Two years after Pope Francis went to Lampedusa to demonstrate his solidarity with refugees and immigrants, the compassion he showed is needed. The recent pushback of Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi immigrant workers by Indonesia, Thailand, and Malaysia has made it a call to the Jesuits of our region. Who can look unmoved into the eyes of the women, children, and men adrift on these boats as they are repelled by nation after nation?
Jesuit Refugee Service Australia has opened a new drop-in centre to address a lack of asylum seeker services in Western Sydney. The project is the result of a needs assessment undertaken by JRS in 2014, which found that the region is home to New South Wales’ second-largest group of asylum seekers arriving by boat and living on bridging visas.
One of the things that drove Gregory Tan SJ to join the Jesuits in 2005 was a concern for the spiritual hunger he saw around him. As he ordained Gregory to the diaconate at St Carthage’s Church in Melbourne on November 29, Bishop Greg O’Kelly SJ said the young Jesuit was now more fully equipped to help people find sustenance in the Eucharist.
Jesuit Social Services (JSS) recently organised the opening and blessing of the Atitjere Church, a project it co-facilitated in the Sandover region of Australia’s Northern Territory. JSS’ involvement in the project stems back to 2012, when its Central Australian team was invited to visit the Atitjere community, 215 kilometres from Alice Springs at the foot of Mount Palmer.
The Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS) has expressed “deep sadness” over the Australian government’s decision to curb the number of refugees entering the country from Indonesia. Following the decision, Australia will stop the resettlement of refugees who had registered with the UN refugee agency (UNHCR) in Indonesia on or after July 1.
Jesuit Social Services in Australia has launched an initiative to assist people in the criminal justice system with an acquired brain injury (ABI). The Enabling Justice Project is a three-year initiative in the state of Victoria and is undertaken in partnership with RMIT University’s Centre for Innovative Justice. The project includes the formation of an Australian-first user group to address the overrepresentation of people with acquired brain injuries (ABIs) in the criminal justice system.
Issues of equity and sustainability in mining projects are receiving greater scrutiny from Jesuit entities and individuals worldwide through the growth of the Governance of Natural and Mineral Resources (GNMR) Network.
Podcast interviews from prominent Catholics such as Fr James Martin SJ and Fr Richard Leonard SJ are among the spirituality features on offer at PrayOnline, a prayer website developed by Jesuit Communications Australia.
The newly revamped pray.com.au website offers a feast of spirituality resources, including daily Gospel reflections, weekly podcasts and a blog on spirituality.
The Australian Jesuits’ Eureka Street and eRenlai published by Jesuit-run Taipei-Ricci Institute are part of a major Catholic media initiative launched recently. Their content will be featured, along with that of three other Catholic publications, in Global Pulse, an online paid subscription magazine conceived by UCAN Executive Director Fr Michael Kelly SJ and his team.