Introducing CAPSA September 07 2015

The 2015-16 Bishops’ social justice statement “For those who’ve come across the seas: Justice for refugees and asylum seekers” will be launched this Wednesday, 9 September.

The Catholic Alliance for People Seeking Asylum (CAPSA)is delighted that our Bishops are calling on the Government and all Australians to show more care and humanity to people seeking asylum. This is an important moment, when there is both great need and great opportunity for Australia to do more.

What is the Catholic Alliance for People Seeking Asylum (CASPA)?

CAPSA is a national initiative that was launched only a few weeks ago to coincide with Migrant and Refugee Week - to turn more hearts and minds to compassion for people seeking asylum. This Alliance aims to forge connections among Catholics in different communities across Australia who are taking  action to support people seeking asylum. It hopes to build a stronger collective voice for change informed by our shared values and Catholic principles. Jesuit Social Services and Cabrini Health are joint founders of the Alliance which is backed by an advisory group of national Catholic peak body representatives.

By creating links, sharing information and promoting opportunities for shared advocacy the alliance aims to strengthen what is already a groundswell of activity and support for people seeking asylum from the Catholic community.

W: www.capsa.org.au

F: www.facebook.com/joinCAPSA

T: @capsa_iCan

E: info@capsa.org.au

P: 03 9421 7614

Bishop Robinson to testify August 17 2015

Bishop Geoffrey Robinson, who has arguably done more than any member of the hierarchy for victims of sexual abuse in the Catholic Church in Australia, will give evidence at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse on 24 August 2015.

Bishop Robinson is known for his public advocacy of victims and his criticisms of the way the institutional church regularly failed to support victims of clergy child abuse. His Confronting Power and Sex in the Catholic Church is a powerful ground-breaking call for changes in the handling of abuse cases and for dramatic reform in the Church.

He followed this up with For Christ’s Sake, End Sexual Abuse in the Catholic Church… For Good. This led to more than 100 000 people signing a petition for change in the Catholic Church.

His books can be purchased from Garratt Publishing, Melbourne

sales@garrattpublishing.com.au     phone: 1300 650 878      www.garrattpublishing.com.au

NEW BOOK FOR 2015:

2015 Synod The Crucial Questions: Divorce and Homosexuality

Bishop Geoffrey Robinson explores the pastoral solutions to some of the most challenging issues facing Catholics today including the inclusion of LGBT persons and divorce and remarriage, by examining church teachings.

RRP $22.95  |  Sophia $19.51  |  9781921511103

'Euthanasia a dangerous, radical shift in society’s foundational values' July 06 2015

by Debra Vermeer

Euthanasia is not an incremental change to current end-of-life practices, but a radical and massive shift in our society’s and civilisation’s foundational values, says internationally renowned Australian ethicist, Margaret Somerville.

Dr Somerville, who is a Professor of Law, Professor in the Faculty of Medicine, and Founding Director of the Centre for Medicine, Ethics and Law at McGill University in Montreal, Canada, was speaking at the University of Notre Dame (Sydney), as part of a series of public lectures on ethical issues surrounding euthanasia and assisted suicide during her recent visit to Australia.

Her presentation focused on lessons to be learnt from the debate in Canada, where the Supreme Court earlier this year struck down a ban on doctor-assisted suicide for mentally competent Canadian patients with terminal illnesses.

She said one of the key arguments of pro-euthanasia advocates was that euthanasia is no different to medical treatments, such as palliative sedation, that are already widely practised.

“When used correctly as part of palliative care, palliative sedation is not euthanasia,” she said. “In palliative sedation as part of standard palliative care, physicians often allow the patient to become conscious from time to time and use the lightest possible sedation consistent with relieving suffering. As well, it’s only used as a last resort, and not often.”

Dr Somerville said acting with an intention to kill is “different-in-kind” from allowing a natural death and that doctors are one of the groups most opposed to euthanasia.

She said in The Netherlands, where euthanasia is legal, there is so much resistance by physicians to carrying it out that the government has had to set up “mobile euthanasia units” to visit homes and attend to euthanasia requests.

“Euthanasia is not just an incremental expansion of current ethically and legally accepted end-of-life decisions, such as refusals of life-support treatment, as pro-euthanasia advocates argue,” she said.

“It seems that most politicians and many Canadians do not recognise the momentousness of a decision to legalise euthanasia. It’s not incremental change, but rather a radical and massive shift in our society’s and civilisation’s foundational values.”

Dr Somerville said another pro-euthanasia strategy to be resisted is the euphemising of euthanasia by calling it “medical treatment” and “medically assisted death”.

“Euthanasia is not medical treatment. Defining it as such presents serious dangers to patients, the trust-based physician-patient relationship, and medicine,” she said.

The medicalisation of assisted suicide establishes suicide as a legitimate response to suffering, thus endorsing suicide, Dr Somerville said. Studies have shown that more honest language such as “state-sanctioned suicide” or “physicians killing their patients” reduces public support for deliberately inflicted death.

“Words matter,” she said. “Language affects emotions and intuitions, including moral intuitions, which are important to ethical decision-making.”

Drawing on the Canadian experience, Dr Somerville said the appeal to individual autonomy, to empathy and compassion, and the promotion of the idea that death is actually a benefit to someone whose life is affected by illness, were all pro-euthanasia arguments to be vigorously resisted.

She said the dangers of legalised killing to society as a whole must outweigh individual circumstances.

“Euthanasia is special (among ethical debates) because there’s nothing new about it. We’ve always got old, suffered, become terminally ill, been dying and somebody could have killed us, and we said ‘No, that is wrong. We don’t do that.’

“So that’s why euthanasia is so important. Because if we change that, we’re changing the very roots of our society. I think we’re changing the essence of what it means to be human if we start killing each other.”

Dr Somerville’s presentation at The University of Notre Dame was a joint initiative of the Faculties of Medicine and Law and the University’s Institute for Ethics and Society.

MISLEADING FIGURES USED TO CREATE FALSE CONFLICTS July 06 2015

Opponents of non-government schools have once again selectively used facts and figures in an attempt to undermine the place of non-government schools as key contributors to Australia’s educational landscape, the National Catholic Education Commission says.

NCEC executive director Ross Fox says the document released by Save Our Schools this morning is the latest in a steady stream of reports that appear to be designed to create conflict between schools.

“These reports, including today’s from Trevor Cobbold, constantly draw upon selective or misleading data to paint an inaccurate picture of non-government schools with the intention of pitting sector against sector,” Mr Fox said.

“Analysis of Australian schools should focus on how to improve the learning and teaching for all students in every classroom rather than pitting school against school and sector against sector as this type of report does.

“The data is clear. Students in Catholic schools receive 80 per cent of the government funding of students in government schools. This varies from state to state, but what is common across Australia is that parents and families make significant contributions to support their children’s education in a Catholic school and to see overall funding levels approach those of government schools.

“ACARA data shows that, on average, Catholic schools operate on a lower net recurrent income per student than government schools. Despite some limitations, this is the valid measure to see the relative resources between school sectors.”
Mr Fox said the total amount of spending on all schools across Australia, including government schools, has been increasing – contrary to Mr Cobbold’s claims. Total government funding for government schools in 2012 was $27.3 billion and increased by 3.2 per cent to almost $28.2 billion in 2013.

Funding increases that have occurred reflect the needs of schools, including Catholic schools.

“For example, the number of students with disability and the number of Indigenous students in Catholic schools have significantly increased over the past five years, as part of Catholic education’s commitment to inclusion. That has a clear impact on the level of government funding that those students and their schools will attract,” he explained.

“Mr Cobbold has selectively used figures – gross recurrent income per student – for his analysis. This is not a comparable measure between school sectors. The fact that only non-government schools must meet capital costs from gross income is not reflected in that measure.

“This is a flawed report that has a number of errors and manipulates data, without justifiable assumptions, to create a conflict between schools. It adds nothing to the understanding of school education in Australia.”
Mr Fox said the Commonwealth Government, which is the major provider of government support for Catholic schools, has outlined its ongoing funding plans for all schools in the current financial year.

“The Commonwealth Budget papers explain how schools will benefit from federal funding in the years ahead. In 2015-16, funding for non-government schools will increase at 5.6 per cent. Funding for government schools, meanwhile, will increase by 9.55 per cent,” he explained.

Mr Fox said reports questioning the legitimacy of government support for students in all school sectors need to reflect the reality of school funding.

“I am more than happy to have a robust discussion about how government funding is allocated to all Australian students, but this report appears to be based on emotion and ideology, not the reality of school funding and the needs of schools and students,” he said.

How do we sustain our planet and ourselves? June 17 2015

An international advocate for justice, with a particular emphasis on the environment, will deliver a public lecture in Hobart on Thursday night: ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY AND JUSTICE.  How do we sustain our planet and ourselves?  How do we work together across the planet, tackling poverty and caring for resources?

The lecture is expected to be held in the wake of the release of Pope Francis’ long-awaited and eagerly-anticipated Encyclical on the environment, which organisers of the lecture believe will be released in Rome tomorrow.

The lecture, on behalf of the John Wallis Foundation, will be delivered by Dr Carol Zinn SSJ, a religious sister from Philadelphia.

Sr Carol, who has a strong background in education, has been a leader of her religious congregation and most recently the president of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (in the United States) for a three year term, ending this year.  She has also been involved as an NGO in general consultative status with the Economic and Social Council at the United Nations, representing more than 15,000 Sisters of St Joseph working in 57 countries.

Sr Carol is recognised for her grassroots work as consultant and facilitator for international movements.  She works with multi-sector and multi-issue groups in helping people deepen their understanding of global realities, local issues and the inherent connections.

The lecture will be held on the Hobart Campus of Guilford Young College on Thursday, 6:45 for 7pm start.  Cost:  $20 adults / $10 concession.

US Congregational Leader to visit Tasmania June 15 2015

Sr. Carol Zinn will be speaking in Hobart and Launceston as a guest of the John Wallis Foundation, which was established in 2010 by The Missionary Sisters of Service (MSS). The annual John Wallis Memorial Lecture is named in honor of Fr. John Wallis who founded the MSS in in Tasmania in 1944. The MSS has been continually working in Tasmania since this time.

Sr Carol Zinn belongs to the Sisters of St. Joseph and heads up the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR) in the US representing more than 15,000 sisters and thousands of associates serving in 57 countries.

Sr Carol is a passionate social justice advocate with great experience in supporting communities towards environmental sustainability through local leadership. Sr Carol has worked in grassroots-based international movements as consultant and facilitator. In particular, she worked on the United Religions Initiative and the Earth Charter. She works with multi-sector and multi-issue groups in helping people deepen their understanding of the relationship between global realities and local efforts.

Her experience ‘around the table’ and ‘in the field’ has led Sr Carol to view poverty as the most serious environmental issue on the planet.  "The environment is suffering mostly because of poverty, and that poverty is created because of the big mismatch between those of us who have and most of our brothers and sisters who do not have," she said. "One-fifth of the world's population uses four-fifths of the world's resources. The other four-fifths of our brothers and sisters are fighting each other over the remaining one-fifth of the world's resources."  

Sr. Carol is passionate and inspirational on how each of us can understand and play our part in countering this reality.

Sr Carol, like many across the planet is looking forward to Pope Francis’s much-anticipated encyclical on the environment. In April this year Sr. Carol met with Pope Francis in Rome, along with the other leaders of LCWR, which she described as an ‘unbelievable experience’ because of Francis' ability to connect with those with whom he is meeting. Comparing their sit-down with the pope to images of him making connections with the crowds in St. Peter's Square, she said: ‘It's real.’

On Wednesday  June 17th Sr Carol will speak at the Emmanuel Centre Launceston at 12noon and on Thursday June 18th in Hobart at Guilford Young College at 6.45pm. Sr. Carol will speak on “Environmental Sustainability and Justice” in particular focusing on the questions “How do we sustain our planet and ourselves? How do we work together across the planet inspiring hope, to tackle poverty and care for resources?

by Liz McAloon, Executive Officer of the John Wallis Foundation, Melbourne

Mission conference begins today May 18 2015

Around 400 people will attend Australia’s premier conference on mission when it begins at Sydney’s SMC Conference and Function Centre today (Monday 18 May).

Presented by Catholic Mission and Catholic Religious Australia, the Mission: one heart many voices 2015 conference will gather some of the world’s forefront minds on mission, theology and ecology over the next three days.

Archbishop of Sydney Anthony Fisher will join world-renowned missiologist Father Stephen Bevans and many other high-profile Catholic leaders who are speaking at the conference, with some keynote addresses being streamed around the world for the first time.

Father Noel Connolly, Chair of the Australian Mission Network and head of mission studies at the Columban Mission Institute, says the major aim of this year’s conference is to ‘give out ... a scriptural and theological vision that will unite, encourage, sustain and enable us in our various vocations.

‘We are collaborating in something much larger than ourselves: God’s life and mission in the world,’ he says.

Dr Maryanne Loughry, Mrs Jacqui Rémond, Mr Graeme Mundine and Fr Denis Edwards are among the renowned theological and ecological experts addressing the conference, which is adopting a particularly green theme ahead of Pope Francis’ eagerly-awaited encyclical on the environment.

Fr Connolly says Mission: one heart many voices 2015 offers a broad and diverse program. ‘This year we have introduced two new sessions: Mission in the World: Song and Story which will feature among other things mission through music, aboriginal storytelling and the L’Arche community; and Voices from the Heart where we can listen to the actual voices of people from the various marginalised and oppressed groups,’ he says.

‘It should be not only an opportunity for personal renewal but for congregations and organisations to provide professional development for their staff.’

Release of the Red Tape Reduction Action Plan May 18 2015

The Red Tape Reduction Action Plan for aged care was released by the Government on 6 May 2015, and may be viewed here. 

The Action Plan was developed by the Department of Social Services in consultation with the Aged Care Sector Committee. It stems from the Government’s high profile election commitment to reduce ‘red tape’, or unnecessary regulation, across all sectors of the economy.

Catholic Health Australia (CHA) had provided the Aged Care Sector Committee with an assessment of the potential for regulatory savings in aged care, and a list of regulations amenable to removal or modification (summarised in our Aged Care Update of February 2014).  

The Action Plan details 20 measures for implementation in the short term, and a further 14 areas where the potential for reducing ‘red tape’ will be explored in the medium term.

The Action Plan is focussed on streamlining the regulations governing the existing aged care policy framework, and does not contemplate possible changes in policy. That said, CHA continues to highlight that a good deal of existing red tape is required to administer the current policies which ration the supply of aged care services. Also, because of the vulnerability of many frail older people, there are good reasons for the bulk of the current regulations that support quality standards and provide consumer protections.

What has been achieved to date?

Red tape’ reduction measures have been pursued in parallel with the development of the Action Plan. Accordingly, the published Plan also reports on progress to date with the implementation of the short term measures.

Some measures require amendments to the Aged Care Act 1997, whereas others simply require changes in administrative procedures and practices. In most cases, the latter are easier to implement because legislative change depends on obtaining the attention and agreement of Parliament in a crowded legislative agenda.

On the legislative front, we have seen the repeal of building certification requirements for aged care homes, whereas the announced intention to remove the requirement for key personnel reporting awaits Parliamentary approval. The repeal of building certification is estimated by the Department of Social Services to save providers $3.6m per annum, and the removal of key personnel reporting another $1.16m per annum.

There has been much more activity on the administrative front.  A list of the more significant administrative changes that have been made, along with DSS’s estimate of the annual savings in aggregate for service providers, is presented below.

• Streamlining of financial reporting requirements for service providers under the Home Care Program ($4.4m)
• Removal of the requirement for residential care providers to follow and document a prescriptive process in setting accommodation prices ($1.7 million)
• Streamlined application forms under the Aged Care Approvals Round process ($2.1m)
• Removal of the Workforce Supplement by folding it into  ACFI care prices ($2.6m)
• A range of smaller measures including: removal of the annual fire safety declaration; removal of the requirement to report infectious diseases to DSS; streamlining of quality reporting processes; removal of  requirements for financial activity reporting in relation to the NRCP and Day Therapy Centres; and streamlining of fee advice letters and the Annual Prudential Compliance Statement (approximately $1m)

LCWR speaks out on end of Vatican oversight May 15 2015

In a statement, the Leadership Conference of Women Religious acknowledged the pain and public humiliation they experienced during the six years they were been under Vatican review, but they said they hoped the process would be a valuable learning experience for both the wider church and community.   by Dawn Cherie Araujo for National Catholic Reporter

Voice for the Voiceless May 13 2015

In her address at the 2015 Australian Catholic Communications Congress, Sister Jane Keogh csb shared her personal story as a Brigidine Sister, teacher and social justice advocate and urged Catholic media delegates to be a voice for the poor and persecuted.

Sr Jane’s talk was a reflection on the congress theme, “What is our voice?" Her response: "Speaking the truth.”

“My hope is to inspire you in bringing the Christian truth to today’s Australia, at a time when our society has never needed it more,” she said. “We are called to bring Jesus' mission to our world and we are called to this together as church.” She encouraged media delegates to help bring about spiritual and social transformation through well-researched stories and a passion for justice.

“What we need from our Church is strong leadership and a passionate response to the suffering Jesus that we see today - in the faces of children in Nauru, the voices in Manus, the mothers separated from their children. In Australia we need our voices raised about climate change, aboriginal dispossession and homelessness.”

source:  CATHOLIC RELIGIOUS AUSTRALIA         ARTICLE

Welcome next steps in aged care reform May 13 2015

Reflecting a largely bipartisan approach, the Government’s first Budget consolidated the 2012 aged care reforms by progressing the reform strategy initiated following the Productivity Commission’s Report Caring for Older Australians.

In its second Budget, the Government has gone further.

The centrepiece of this year’s Budget initiates the logical next steps towards creating a consumer-driven aged care system by announcing that ‘funding will follow the consumer’ for home care packages, and that the Commonwealth Home Support Program and Home Care (Packages) Program will be integrated to create a single home care program.

FULL STATEMENT

Political future ahead of marginalised May 13 2015

Despite its commitment to listen to the community in light of its very unfair 2014 Budget, the Government has taken the approach of making itself as small a target as possible by deferring its critical 2015 Budget measures until after the next Federal election.

Speaking on Budget night, Marcelle Mogg, CEO of Catholic Social Services Australia, pointed out that many of the key measures in the 2015 Federal Budget, such as the childcare subsidy, are not scheduled to take effect until 1 July 2017.

“While deferring key budget measures might enable the Abbott Government to see out the remainder of its current term in calmer political waters, for Australia’s most vulnerable people it represents a lost opportunity,” Ms Mogg said.

“Those who are homeless, those with mental illness, and women and children living in the midst of family violence, need assistance now. This Budget offers them little hope.

“Funding for family violence is directed to one off education campaigns rather than practical support and initiatives.

“There is no commitment at all from the Federal Government for initiatives that create affordable housing or further homelessness services. The Budget is silent on mental health initiatives.

“The most vulnerable people in Australia will pay the price for the failure of the Coalition to exercise its mandate to govern. This is a Budget designed to secure a political future, not the future of Australia’s most vulnerable people.

“The Abbott Government has missed a significant opportunity to invest in communities, families and individuals and thereby strengthen social cohesion, participation and wellbeing, and increase economic productivity.

“Catholic Social Services Australia continues to urge the Government to focus on investing in people, in families and in communities in order to realise long-term social and economic benefits rather than seeking short-term cost savings. 

“Australians are looking for a sustained commitment from the Australian Government to creating strong communities.  Strong communities are the foundation for a strong economy,” said Ms Mogg.

Catholic Social Services Australia believes the best financial investments that Australia can make lie in securing support for families, young people and those who are living on the margins of our communities.

“Strong communities provide great support for vulnerable families and individuals. Strong communities can blunt the worst effects of poverty and this Budget proposes fails to capitalise on Australia’s greatest resource – its people,” said Ms Mogg.

“We know that securing employment today in Australia is a complex undertaking. Finding out about available jobs often relies on personal networking, and securing and sustaining that employment is reliant upon appropriate skills and training, as well access to affordable child care and viable transport arrangements. Barriers to employment are not about attitude, they are about opportunity. To this end Catholic Social Services Australia welcome’s the Government’s restoration of funding for intensive support services for young people at risk of long term unemployment – the Youth Employment Strategy – following its cut to the Youth Connections program in 2014.  The restoration of this service is a welcome recognition by the Government that young people need support not penalties.

“People want to be able to work and secure a sound financial base for their families, but they should not have to sacrifice their family life in order to have a job. Family friendly jobs are those that don’t rely on mums and dads working unsociable hours that take them away from the families they love. Family friendly jobs are not those across town, or interstate, that see mums and dads spending more time in transit than with their children. Children want their parents to be at sport with them on the weekends, and to see their families’ faces in the audience on school concert night. An economy that only offers jobs based on low wages, short-term contracts and unsociable hours are not jobs that build a strong Australia.

“Catholic Social Services Australia is deeply concerned at the lack of policy and direction at a Federal level with regard to housing and homelessness services. While recognising that the Government intends to address housing through its Reform of the Federation White Paper process, it is not acceptable that Government adopts a ‘wait and see’ stance in the interim.

“Catholic housing and homeless support agencies are working hard to meet the needs of people who are homeless today, and the urgency to secure safe and affordable housing on a continuing basis is critical.

“This Government said it wants to focus on reducing family violence in Australia. Providing access for women and their children to safe and secure housing alternatives must be a core part of the Government’s response. Community education is a welcome initiative but it won’t help people in need today.”

Catholic Social Services Australia represents a national network of 59 Catholic social service organisations that provide direct support to more than one million Australians each year.