Religion & Ethics Australia Digest

A weekly public affairs review from the Centre for Christian Ethics, Morling College

No. 038, 20-26 May 2005  ² edited by Rod Benson

News & opinion

Aboriginal & indigenous affairs

John Howard is set to recast his approach to Aboriginal reconciliation, embracing the importance of symbolism to indigenous Australians. Aust 21 May 05

The Dean of Darwin’s Anglican Christ Church Mike Nixon says governments must take radical action to halt what he calls a slow genocide of Indigenous people. ABC News Online 23 May 05

May 26 is national Sorry Day. It is exactly eight years since the Bringing Them Home report was tabled in Federal Parliament and five years since the famous Bridge Walks for Reconciliation. But many of us may wonder where the Reconciliation process is today. More.

There is little doubt that the experiment with land councils and ATSIC has been a failure, writes John Cleary. Aust 23 May 05

Abortion

The Victorian branch of the ALP is split over abortion, with the party’s state conference refusing to ratify a proposed policy of decriminalization. Aust 23 May 05

Queensland Senator Ron Boswell has said that he won’t table a private member’s bill against abortion until there is more public support for the cause. CathNews 26 May 05

Aid & development

James Curran examines the history and effects of post-WW2 foreign aid. More.

Anglican Church – Australia

When Dr Peter Carnley steps down today as the head of the Anglican church in Australia, he will leave behind an ongoing legacy of dedicated support for women’s ordination, social justice and fair treatment for Aborigines. The Courier-Mail 26 May 05

Sydney’s Anglican Archbishop Peter Jensen has ridiculed the Anglican-Roman Catholic ecumenical document on Mary released this month, telling ABC Radio that it was a “fudge” that won’t be taken seriously by Reformation Christians. CathNews 26 May 05

Animal rights

Peter Sellick provides a biblical critique of the underlying assumptions of People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals. More.

Bioethics – cloning

The creation of embryonic stem cells that are perfectly matched to a patient’s own tissue has reignited calls for the lifting of an Australian ban on this technique, known as therapeutic cloning. A Korean-led research team created cloned embryos from the skin cells of 11 people with juvenile diabetes, spinal injuries and a genetic immune deficiency, and then extracted stem cells that were genetically identical to the donor. SMH 21 May 05 Also Aust 21 May 05

This week’s cloning breakthrough highlighted the potential of stem cell research; but is it ethical? No, says Nigel Cameron; yes, says Robin Lovell-Badge. The Guardian 21 May 05

Many people probably read only one word of the banner headlines over news that Korean scientists have successfully cloned 11 embryos and created stem cell lines – cures. But scientists know that this kind of cloning is nothing more than a research tool.
Aust 23 May 05

Bioethics – reproductive technologies

Men are still here, despite the decline in the Y chromosome and the lesbian baby boom. But the uses and misuses of sperm continue to confound science, popular culture, and the law, argue Heather Jones and Maggie Kirkman. More.

Bioethics – stem cells

President George W. Bush, who has never issued a veto, yesterday threatened to veto a bill that would increase public funding for stem-cell research, which requires the destruction of human embryos. The Washington Post 21 May 05

Bioethics – withdrawal of treatment

The UK’s National Health Service should not have to give life- prolonging treatment to every patient who demands it because that would mean a crippling waste of resources, the Government said yesterday.
The Times 19 May 05

The idea of having bodily functions sustained artificially when life has lost all meaning is abhorrent. So, the reasoning goes, we ought to be able to put in writing instructions to be followed when we are no longer capable of saying what we want. The Age 22 May 05

Bioethics – xenotransplantation

Martin Wilkinson, chairman of the xenotransplantation working group of Toi te Taiao: the Bioethics Council, doesn’t have any problem separating the cultural, spiritual and ethical aspects of the pig-cell transplant debate from the safety concerns. The New Zealand Herald 21 May 05

Biotechnology

A Georgetown University professor Thuesday proposed that bioethics be established on international standards that people of difference cultures all agree on. The Korea Times 19 May 05

Censorship

You can watch Lolita or Desperate Housewives on TV but, under current Australian legislation, if you download them or watch them via the internet, you could face arrest and ten years in jail. More.
“The internet interprets censorship as damage and routes around it.” But the Chinese government is doing a great job of disproving this theory. More.

Death & dying

Medicine has made us very good at creating, delivering and saving lives. But how good are we at dying? Not very, according to those whose job it is to deal with death every day, writes Jo Chandler. The Age 23 May 05

Defamation

Defamation law exists to balance two competing interests: the protection of free speech and the protection of reputation. In Australia, unfortunately, reputation has the upper hand. Aust 20 May 05

Ecumenism

For only the second time in 167 years, a Catholic bishop has preached from the Presbyterian pulpit of Melbourne’s oldest church, saying Christians had to work together or disappear. The Age 26 May 05

Energy

Faced with surging demand for power-hungry air-conditioners, the NSW Government is preparing to approve the extension of a coal-fired electricity plant near Lithgow and has cleared the way for more coal power stations. SMH 21 May 05

NSW’s growing electricity demand is being driven by the increasing popularity of air-conditioners, prompting green groups to call for tighter regulations and a tax on the energy-hungry appliances. SMH 21 May 05

Environment

Australia will fight Japan’s plan to kill Antarctica’s humpback whales by attempting to take control of the International Whaling Commission. Aust 20 May 05

There is little or no environmental advantage to using washable nappies rather than the vastly more popular disposable nappy, a study by the UK’s Environmental Agency has shown. The Observer 22 May 05

David Suzuki has branded the Prime Minister an “eco-terrorist” for failing to sign the Kyoto protocol. SMH 26 May 05

Ethics – medical

An Indian surgeon dubbed “Dr Death” – who has been linked to 67 patient deaths – threatened to report nurses who challenged his methods, saying hospital chiefs would support him because he was making them $500,000 a year, an inquiry heard yesterday. Aust 24 May 05

Doctors are secretly selling confidential medical records to a marketing firm with links to the pharmaceutical industry.
Herald-Sun 25 May 05
Foreign affairs

Alexander Downer’s present service of the coalition of the willing does a disservice to his country, writes historian Stuart Macintyre. Aust 20 May 05

Homosexuality

More young people are happy to be gay than six years ago, a major survey has found. But the survey of 1750 people aged 14 to 21 who are attracted to the same sex revealed they still experienced high levels of verbal and physical abuse because of their sexuality. SMH 25 May 05

Homosexuality & faith

Laurence Simpson and Jim Barr offer two views of how Baptists in Victoria approach the issue of homosexuality. More.

Human rights

The US military, which is holding the former dictator Saddam Hussein captive, condemned the publication of a photograph of ousted him in his underpants, saying it probably contravened prisoner rights under the Geneva Convention. SMH 21 May 05

Hunger

North Korea is facing a food crisis as the biggest aid donor countries wrangle to get the isolated regime back to the negotiating table for nuclear disarmament talks.
Aust 20 May 05

Immigration

Inverell has galvanised behind an attempt by an American Christian group, the Bruderhof, to beat immigration restrictions that have strangled its expansion and will force 10 of its members out of the country by October. SMH 21 May 05

Judiciary

The suggestion that media scrutiny of the fitness of judges to do their jobs somehow reduces the public standing of the judiciary is itself inimical to community respect for the rule of law. Aust 20 May 05 (scroll down)

Plagiarism

A lecturer’s allegations of plagiarism at the University of Western Sydney have left her in an invidious position – approve the results or don’t get paid. SMH 23 May 05

Politics & faith – Australia

Deputy Prime Minister John Anderson has no business, however, urging the rest of us to “find a new relationship with God,” writes Pamela Bone. The Age 23 May 05

Pornography

While parents are forking out top dollar to see live sex at the cinema, their children are at home seeing it for free. SMH 21 May 05

Refugees

“I was locked up in a cage like a caged animal,” Cornelia Rau said yesterday of her 10 months’ wrongful detention as an illegal immigrant. Aust 24 May 05

Dissenting federal Liberal MPs have launched a direct challenge to Howard Government policy, demanding an end to mandatory detention. Aust 25 May 05

The inquiry into the immigration fiasco has grown exponentially to cover more than 200 people in detention despite being lawfully in Australia, as confusion deepens in the Government over its mandatory detention system. SMH 26 May 05

Roman Catholic Church

Pope John Paul II offered a winsome face of Christianity to the world and leaves behind a Roman Catholic Church firmly opposed to moral relativism. And evangelicals can confidently engage a Catholic Church committed to fundamental Christian truths, according to a CT editorial. More.

John Paul II will long be remembered as the greatest pope since the Reformation. His successor, Benedict XVI, may well turn out to be the harbinger of a new reformation, writes Timothy George. More.

Sin

While we would all hope our best could render our wrongdoing benign, sometimes specific personal offenses are such elephants in the living room that no amount of spin or denial can push them out of view. Sandra Dufield discusses John Bolton’s moral life. More.

Terrorism

Christopher Michaelsen argues that Australian anti-terrorism legislation curtails the rights and liberties of all Australians to a previously unseen extent. More.

Unleash the sadists within, writes Mike Carlton. SMH 21 May 05

Torture

To tolerate torture would simply confirm the judgment of Osama Bin Laden, that the West had lost its moral compass, writes Eureka Street. More.

The debate on torture exposes profound moral and political issues, argues Raimond Gaita. The Age 21 May 05

Former chairman of the National Crime Authority, Peter Farris QC, says torture is acceptable against terrorists and in some domestic criminal situations. SMH 22 May 05

Trade

The Howard Government is considering free trade agreements with both China and India. Although the focus has so far mostly been on China, India may prove to be the more important trading partner. Aust 21 May 05

Vilification

After receiving negative feedback over a sign saying, “The Koran needs to be flushed,” outside the Danieltown Baptist Church in Rutherford, N.C., Pastor Creighton Lovelace has apologized and says he will remove it. Baptist Press media release 25 May 05

Violence

Seventy per cent of mothers have experienced violent behaviour or threats from their adolescent children, a study reveals. SMH 22 May 05

Weapons

France knowingly exposed the people of French Polynesia to radioactive fallout during nuclear tests in the 1990s. Aust 21 May 05

Workplace relations

The most insidious element of the federal Government’s agenda is its plan to get more workers on Australian workplace agreements, and undermine the access of employees to collective bargaining and an effective safety net of award conditions, says Greg Combet. Aust 23 May 05 Also.

John Howard will go much further than expected in his workplace reform package to be unveiled today by boosting the size of businesses exempt from unfair dismissal claims to those with 100 employees. Aust 26 May 05

Other items of interest

Distinguished philosopher Paul Ricoeur died on Friday, aged 92. More. Also.

The journal Reformed World has a selection of contemporary women’s sermons for the church year. More.

Part 4 of Roy M. Anker’s thoughts on meaning and morality in Star Wars. More.

Peter Singer, with his wife Renata, have edited “an anthology of ethics through literature,” titled The Moral of the Story. Reviewed by Leslie Cannold. More.

As the Religious Right tries to ban the teaching of evolution in Kansas, Richard Dawkins speaks up for scientific logic. More.

It is not moral absolutism but theological relativism we would do well to explore if our real need is for a God with whom we can engage our lives, writes Norman Mailer. More.

Ashley Woodiwiss writes on Introducing Radical Orthodoxy and the project to “re-narrate” reality without the word secular. More.

No pastor in America holds more sway over the political direction of evangelicalism than does Pastor Ted Haggard, and no church more than New Life Church, Colorado Springs. More.

Religion & Ethics Australia Digest is published by the Centre for Christian Ethics, Morling College, 120 Herring Rd, Eastwood NSW 2122 AUSTRALIA. Telephone (02) 9878 0201. Back issues are available at http://www.baptistsocialissues.org.au/review.htm. Views expressed in articles do not necessarily represent the views of the Centre for Christian Ethics, Morling College or the Baptist Churches of NSW & ACT. To view the original article or transcript, click on the blue underlined text at the end of the summary. Abbreviations: AFR=The Australian Financial Review; Aust=The Australian; SMH=The Sydney Morning Herald. For a free copy of READ by email each week, email and type “subscribe to READ” in the subject line.