Religion News Australia
February 20 – 27, 2022
Religion news stories from Australia
(Research: Greg Spearritt)
ABUSE
Broad church (The Australian)
Feb 22 – (Opinion: Alice Workman ) Former High Court judge Dyson Heydon was briefly the head of an Anglican Church body that had the power to defrock priests accused of sexual harassment.
Former Christian Brother’s jail sentence for child sex offences extended to 2029 (The Age, Melbourne)
Feb 24 – One of Australia’s most notorious paedophiles, former Christian Brother Ted Bales, has had his jail term extended until 2029 for abusing 19 boys more than three decades ago.
INTERNATIONAL STORIES
Judaism
The antisemitism animating Putin’s claim to ‘denazify’ Ukraine (The Guardian, Australia)
Feb 27 – When Vladimir Putin announced Russia’s invasion of Ukraine at dawn on Thursday, he justified the “special military operation” as having the goal to “denazify” Ukraine.
Religious Violence
Girls’ wary return to uni under Taliban (The Australian)
Feb 27 – Afghanistan’s main universities reopened on Saturday six months after the hardline Islamists returned to power.
JUDAISM
Orthodox Jewish women are raising their voices together (Sydney Morning Herald)
Feb 25 – (Opinion: Nomi Kaltmann) I attended Jewish day school from the age of three
POLITICS
Aussies back religious protections, but not if it discriminates (Sydney Morning Herald)
Feb 25 – Two-thirds of Australians support new laws to protect people from religious discrimination or vilification, but a similar percentage oppose law changes if it means schools or other organisations can sack or expel gay or transgender teachers or students.
‘Little prawn in a big sea’: Ukrainians accept PM’s prayers (Sydney Morning Herald)
Feb 27 – The first line of the Ukraine national anthem is “Ukraine is not dead yet”.
