News that the world has seen the arrival of its first trillionaire captures public attention because it triggers shock and envy, and pushes familiar questions about wealth into unfamiliar territory. Human societies have always contained rich and poor, merchants and labourers, rulers and subjects. Yet a personal fortune measured in trillions of dollars represents wealth …
Courage for the journey
“Be strong and courageous!” It sounds like a quote from a self-help manual. The opening chapter of the Book of Joshua is one of the Bible’s great texts on courage. Following the death of Moses, Joshua faces the daunting task of leading Israel into the promised land. The people are in transition. Their great leader …
Should we “globalise the Intifada”?
Earlier this year, I was present at the Sydney protest rally where Grace Tame made her now infamous pro-Palestinian speech and called on supporters to "globalise the Intifada." I have also heard the phrase used at other gatherings and protests. And I am aware of the strong opposition to those who use the term and …
Catholic and Protestant approaches to ethics
The question of how Christians ought to live has occupied believers since the earliest days of the church. The New Testament repeatedly links faith in Jesus Christ with transformed patterns of life, calling followers of the way of Jesus to love God, love their neighbours, pursue holiness, embody the character of Christ, and seek to …
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What is Christian ethics?
Ethics is the disciplined study of how human beings ought to live. It asks enduring questions about right and wrong, justice and injustice, virtue and vice, duty and responsibility. More profoundly, ethics seeks to understand what constitutes a good life and what kind of persons and communities we should aspire to become. While every culture …
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