LAND OF A FAIR GO! Still our proud boast? I was hungry and you fed me, I was thirsty and you gave me a drink, I was homeless and you gave me a room, I was shivering and you gave me clothes, I was sick and you stopped to visit, I was in prison and you came to me.'

'I'm telling you solemnly: Whenever you did one of these things to someone overlooked or ignored, that was me —you did it to me.' How seriously do we really take Jesus and the gospel? Not an easy question to answer at this time, when our major political leaders urge us to put self-interest and negativity at the heart of our voting preferences. And yet, probably more than any other period in our history, social, religious and community leaders are speaking out about the ‘race to the bottom’, which is characterising political debate at this time

We urgently need to make compassion a clear, luminous and dynamic force in our polarized world ...indispensable to the creation of a just economy and a peaceful global community." ~ The Charter for Compassion

What do our preoccupations in politics say about us as Australians and as Christians? Many thinking and compassionate Australians argue that in the past few years, we have lost our way as a welcoming, generous nation. That we are not the country we were! That our individualism, our fear of losing out, of being over-run, our preoccupation with law and order, betrays our christian values. Why have we now become so unwelcoming and fearful? Why have we allowed negative attitudes to grow, aggravated by the political rhetoric of both major Parties?

Perhaps if the politicians were concerned about a more just economy, perhaps if the media encouraged truth-telling rather than sensationalism and lies, perhaps if we learned the stories and met the people who have been pushed to the edge, we would be better able to promote compassion among our families and friends.

What sort of a country have we become?

• How would we feel if it were our family at the edge of society?

• How has our personal story influenced our attitude towards those who are poor?

• How different would Australia be if we really took Jesus seriously?

How are community and religious leaders responding? Any society is judged by how the weakest and poorest of its members are treated. The most vulnerable people are our greatest responsibility. The Gospel calls us to place the needs of the poor and vulnerable first, so that their needs as well as the common good may be realised. Australian Bishops We do not need to take from the poor to give to the rich. We do not need to cut payments to single mums or the unemployed. We do not need to cut expenditure on health or social housing or education. We need to broaden our revenue base in order to provide social goods. We need to be unafraid of removing some of the massive and wasteful concessions — such as superannuation tax concessions that cost the taxpayer about $32 billion a year, according to Treasury, the bulk of which goes to middle- and upper income earners. John Falzon St Vincent de Paul Society Each of us endeavours in our own time to live with this heart of Christ. We live in a world crying out for what such hearts can offer. In whatever country we live, we see suffering people, people crying out for the heart of a Pope Francis, the heart of a Mary MacKillop, the heart of each of us. Sr Anne Derwin rsj 'Entrenching people into poverty is not a pathway back into employment. Business Council of Australia Yet again we are observing a despicable race to the bottom by the two political parties, each attempting to appear more determined than the other to introduce the harshest possible policies towards vulnerable people in search of protection. Oliver White, JRS Australia Has any one of us wept because of the situation of boat people and others like it? Has any one of us grieved for the death of these brothers and sisters? Has any one of us wept for these persons who were on the boat? For the young mothers carrying their babies? For these men who were looking for a means of supporting their families? We are a society, which has forgotten how to weep, how to experience compassion – "suffering with" others: the globalization of indifference has taken from us the ability to weep! ..... .Has any one wept? Today has anyone wept in our world?’ Pope Francis

AND FOR THOSE PUSHED TO THE EDGE – what more can our Governments do?

Indigenous Australians 1. Honour the human rights of

Indigenous Australians 2. Put in place community-led and

community-owned legislation 3. Abandon Government-imposed

income management and punitive welfare policies

SOME SUGGESTIONS FOR ACTION TALK TO YOUR FAMILIES AND FRIENDS about the truth of those pushed to the edge. GET TO KNOW the stories of those who have been disadvantaged. SUPPORT THE ACTIONS of Church and community leaders who are working on major concerns.

READ THOUGHTFUL MEDIA

With joyful strains then let us sing advance Australian Fair.

Those on Newstart and Youth Allowances 1. Simplify Australia’s complex

income support system 2. Increase Newstart to match

demands of living standards 3. Provide adequate training

matched with real employment opportunities

Housing Needs 1. Allocate funds to increase public,

social and community housing 2. Support those on low incomes to

find affordable housing 3. Strengthen agreements with

construction companies to provide more affordable housing

Increasing numbers in prison 1. Establish alternatives to remand

in prison 2. Use prison as a last resort,

particularly for Indigenous and young Australians

Those made voiceless 1. Treat asylum seekers as human

beings in need of compassion. 2. Promote bi-partisan policy so

that the asylum seeker question becomes a human rather than a political question.

3. Insist that it’s time to build an Australia we can call just and fair.

SUPPORT POLITICIANS who are concerned about those pushed to the margins

WRITE LETTERS to politicians who may respond to the challenge. Ask them to work for a policy that will: 1. treat all Australians as human

beings in need of compassion. 2. promote bi-partisan policy so

that questions regarding those pushed to the edge become human rather than political questions.

3. speed up the processing of legislation to protect those made poor

4. build a culture of support for the protection those who have been disadvantaged

5. seek a true national solution, which is not simply a way for Government to abdicate its responsibility for its citizens.

RELEVANT WEBSITES

National Council of Churches in Australia www.ncca.org.au

Amnesty International www.amnesty.org.au

Australian Catholic Social Justice Council

http://socialjustice.catholic.org.au.

Leaders of Religious Institutes NSW www.clrinsw.org.au

Catholic Religious Australia www.cra.org.au Edmund Rice Centre for Justice and Community Education www.erc.org.au Catholics in coalition for Justice and Peace www.ccjp.org.au

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