Thoughts on faith, culture, and public life.
By Rod Benson Anglican social teaching is best understood as a tradition of moral judgement formed in worship and tested in public life. It can be heard in a sermon about asylum seekers, read in a synod resolution on climate change and seen in a decision to use church land for social housing. The three …
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By Rod Benson Catholic social teaching (CST) represents one of the most substantial and sustained attempts within modern Christianity to develop a coherent moral framework for political, economic, and social life. Emerging formally in the late nineteenth century but drawing deeply on Scripture, patristic theology, Thomistic philosophy, and ecclesial tradition, CST has sought to navigate …
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Toward a theological framework for contemporary public policy By Rod Benson Introduction This article examines the relevance of ten major themes in New Testament teaching in relation to the economic responsibilities of the contemporary nation state. It argues that the New Testament offers neither a modern economic constitution nor an endorsement of capitalism, socialism or …
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Christ Preaching in the Synagogue at Nazareth. 14th c. fresco (detail).Visoki Decani Monastery, Kosovo Working in the Sydney CBD, I have often walked past “rough sleepers” on the streets outside the Queen Victoria Building, railway station entrances, and the steps of churches. You’ve probably seen them too. Occasionally, a passer-by will place some spare change …
Three councils, one Christian vocation: a practical and theological proposal By Rev Dr Rod Benson Introduction There are many distinctive qualities about Sydney, Australia's largest city, and one of those is its peculiar religious culture. A feature of this culture is the nature of ecumenical cooperation among the city's churches (and, inevitably, throughout the State …
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