It is the Lord who keeps faith forever,
who is just to those who are oppressed.
It is he who gives bread to the hungry,
the Lord, who sets prisoners free.
It is the Lord who gives sight to the blind,
who raises up those who are bowed down.
It is the Lord who loves the just,
the Lord, who protects the stranger.
He upholds the widow and orphan
but thwarts the path of the wicked.
The Lord will reign for ever,
Zion’s God, from age to age.
Ps 145:6 -
10
As potential beneficiaries of the welfare
state, just how lucky are we to be Australian? According to Credit Suisse's
2013 report on wealth distribution, Australia's mean wealth per adult is $US402,578
(the world's highest), while in comparison, the US's is $301,140, the UK's is
$US243,570. At the other end are the Central African Republic's $US 800;
Rwanda's $US723; Ethiopia's $US411, Democratic Republic of Congo's $US321; Malawi's $US207 (the
world's lowest).
Abrahamic religions (or at the very least their scriptures) proclaim God's preference for the poor, those bowed down, the widowed and orphaned. The Hebrew and Christian scriptures in particular highlight the reversals of God's salvific qualities against those who chose paths of wickedness. If we choose goodness, we must choose to care for those who have nothing. Luke 16:19 - 31 is the prophetic story of the rich man and Lazarus that reiterates how extremely difficult it is for a rich man to be saved (also cf the rich young man [Luke 18:18 -23]).
As a lucky country there is much we can do to bring equity, justice, health and education to the poorest of the poor. And we do to a degree. We can afford to be generous with our wealth. But we aren't. We throw our wealth around in tourist destinations so we can be treated like kings and queens, send our children on overseas trips to climb mountains, work with the disadvantaged, learn languages, and be exposed to culture at a cost that would feed entire Indian villages for decades.
We do not believe in predestination, so not a single child is predestined to die from preventable causes. In 2015, 5.9 million died before the age of 5. WHO writes: The leading causes of death among children under five in 2015 were preterm birth complications, pneumonia, intrapartum-related complications, diarrhoea, and congenital abnormalities. Neonatal deaths accounted for 45% of under-five deaths. Not one.
According to songwriter and Marist Brother Michael Herry we - you and me - are called to 'be the hands and feet of Christ to all the world'. If we take this at all seriously, and knowing the difficulties that our wealth holds for us, we need to hear again what Abraham had to say to the rich man: “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead.” We will have eschewed eternal life.
Peter Douglas
HEAD OF SCHOOL SERVICES, NORTH
NOTHING'S A GIFT
by Wislawa Szymborska
Nothing's a gift,
it's all on loan.
I'm drowning in
debts up to my ears.
I'll have to pay
for myself
with my self,
give up my life
for my life.
Here's how it's
arranged:
The heart can be repossessed,
the liver, too,
and each single
finger and toe.
Too late to tear
up the terms,
my debts will be
repaid,
and I'll be
fleeced,
or, more
precisely, flayed.
I move about the
planet
in a crush of
other debtors.
some are saddled
with the burden
of paying off
their wings.
Others must,
willy-nilly,
account for every
leaf.
Every tissue in
us lies
on the debit
side.
Not a tenacle or
tendril
is for keeps.
The inventory,
infinitely detailed,
implies we'll be
left
not just
empty-handed
but handless too.
I can't remember
where, when, and
why
I let someone
open
this account in
my name.
We call the
protest against this
the soul.
And it's the only
item
not included on
the list.
(Poems New and
Collected 1957-1997, trans. S. Baranczak and C. Cavanagh)
Leadership for Creativity and Transformation
with Kathryn Brennan and Christine Simmons
Peter's Whereabouts for the next three weeks:
Upcoming Events:
From Larmenier - St Leonards:
From St Joseph's - Queenstown:
From Our Lady of Lourdes - Devonport:
From Marist Regional College - Burnie:
From St Joseph's - Rosebery:
From St Patrick's - Latrobe:
From St Patrick's College - Prospect:
From Our Lady of Mercy - Deloraine:
From Star of the Sea - Georgetown:
From St Anthony's - Riverside:
From St Finn Barr's - Invermay:
From St Thomas More's - Newstead:
From Sacred Heart - Launceston:
From Sacred Heart - Ulverstone:
From Stella Maris - Burnie:
From St Brigid's - Wynyard:
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