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Just As the Founders of Religious Congregations Responded to the Needs of Their Times with Love, Respect, Compassion and Mercy

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Just As the Founders of Religious Congregations Responded to the Needs of Their Times with Love, Respect, Compassion and Mercy autumn 2019 autumn CONTENTS EDITION 40 2 compassion fatigue 4 farewell and 7 mission leaders’ 16 reflection 3 from the ceo welcome gathering 5 formation update 8 ministry updates THIS ISSUE: “Journeying onward in compassion” Just as the founders of religious congregations responded to the needs of their times with love, respect, compassion and mercy, so too are we called in our age to respond … – Mercy Partners Theological Framework, p15 ST URSULA’S COLLEGE, MCSNQ, ALL HALLOWS’ COLLEGE ALL HALLOWS’ MCSNQ, COLLEGE, URSULA’S ST MCSNQ, ST RITA’S COLLEGE, ALL HALLOWS’ SCHOOL ALL HALLOWS’ COLLEGE, RITA’S ST MCSNQ, PHOTOS: © PHOTOS: PHOTO © PHOTO diary Brisbane Regional Function – 9 April; Tenth Anniversary celebrations: Rockhampton – 7 May, Townsville – 11 June date Formation Retreats: Rockhampton – 3 May, Townsville – 13 June, Cairns – 20 May, Brisbane – 28 May mercy partners council Technology is affecting the lives of all people. For some, technology Compassion makes their lives easier and it helps bring people closer to their friends Clothe yourselves and family. Sadly, like all things it can also be used in the worst possible way. In recent weeks a gunman who with compassion, opened fire inside a New Zealand mosque live-streamed his attack in a 17-minute video. Our exposure to a kindness, humility, 24/7/365 news cycle and social media stream contains the good, the bad, the gentleness and beautiful and the ugly. The unkind forces, the unjust patience treatment and the unimaginable suffering make us want to switch off – Colossians 3:12 and disconnect. But we must not cower in a corner, we must not cut ourselves off from the world and we must not stop loving one another. And we must never surrender to ‘compassion fatigue’. Journalist and scholar Susan Moeller, in her 1999 book Compassion Fatigue: How the Media Sell Disease, Famine, War and Death, wrote, “It seems as if the media careen from one trauma to another, in a breathless tour of poverty, disease and death … The troubles blur. Crises become one crisis.” And the public “collapse into a compassion fatigue stupor”. We may not have the power to change what the media chooses to cover, but we have power over what our mind takes in. We too can take the sound advice given to the Philippians by Paul, “Finally, brothers and sisters, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable – if anything is excellent or praiseworthy – think about such things ... And the God of peace will be with you” (Philippians 4:8-9). We, too, can spend our time thinking about the best things and choosing the lovely and admirable. If we view life with more reflection and less reaction our wisdom grows, and our hearts deepen in compassion. Source: http://bit.ly/2CbdXp7 PHOTO © PEXELS/ JUAN SALAMANCA © PEXELS/ JUAN PHOTO 2 | Mercy Partners NEWS Edition 40 mercy partners council mercy partners ceo FROM THE CEO Poverty myths, the Compassion meddlesome Priest paul jensen paul mercy partners ceo, and compassion A NUMBER OF CREDIBLE REPORTS FROM THE Generally, the Churches have been silent about growing AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL OF SOCIAL SERVICE,1 THE OECD2 inequality and poverty. Why? Perhaps we feel immobilised by AND THE AUSTRALIAN TREASURY3 EVIDENCE THAT shame – an understandable reaction to the Royal Commission ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL INEQUALITY AND POVERTY into Institutional Child Abuse. A 2013 report4 by British ARE GROWING IN AUSTRALIA. Churches into churchgoers and the public’s perceptions of poverty and inequality posits another reason. The report A RANGE OF social and economic factors such as digital identified five shared public myths about poverty and disruption and neoliberal reforms drive inequality and inequality. I contend Australian Churchgoers and the public poverty however, Government (should) plays a crucial role in also share these myths. They sound eerily familiar. Read any moderating these factors. Australian tabloid newspaper, listen to the shock jocks or commercial TV commentators and you will experience these Inequality and poverty are an injury to individuals and harmful myths regurgitated and reinforced for general consumption. to society – they create social vulnerability and undermine Below are outlined the myths that I have countered with social cohesion. A slew of political commentators, maintain evidence drawn from an Australian context. At best they that social vulnerability was a key driver of Brexit and the reinforce inaction, and at worst hostility, towards addressing election of Donald Trump. However, neither outcome, in and of inequality and poverty. themselves, will successfully address inequality and poverty and both have created social division. See Myths, page 4 Poverty myths MYTH 1: ‘They’ are lazy and don’t want to work. Fact: The majority of families in poverty are from low income, underemployed working households. MYTH 2: ‘They’ are addicted to drink and drugs. Truth: While addiction is devastating for the families and communities touched by it, the percentage of welfare beneficiaries who are alcohol and drug dependent is roughly equivalent to the general community. Addiction is no respecter of social and economic boundaries. MYTH 3: ‘They’ are not poor – they just don’t manage their money properly. Truth: Living on a low income is one of constant struggle to manage limited resources, with small events having serious consequences. Statistics show that the poorest spend their money carefully, limiting themselves to the essentials. MYTH 4 - ‘They’ are frauding the system. Truth: In reality around 0.5 per cent of the welfare budget is lost to fraud .5 MYTH 5 - ‘They’ have an easy life; it’s a lifestyle choice Truth: Benefits do not meet minimum income standards. They have halved in value relative to average incomes over the last 30 years. The ill and the unemployed are the people least satisfied and happy with life. MYTH 6 - ‘Welfare’ is causing our national financial problems Truth: The proportion of our tax spent on welfare has remained stable for the last 20 years. In all areas apart from the aged pension welfare dependency is actually falling .6 Why is the problem of Public debt being laid at the feet of the poorest? 1 www.acoss.org.au/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/Inequality_in_Australia_FINAL.pdf 5 http://theconversation.com/factcheck-do-welfare-recipients-owe-the-australian- 2 https://www.oecd.org/.../OECD2015-In-It-Together-Chapter1-Overview-Inequality.pdf government-about-3-5-billion-61906 3 http://www.treasury.gov.au/PublicationsAndMedia/Publications/2013/Economic- 6 https://www.theguardian.com/business/grogonomics/2015/feb/12/the-truth-about- Roundup-Issue-2/Economic-Roundup/Income-inequality-in-Australia bludgers-welfare-dependency-in-australia-is-falling 4 PHOTO © PIXABAY/ BRIGITTE WERNER © PIXABAY/ PHOTO http://www.jointpublicissues.org.uk/truthandliesaboutpoverty/ Edition 40 Mercy Partners NEWS | 3 mercy partners ceo mercy partners formation myths grounded in Gospel Continued from page 3 virtues of truth, hope, Catholic Social teaching and … these myths reinforce inaction compassion. Part of our calling as and hostility towards addressing Christians is to seek after truth, and inequality and poverty that means facing up to our own Let me make this personal. My wife and I have a close blindness as well friend, Sally (not her real name), who is a very competent, as calling others to compassionate middle-aged woman who left an abusive account. relationship of 20 years with next to nothing. Sally raised Fr Frank Brennan SJ AO will address Mercy her two children under very trying circumstances and is now Once referred to Partners Brisbane Regional Gathering in April ACU COURTESY PHOTO: struggling to run a small business. Sally’s total net assets by former Prime amount to about $60,000. Sally received one of those Centrelink Minister Paul letters alleging an $8000 dollar debt that, after appeal, was Keating as ‘that meddlesome Priest’, Father Frank Brennan, revoked. Sally is not lazy – she works around the clock. Sally is Professor of Law and now CEO of Catholic Social Services, a spendthrift vegetarian who is living hand to mouth … not by will be addressing the Brisbane Regional Gathering of Mercy choice. Were it not for the generosity of her partner of the last Partners ministries on Tuesday 9 April. He will tackle such three years, Sally would be at risk of homelessness. vexed questions as ‘Inequality and Poverty in Australia’ and considering Mercy and Compassion. More information about We have come to believe things about poverty and inequality his itinerary will be forthcoming but I invite you to consider that are not grounded in fact. Consequently, we react participating and join with us in this challenge. with judgement and condemnation. We must develop an understanding of the depth and breadth of poverty that is compatible with the evidence available. Just as importantly we need to match the language of public debate – which often demonises the poor – with the reality of people’s lives. It is time to create a new story about inequality and poverty; one A version of this article has also been published onLinkedIn. Left-right: Brian Flannery, Terry Crawford, John Prins and Peter Steer Farewell and welcome to Mater personnel MR BRIAN FLANNERY, Chair of Mater Board of Directors, retired Mercy Partners Council congratulates and welcomes Dr Steer at the end of 2018 and Mr Terry Crawford was appointed in and Mr Crawford and would like to thank Mr Flannery and his place. Dr Shane Kelly retired from the position of Chief Prof Prins for their many years of service to this significant Executive Officer mid-year andProf John Prins, former Mater Mercy Partners ministry. We wish them well in their future Research CEO, acted as Mater CEO until Dr Peter Steer took up endeavours. the position from January this year.
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