Remembering the Feast of the Holy Innocents - the Politics of Christmas

In the days after Christmas, while most people are recovering from the indulgence of Christmas Day or deeply immersed in the liturgy of the Boxing Day Test, the Church calendar commemorates the Holy Innocents, the children killed by Herod in a bid to maintain his grip on power.  This is a part of the Christmas story which gets little attention in churches, yet it forms a major part of the biblical birth narrative.  It is a day when we remember children and other innocent people killed by today’s Herods, who consider such innocents to be acceptable collateral damage in their quest for power and security.  Children are still the most deeply affected by wars around the globe – 60% of Afghans are under the age of 21.  90% of those killed in wars now are civilians. (Simon Moyle)

In Melbourne there is going to be a peace procession from Victoria Barracks in Melbourne to Defence Plaza beginningat 1pm with prayers at Victoria Barracks on St Kilda Road, and process to Defence Plaza, 661 Bourke St. Melbourne, for further prayer and reflection. For details see: Simon Moyle

Consumeris as addiction

A thought provoking column in the Age last weekend by Simon Moyle on consumerism and addiction in the context of the Federal Government's proposed stimulus package- with a reference to one of the authors who I am founding challenging but also entertaining - Wendell Berry.

http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/fostering-a-dangerous-climate-of-addiction-20090206-7zyy.html