairfax Media’s Political Persona Project shows our collective preferences can be contradictory, or very hard to interpret, writes Matt Wade.

http://www.smh.com.au/comment/voters-dont-know-what-they-really-want-20170210-guah6l.html

Religion & spirituality

Secular society largely rejects the division between mortal body and immortal soul and has called the Church's bluff on what happens after death, writes Peter Sellick.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18823

In an age dominated by hard materialism, Tim Winton stands out as someone who believes the material aspects of life are bound up in the spiritual. Which means questions of justice have an eternal ring to them, writes Simon Smart.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/07/4615597.htm

In Camas Lilies, Lynn Ungar takes subtle, complex and elusive experiences and make them accessible without diminishing the mystery.

https://simoncareyholt.wordpress.com/2017/02/11/gone-to-the-fields-to-be-lovely/

Religion in society

We pretend to be ambivalent about religion, but half of the Australian population still call themselves Christians. We just can’t seem to let go of the Church, writes John Dickson.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/rendezview/why-australians-will-never-let-go-of-christianity/news-story/57648b2fd897c8224fee241cf93a324d

Are Muslim community organisations threatening or promoting social cohesion?

A new study has found strong evidence that the vast majority of Muslim community organisations are by no means socially disconnected prayer holes, as is often alleged, writes Mario Peucker.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/02/4613296.htm

We should give thanks to our Christian heritage and give it its due rather than trying to banish it from political life. It may be the very thing that saves us from electing someone like Donald Trump, writes Peter Sellick.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18860&page=0

Secularism

What is the role of 'pre-evangelism' in a secular age? And what comes next?

http://www.karinakreminski.com.au/2017/02/17/pre-evangelism-in-a-secular-age/

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18860&page=0

Sex

The Fifty Shades phenomenon highlights just how effective pornography has been in infiltrating the mainstream, with women now readily accepting their sexually subordinate position, writes Melinda Tankard Reist.

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/09/4617313.htm

The Song of Solomon is the best answer to those who say Christianity doesn't value human love – and it's the best answer, on this Valentine's Day, to the imitations of love that surround us in a world that prefers tawdry fiction to reality, writes Mark Woods.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/5.reasons.the.sex.in.the.song.of.solomon.is.better.than.50.shades/104608.htm

Sexuality and same-sex marriage

Karina Kreminski reviews 'Two Views on Homosexuality, the Bible, and the Church', edited by Preston Sprinkle, and reflects on the practical implications of engaging with the issue of sexuality in today's world.

http://www.karinakreminski.com.au/2017/02/06/homosexuality-and-the-church-two-views-and-some-thoughts/

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2017/february-web-only/trumps-religious-freedom-order-wont-help-baker-florist-and-.html

The Report of the Select Committee on Same-Sex Marriage Bill ‘is a well-balanced document which fairly presents the different points of view’, writes Neil Foster.

https://lawandreligionaustralia.blog/2017/02/15/report-of-the-select-committee-on-same-sex-marriage-bill/

A consensus Parliamentary report into the federal government's same-sex marriage bill strikes a good balance between freedom of religion and freedom from discrimination, according to The Law Council of Australia, writes Lina Caneva.

https://probonoaustralia.com.au/news/2017/02/sex-marriage-bill-strikes-good-balance/

Does Traditional Teaching On Sexuality Make Gay People Unwell? Probably Not. Here's Why, writes Mark Woods.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/does.traditional.teaching.on.sexuality.make.gay.people.unwell/104653.htm

An Australian Christian group has offered an apology to the LGBTIQ community for ‘discrimination and hurt’ caused by the church and plans a national reconciliation process.

http://www.dailytelegraph.com.au/news/nsw/christians-offer-apology-to-gay-and-lesbians/news-story/2c2ffbc9ffd5c9a43045698a12b3263a

That there are far reaching consequences of redefining marriage is further reason why a people's vote is the fairest way to settle this debate, writes Lyle Shelton.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18869&page=0

The possibility of gay marriage has been undermined by political brawling, allowing politics gets in way of the human dimension, writes David Penberthy.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/opinion/gay-marriage-issue-on-tv-show-reminds-us-of-how-politics-gets-in-way-of-the-human-dimension/news-story/e76a312cdbb0ea3d523d5f09459ad2b9

That there are far reaching consequences of redefining marriage is further reason why a people's vote is the fairest way to settle this debate, writes Lyle Shelton.

http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=18869

The marriage equality issue has developed as a political discussion when it should be a debate about love and humanity, writes David Penberthy.

http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/opinion/gay-marriage-issue-on-tv-show-reminds-us-of-how-politics-gets-in-way-of-the-human-dimension/news-story/e76a312cdbb0ea3d523d5f09459ad2b9

There is also a powerful conservative case for the reform. While marriage in the UK was steadily becoming less popular, one group in society wanted to be admitted to it. Such affirmation of an historic institution, one which cherishes stability and commitment, was actually a triumph of conservatism, writes UK Conservative MP, Nick Herbert.

http://www.theage.com.au/comment/the-push-for-gay-marriage-is-a-conservative-value-20170217-gufor0.html

US elections & Donald Trump

Katherine Maxwell-Rose asks whether God is hardening Trump’s heart, as he did with Pharaoh’s.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/is.god.hardening.donald.trumps.heart/104287.htm

Should religious-minority refugees in the Middle East be prioritized?

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/01/31/4612148.htm

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/02/4613374.htm

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/01/4612516.htm

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/01/31/4612089.htm

Is Trump right to get rid of the Johnson Amendment, whereby churches lose tax exempt status if they speak for or against a political candidate?

Here’s an argument against: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/trump.wants.to.let.your.pastor.do.party.politics.heres.why.its.a.bad.idea/104389.htm.

And here’s an argument for: http://www.christiantoday.com/article/why.donald.trump.is.right.and.brave.to.get.rid.of.the.johnson.amendment/104397.htm.

What should Christians, especially in Australia, learn from the rise of Donald Trump? By Akos Balogh.

http://akosbalogh.com/2017/01/22/a-christians-brief-guide-to-the-trump-apocalypse/

‘…Trump’s election serves us all because it is an apocalypse. It is a revelation; an unveiling of reality. A testament to the real state of affairs going on around us…’, writes Mark Baddeley.

http://thinkingofgod.org/2016/11/trump-apocalypse-invitation-reflect/

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/05/opinion/donald-trumps-phony-compassion-for-christians.html

In the light of Trump’s refugee ban, what does the Bible actually say about refugees and welcoming the stranger?

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/does.the.bible.say.anything.about.trumps.refugeeban/104402.htm

Donald Trump’s Apocalypse Is a Self-Fulfilling Prophecy Whatever happens in November, the forecast is more stormy weather ahead. By John Feffer

https://www.thenation.com/article/donald-trumps-apocalypse-is-a-self-fulfilling-prophecy/

Many defenders of globalisation express frustration at the rise of Trump and what they see as an ignorant and self-defeating backlash against its virtues. But they have no answer to the most pressing question: Is the global system there to serve people, or are people there to serve the global system? They also never address a central contradiction of globalisation: that capital is free to move, but for the most part people are not, unless they belong to the elite ranks. David James writes.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50571#.WJpW1RKGM0o

http://www.baltimoresun.com/news/opinion/oped/bs-airport-inhumanity-20170206-story.html

http://eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50571#.WJz0zBKGM0o

In the face of the divisive conversations following the US elections and Trump victory, Christmas reminds us of what is ultimately more important than what is debated on cable news and across social media platforms, writes Russell Moore.

http://www.russellmoore.com/2016/12/19/election-thoughts-christmastime/

We are deluding ourselves if we do not see Trump’s immigration ban as the culmination of policies which have been years in development, writes Justin Glyn.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50559#.WJz3FxKGP_Q

Trump a test of Christianity in America.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/comment/what-type-of-christian-backs-donald-trump-20170209-gu92li.html

As Donald Trump begins his presidency, very little is clear about the course it will take. Everything is up for grabs, writes James W. Skillen and James R. Skillen.

www.klice.co.uk

Trump, masculinity and class: without work, men feel no longer able to 'provide' for their families, feel worthless and emasculated, writes Colin Long.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50575#.WKGDnBKGM0o

Christian faith instructed him to honour and pray for President Trump and to trust God’s sovereign purposes, writes Barney Zwartz in The Age.

http://www.theage.com.au/victoria/faith-spiritual-instruction-shows-we-must-respect-and-honour-donald-trump-20170118-gttmrk.html

Robyn Whitaker responds to Barney Zwartz’s article in The Age, arguing that ‘our responsibility is to speak the truth, build community, and resist, even at cost’.

https://seanfwinter.com/2017/01/30/trump-respect-or-resistance/

Trump is anti-Christ because his spirit is contrary to the Spirit of Christ, writes Eric Sapp.

http://www.christiantoday.com/article/donald.trump.might.not.be.the.antichrist.but.he.is.certainly.anti.christ/104663.htm

‘What if, instead of being volatile, the electorate knows exactly what it is doing?’

http://www.abc.net.au/religion/articles/2017/02/09/4617134.htm

How the lunatic fringe conquered world politics: the left and the right ignored the extremists and we ended up with Brexit and Trump, writes Nick Cohen.

https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2017/feb/11/how-the-lunatic-fringe-conquered-world-politics-brexit-donald-trump

What is true of false prophets is also true of foolish leaders: ‘You will recognize them by their fruits’ (Matthew 7:20), writes Jon Bloom.

http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/how-to-recognize-a-foolish-leader

The problem conservative religious people should have with Trump By Mark Silk.

http://religionnews.com/2017/02/13/religious-resistance-to-trump/

Today we will inaugurate a man to the presidency of the United States who is morally unqualified to be there, writes John Piper. How should we respond?

http://www.desiringgod.org/articles/how-to-live-under-an-unqualified-president

Atonement in Scripture: Why Trump and Cruz Are the Direct, Logical Result of American Evangelical Theology

https://newhumanityinstitute.wordpress.com/2016/03/05/atonement-in-scripture-why-trump-and-cruz-are-the-direct-logical-result-of-american-evangelical-theology/

Psychiatrically labeling our leaders lets them off the moral hook, and presidents should be judged on the merits of their actions, statements, writes Richard A. Friedman.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/17/opinion/is-it-time-to-call-trump-mentally-ill.html

Psychologist Keith Ablow says that ‘Trump is stone cold sane’, as proven by his sustained success, strong familial relationships and professional ties.

http://www.dailywire.com/news/13545/trump-insane-psychiatrist-says-no-way-james-barrett

In a letter to the editor, an eminent psychiatrist argues that Trump does not meet the criteria for narcissistic personality disorder or any other mental health diagnosis. Therefore, the antidote to a dystopic Trumpean dark age is political, not psychological, writes Allen Frances.

https://www.nytimes.com/2017/02/14/opinion/an-eminent-psychiatrist-demurs-on-trumps-mental-state.html?_r=2

Welfare

Centrelink's new policy of automated online debt collection has been subject to conflicting reports, making us wonder what version of truth we might best believe, writes Kasy Chambers.

http://www.eurekastreet.com.au/article.aspx?aeid=50563#.WJgx1LaGM0o

Work

As we learn the way that God works, slow, delightful, surprising, we will learn how to work. As that formation happens, we begin to experience joy rather than the curse that often comes from work, writes Karina Kreminski.

http://www.karinakreminski.com.au/2017/02/10/imitating-gods-work-ethic/

Results from a study of business students show that they are willing to sacrifice future salary to work for socially responsible companies, write Debbie Haski-Leventhal and Mehrdokht Pournader.

https://theconversation.com/business-students-willing-to-sacrifice-future-salary-for-good-corporate-social-responsibility-study-73122

Submission by Gordon Preece, Chair & Executive of the Anglican Diocese of Melbourne Social Responsibilities Committee, on the Fair Work Commission's review of penalty rates in the retail and hospitality sector.

https://www.fwc.gov.au/documents/sites/awardsmodernfouryr/am2014305-sub-ad-melb-170215.pdf

Submission by the Social Issues Committee of the Sydney Diocese of the Anglican Church of Australia:

https://www.fwc.gov.au/documents/sites/awardsmodernfouryr/am2014305-sub-sicacd-syd-170215.pdf

Penalty rates are a hangover from a bygone era that costs tens of thousands of jobs and cripples businesses small and large, and workers will remain among the best remunerated in the developed world, argues John Slater.

http://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/comment/face-it-penalty-rates-are-a-hangover-from-a-bygone-era-20170223-gujmeu.html

The cut in penalty rates is wrong socially, politically and economically, writes Ross Gittins.

http://www.smh.com.au/business/the-economy/cut-in-penalty-rates-another-win-for-bizonomics-20170226-gulhuo.html

Can we shift our identity away from work in time to survive the massive job reduction to come? By Hannah Arendt.

http://www.ethics.org.au/on-ethics/blog/february-2017/hannah-arendt-on-work-evil-politics

Using computer algorithms to make decisions about employees might seem like an objective management strategy, but it could actually give an inaccurate picture of productivity and compromise employees’ rights in the process, writes Uri Gal.

https://theconversation.com/why-algorithms-wont-necessarily-lead-to-utopian-workplaces-73132