"It is the pluralism of cultures and ethnic groups that makes Malaysia a 'miniature Asia'" the cardinal says.

"The coexistence of different components allows the Catholic community to experience the interaction of differences that takes place in diversity" says Francis, who is the bishop of Penang.

Malaysia's cultural and religious diversity is "reasonably healthy" he says.

"The Malays are protected and are only Muslims, as enshrined in the Constitution. But a democratic nation like ours cannot today choose to be completely monocultural or monoreligious.

"Our country is characterised by an interesting pluralism that makes it a truly Asian country, a microcosm in which one can experience the constituent dimension of Asia."

Ethnic mix

Ethnic Malays make up about 60 percent of Malaysia's estimated 34 million people.

About 24 percent are Chinese, seven percent are Indians and ten percent are indigenous non-Malay communities.

The ten percent Christian Malaysians are based mostly in Sarawak and Sabah.

Synodality and diversity

"Synodality" and "dialogue" are keys to overcoming differences, the cardinal says. They are also key to forming a society based on the richness of diversity.

Francis says despite ethnic and cultural differences within Catholic communities in Malaysia, the Church is always available to serve everyone.

As an example, the Church there celebrates the liturgy in four official languages. Traditions from diverse Catholic immigrant groups add to the varied mix.

Pastoral opportunities

The cardinal says that, although Catholics are a minority, the Church has the resources for pastoral life.

Missionary religious orders compensate for Malaysia's paucity of priestly and religious vocations.

Faith formation and empowering the laity are important, Francis says.

"We care about the Christian life of the laity and after the Second Vatican Council we have emphasised the formation of the laity, especially through training courses or continuing education events in the parishes."

Political change in Malaysia has however had negative impacts on the Church's mission.

"Our influence in the field of education has decreased enormously because the Government has taken control of education in public schools, both state and private" says the cardinal.

"If we want to be present in the field of education, we must act as private actors, but the Government also controls private education, decides on the curricula and pays teachers their salaries.

"We own the real estate and the land on which the schools are built, but it is the Government that controls school life.

"So technically we own the buildings but not the system. We contribute, but we cannot give concrete shape to the education system."

Source

• UCA News

Sometimes, I imagine that these folks are actually in the choir loft, where the camera and streaming laptop actually are. I can't see them, but for most of Mass, I also can't see the people in the pews behind me. But we're together.

I do see folks during Communion, of course, but I have to admit that I tend to only notice the person right in front of me, making sure I don't step on their heels or do anything else ridiculous as we head up to receive the Body.

This is the climax of the liturgy, and there is something beautiful about the entire activity, the church suddenly becoming a flurry of activity when we had been so dutifully in our pews for the rest of the time.

The pandemic effect

Masses during the pandemic gave us an important — albeit stressful — moment to reflect on the liturgy.

In one of the most poignant moments in the early days of the crisis, Pope Francis offered an urbi et orbi blessing from an empty St. Peter's Square.

Anyone watching that moment — Catholic or not, religious or not — could feel the yawning emptiness of the square. For many, it managed to capture the distance between us all, physical and emotional.

Many of our Protestant sibling traditions adapted easily to online alternatives. Indeed, many were already streaming their services before the pandemic forced them to.

We Catholics, on the other hand, found ourselves gathered for Mass in alien spaces like Facebook Live, YouTube and Zoom.

Ironically, our relative unfamiliarity with these spaces meant radical variation in technical choices. Some pastors and parish professionals adapted easily and made good choices. Others did their best.

But it's 2024. That was then; this is now.

Most of the masks are gone (for better or worse) and the doors of churches are open. Isn't it time for us to close the laptops, unplug the cameras, and end the meeting?

Jesuit Fr. Thomas Reese thinks so.

Post pandemic options

As a theologian, I understand what motivates dramatic responses to digital technology in the context of the Mass. Folks like Reese are worried about the sacraments, specifically our physical interaction with them.

The physical elements of the sacraments are not just important — they are the whole point. Indeed, they are the center of a sacramental economy that informs the Catholic imagination to see the whole created world as infused with the grace of God.

But there are at least three strong arguments for continuing to stream the Mass and other liturgical moments.

First, we can uphold the importance of consuming the eucharistic elements while at the same time making liturgical space for folks who are not consuming them.

We already do this.

One can think of a variety of circumstances in which a person would be present for the liturgy but not consume the Eucharist: a child who has not made her first Communion; a friend or family member who is not Catholic coming to Mass with their loved one; a person who discerns that they are not in a state to receive.

By arguing that physical consumption of the Eucharist is the only reason to be present at Mass, we undermine these legitimate ways of being gathered.

It is possible to maintain that the ideal situation is a fully communed gathering, but we already know that at every Mass this is not the reality, and that it is perfectly fine.

Second, there is a group of folks for whom Mass online has widened their experience of the church, namely what I would call being the "church on the sidelines."

Televised Mass has been around for a while, and there is an analogy here, of course.

But with nearly every parish having the ability and willingness to stream, interested people are now able to experience a much wider version of the church.

Televised Masses are not particularly diverse.

Diversity and inclusion

Diversity here need not be about liturgical difference.

By diversity, I mean the simple fact of being exposed to different parishes. The universality of the church holds us all together but our individual communities — with all their quirks and beauty — hold us close.

Here, I want to make a plea for the legitimate space of the sidelines. There are a million reasons why someone might be on the sidelines — personal, political, physical or spiritual.

Online Masses may not be our ideal liturgical encounter, but it remains an important way in which a person can remain somewhat connected to the church to which they may not — for whatever reason — feel totally connected.

There is as yet no evidence telling us that folks are choosing online Mass over Mass in the church building.

What we do know is that there is a growing number of unaffiliated and disaffiliated people in the United States. The data also show that these folks aren't necessarily atheists; many of them are still searching.

Perhaps it's just because it's Easter season, but I can't help but feel like leaving the streams open reflects a deep hope that we still have something to offer the church on the sidelines.

Lastly and most importantly, any call to end streaming the Mass must take a hard look at the way in which this will disproportionately affect people with disabilities or other realities that are preventing them from joining us at the Eucharistic table in the liturgically prescribed way. Continue reading

• Katherine G. Schmidt is associate professor of theology and religious studies at Molloy University in New York. Her research focuses on the relationship of theology and culture, specifically digital culture and technology.

The latest comes from David Palmieri of Outreach, a US LGBTQ Catholic resource.

"Aroha and Diversity in Catholic Schools, manifests the love of Jesus Christ in its courage to seek "respect, compassion, and sensitivity" for LGBTQ children in Catholic schools and colleges" he says.

For this unique effort among Catholic leaders, "Aroha" deserves global recognition and accolades, he says.

The National Centre for Religious Studies (NCRS), a branch of the official teaching arm of the NZ Catholic bishops' Te Kupenga-Catholic Leadership Institute, talked to Palmieri about their role in helping draft the new document.

The NCRS is responsible for Religious Education curricula and resources at primary and secondary school levels, and provides an early childhood curriculum.

The NCRS "is led by Colin MacLeod, and is blessed by the wisdom and experience of full-time or part-time curriculum and resource developers: Laurel Lanner, Sam Steele, Kate McHeyzer, Stephen Woodnutt (seconded for 2022) and Lyn Smith".

"The bishops genuinely care for the young people in their schools and want to support them," the NCRS told Palmieri.

"Throughout the process, the New Zealand bishops have been compassionately aware of the need to support vulnerable young people."

In September 2020, the New Zealand Ministry of Education released new guidelines for education on relationships and sexuality.

They included gender considerations for all grade levels.

The bishops' new document acknowledges that in the culture, there are some "ideological stances which run counter to Catholic teaching on human sexuality."

As an example, the NCRS says 2018 census data shows 48.2 percent of the New Zealand population is religiously unaffiliated.

Additionally, the Catholic Church is navigating cultural divergences among its members from official doctrines. These include prostitution, same-sex marriage, abortion and euthanasia.

The NCRS says the bishops are also concerned about the over-sexualisation of society, which targets young people and influences their principles and choices.

The bishops' process for drafting the document "highlights the reality that being followers of Jesus today is just as complex as it was in Jesus' time, and the Church needs to be just as creative, compassionate and strong in its message of love and faith as modelled by Jesus."

According to the NCRS, the document's preparation was an exercise in synodality and co-responsibility.

The bishops listened to school principals, guidance counsellors, directors of religious studies and diocesan religious education advisors. Principals involved in the drafting process were very clear that this document was needed urgently in schools.

They also "spoke to some groups of high school seniors and school leavers to see what they had to say about positive and negative experiences in New Zealand Catholic schools, and what advice they had to offer."

Another positive aspect is the bishops' choice to use "LGBTQ language".

"We used LGBTQIA+ because we wanted to show inclusivity. This is also the terminology used in the Ministry of Education documentation on relationship and sexuality education, and it is the language used by young people in general," NCRS says.

"Aroha" takes a far different approach from the US with LGBTQI+ issues. It advises "each situation must be judged on its merits.

The document is unique in at least three ways, NCRS told Outreach.

As it's a pastoral guide, it shows a preferential option for the principles of Catholic social teaching.

It features a pastoral approach to catechesis on human sexuality.

The NZCBC prioritise the affirming and buffering of young people.

Source

• NCRS
• Outreach

Primarily targeting Catholic educators, "Aroha and Diversity in Catholic Schools" is the opposite of so many policies which have harmed students and upset school communities in recent years, Shine comments.

The document clearly shows the bishops' core concern is young people's safety and well-being, not with defending church teaching, he says.

He sees the guideline as exciting "as it provides Catholics worldwide with an opportunity to grow in understanding and to improve pastoral practice."

First, most importantly, the bishops address LGBTQ+ issues primarily through the lens of social justice, Shine says.

"The text stresses repeatedly values like respecting human dignity, advancing solidarity, and promoting the common good.

"At the document's heart is the clear statement, 'How we as a Church treat those members of the LGBTQIA+ community should reflect Catholic social teaching.'"

Shine notes the bishops recognise this commitment to social justice is central for young people.

"Such a social justice-focused approach is different from nearly every other diocesan or national gender policy, which sadly focus instead on upholding orthodoxy and imposing LGBTQ-negative prohibitions."

Second, and linked to the first point, there is a repeated emphasis on the need to end discrimination and curtail bullying, Shine notes.

He says he likes the guideline's practical advice, which includes general principles like:

• "Ensure that school is a safe place - many young people may not feel accepted anywhere else ... school may be their only ... sanctuary."
• "Acceptance of others sets a very ‘low bar' - Catholic schools need to be centres of welcome from all the community. . ."
• "Ensure ... procedures and guidelines on how homophobia, sexism, racism, and other forms of violence are unacceptable and how they are to be addressed ...".

The third point is the role an informed conscience has in handling personal, complex issues like gender and sexuality.

"Catholic schools are called to help form the consciences of the young people in their care, while recognising that parents, caregivers and whanau have a role to play in this area. . ."

Practical suggestions include encouraging staff to educate themselves about LGBTQIA+ people, to develop relevant resources and revise gender-related dress codes. It also provides practical guidelines for young people themselves.

The final section - "Tools for Decision Making" - includes questions on how to hold events or promote resources.

On the minus side, Shine says the document reiterates... a conservative interpretation of church teaching!

"Yet, the document does so in a way that is far more limited than other policy documents on this subject."

Catholic education worldwide can now study the guidelines, he says. By being so focused on localised decision-making, the bishops end up offering universal principles and tools for reflection.

New Ways Ministry has locked horns with the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith and the US bishops for its dissent from Catholic teaching on homosexuality.

Pope Francis, however, has praised its founder in a handwritten letter.

Source

• New Ways Ministry

New Zealand's Catholic bishops, who released the guidelines, say all young people in Catholic schools are to be welcomed, supported and encouraged. This is important as they navigate their journey from childhood to adult and discover more about who they are, the guidelines say.

"Vulnerable rangatahi" are specifically mentioned as requiring support.

Called "Aroha and Diversity in Catholic Schools" the National Centre for Religious Studies drafted the guidelines. The draft followed a "comprehensive dialogue" between the bishops, principals, national and diocesan Catholic education leaders, as well as young people.

Bishop of Auckland Stephen Lowe says the bishops are well aware of the need to support school leadership and rangatahi in navigating the complex reality of sexual diversity.

"Young people today do not live in a bubble. They are aware and inform themselves of the range of social, scientific, ideological and religious stances regarding this issue, and there is a lot of pressure and rhetoric about this issue.

"This challenges and can pressurise young people, their whanau, and schools and wider communities," says Lowe.

The diversity guidelines clearly articulate the rich teaching of the Catholic Church, he explains.

They also provide practical information and tools to help schools make informed decisions regarding the support of rangatahi who are grappling with issues about sexual diversity in the complexities of our modern world.

"All of us are made in the image of God, and all are called into an authentic relationship with God, ourselves, each other and our world," he says.

"Such relationships are never static, and our young people must navigate their own challenging and sacred journey from childhood to adulthood.

"Our identities as adults take time to form, and vulnerable young people should not feel pushed or coerced to make decisions about themselves too soon.

"In the midst of their journey, the rangatahi in our schools deserve to be welcomed with aroha and manaakitanga, and encouraged to discover the beauty and wonder of themselves in a way that reflects Jesus' words and actions of love, compassion and challenge."

Source

• NZ Catholic Bishops Conference
• The Aroha and Diversity in Catholic Schools document

The Gathering, which meets in a hall the South Canterbury town of Temuka has no leader, no service plan and just a couple of acoustic guitars.

About 30 people attend the non-denominational gathering regularly, the youngest was four and the oldest over 80.

Members discuss aspects of the Bible, with everyone having the opportunity to share their views.

Founded on the Bible verse 1 Corinthians 14.26, which talks about Christians getting together sharing hymns, words of instruction and revelation, to build up the church, it has drawn a dedicated group of worshippers.

In a reflection of first-century Christians' behaviour The Gathering shares lunch after their service too.

At the cost of $25 an hour (including power) for the pipe band hall rental, the new church has no other overheads other than blackcurrant juice and a little bread for communion.

In contrast, St Mary's Anglican in Timaru, the projected lighting and heating budget for this year is $11,604, to heat the spaces between the resplendent Oamaru stone walls and ornate arches, propped up by Welsh marble pillars.

Its heaters are turned on each week at 2.30 am in preparation for services, at a cost of about $30 an hour. The church's overall projected budget for 2019 is $212,169.

Presbyterian minister Reverend Brent Richardson sees The Gathering as one of many groups being innovative but predicts that as it grew and became more sophisticated it would likely need an administrator to cope with the workload.

"As it grows it requires money to keep going. The only way to avoid that is by remaining small."

Being purposefully stunted defeated the purpose of a church with its mission to share the gospel and increase its numbers, Richardson said.

Source

• stuff.co.nz
• Image: stuff.co.nz

It talks about the supremacy of the European people and deporting all non-Europeans. He says he decided to take a stand to ensure a future for ‘my' people.

‘The White Genocide' is how he refers to his actions; he labels himself as a part-time kebab removalist.

Tarrant says he carried out the attack to, most of all, show the invaders that our lands will never be their lands, and to directly reduce immigration rates to European lands by intimidating and physically removing the invaders themselves and to incite violence, retaliation and further divide between the European people and the invaders currently occupying European soil.

He says he's taking revenge in New Zealand for events that happened elsewhere in the world.

The manifesto ends with: "Europa arises."

Difference

As a Church, over the years, we've had our issues with differences in creeds.

Catholics were told there was no salvation outside the Catholic Church and interpreted this as there were only Catholics in heaven.

We make light of it now; I'm sure we've all heard or read Irish comedian Dave Allen about St Peter showing a person around heaven and saying to be quiet around the Catholics because they think they're the only ones there.

For most of her life, my mother was an Anglican.

As an Anglican, she was the one who heard our Catechism questions and knew more of the Catechism than either my sister or me.

My mother was also an excellent cake decorator, and not long after Vatican II, the ecumenical Council, the Brigidine Sisters at St Benedict's school in Wellington, asked her to decorate our first Holy Communion cake.

A non-Catholic decorating the first Holy Communion cake! It raised some eyebrows in the parish.

I consider having a non-Catholic mother as one of the greatest blessings in my life.

She and my father taught me religious differences could work.

• Differences often make us look twice.
• Differences make us think.
• Differences may even confront.
• Differences were part of the reason for Jesus' crucifixion.

And, just when you thought the examples were over, "that was then, and this is now", our church's dealing with difference is perhaps not so historic; for example, relatively recently, we changed the words of consecration, so now Jesus' blood is not shed for ‘all' but just for 'many,' the few.

Thumbs up to Egg Boy

Whatever the liturgical semantics, being different does not give anyone the right to senselessly slaughter another. Nor does it give Australian senator Fraser Anning the right to blame Friday's mass murder on Muslim migration. Please, Mr Anning. There is no excuse.

Australia, you can keep Tarrant and Anning. Whereas there is an open invitation to "Egg Boy", the 17-year-old William Connolly, to come to New Zealand any time.

The people who died in Christchurch on Friday were in what they thought was a safe place with their God.

Tarrant's actions crossed religious lines.

Tarrant crossed ethnic lines.

He also crossed the line of what it means to be human.

The impact of Tarrant's actions was also felt beyond the Christchurch boundary line, and friends of mine, immigrants, here long enough to be New Zealand citizens, but who on Saturday were so scared they were holed up in their Wellington home.

They didn't come to New Zealand for this, nor did they come to see other people on social media "liking" Tarrant's live video stream and witness others giving a "thumbs up" to his manifesto.

What can we learn from Friday?

Is there something we can learn from what happened?

In time, there are bound to be many "learnings", but as a start, as fellow human beings, let's use this Christchurch horror as a reminder to be less judgmental, to understand a way of life that may seem foreign to us and in a society dominated by fences and boundaries, let's try to appropriately reach out.

Christians familiar with the letter of St James will remember that faith, without actions, is dead.

On Sunday, we heard God, The Father's voice, in the scriptures. The account of the Transfiguration ends: "This is my Son, the chosen one. Listen to him."

At no point does Jesus condone murder, racism, or hate.

We are all different from each other but are together in this world.

Let our actions speak volumes.

• John Murphy is a Marist priest working in communications and new media.

Certainly if you are white she will think you are pretty disgusting.

She thinks that you, like ‘all white people', partake in ‘racial violence'.

She thinks you have built your ‘existence, privilege and success' on ‘the backs, blood and death of people of colour'.

In short, you're scum: you are racially violent and blinkered to your role in the spilling of black people's blood.

Who wouldn't hate someone like that? I would.

And don't even start Ms Bergdorf on homosexuals who support the Tory Party (‘special kind of dickhead[s]'), the Suffragettes (‘white supremacists'), or homeless people (the white ones apparently ‘have white privilege' - lucky bastards).

For someone who blathers on about acceptance, Ms Bergdorf seems curiously unaccepting of certain groups of people.

That Ms Bergdorf, a trans-woman and sometime model, poses as a promoter of tolerance and diversity and yet at the same time sanctions hatred or at least disdain for large sections of society has got some people scratching their heads.

How can this be?

This week she stepped down as an equalities adviser for the Labour Party following a media storm over her past hateful comments. (Literally everything you need to know about the Corbynised Labour Party and its trading of class politics for identity politics is contained in the fact that it wanted advice about equality from someone who thinks the white man on methadone who lives in a skip enjoys ‘white privilege'.)

Now some people are laughing, and it's a confused laugh, at the fact that an aspiring equalities adviser could be so mean about certain social groups.

But it makes sense. Perfect sense.

Hatred, demonisation and the treatment of large swathes of society as backward are key elements of the politics of identity.

It is not an accident that many identitarians hold extremely intolerant views of certain social groups.

They are not going ‘off-script' when they casually write off white people or straight people or Christians as dickheads, supremacists, ignorant, evil, etc.

Rather, such a callous painting of ordinary people as ‘problematic', as creatures to be wary of, is central to this politics that relies for its very survival on the idea that minority groups are victimised and thus require help and flattery from those in authority.

For in order to sustain this beneficial status as ‘victim group', identitarians must continually construct a fantasy army of victimisers.

Their social and political status is utterly dependent on their ability to depict other people, ordinary people, you and me, as horrible, hateful, and perilous to their identity or their ‘existence'.

The fuel of their worldview is fear and hatred of others, of us.

They're all at it

Every identitarian activist devotes an extraordinary amount of energy to uncovering and complaining about the alleged backwardness of ordinary people.

Witness how gay-rights groups now scour for evidence of homophobic hatred.

So desperate are they to prove, against the evidence of everyday experience, that gays suffer horrible prejudice in 21st-century Britain that they have taken to flagging up schoolkids' use of the word ‘gay' as an insult to bolster their claim to victim status.

Or see how Muslim community groups trawl for evidence of ‘Islamophobia', gathering every stupid tweet or anti-Koran comment made on a bus into dossiers of dread that they might present to the media and the government.

They need this; it guarantees their funding; it grants them access to the sainted circle of threatened groups requiring special resources.

To ensure their survival in a politics that rewards those who suffer, they must set out to prove that non-Muslims are a problem; they must encourage hatred of non-Muslims. Continue reading

• Image: Metro

While the Queen is back in the new version to be read ahead of Question Time next week, references to Jesus Christ are still on the chopping block. Continue reading

He wrote, "Who needs employees if they stop work five times per day to talk to an imaginary being?"

Richards was accused of confusing the Sikh in the photo on the Z Energy Facebook page with a Muslim.

However, he said this was not the case. "I did not confuse Sikh and Muslim. My comment was on the original post, which was about diversity, not on the photo.

Richards said he made comments on all kinds of religion and that it was his right to do so through freedom of speech.

Richards teaches American history and religion at the University of Waikato. But he said his opinion is his own and do not represent those of the University.

On his own Facebook page he said, "In Saudi Arabia and other Islamic theocracies, Muslims would kill me for criticizing their stupid beliefs."

"In New Zealand, they go after my job. They will fail, and they need to learn respect for evidence, reason and freedom of speech."

Richards said he had deleted his Facebook comment himself, "because I do not want extremists coming after me".

That fear may be well founded. In 1998, the university hired a security guard to protect Richards while he was on campus after two death threats were made against him following a lecture he gave on the Mormon Church's history of violence and polygamy.

Source

• Stuff
• New Zealand Herald
• Image: NewstalkZB

Pope Francis says on 28 June he will hold a consistory to appoint the cardinals, who come from El Salvador, Laos, Mali, Spain and Sweden. They will add diversity to the church, Francis says.

Apart from Spain, none of the countries has ever had a cardinal before.

The new cardinals are:

73-year-old Archbishop Jean Sevo from Mali;

71-year-old Archbishop Juan Jose Omella from Spain;

67-year-old Bishop Anders Arborelius from Sweden;

73-year-old Vicar Apostolic Louis-Marie Ling Mangkhanekhoun from Laos;

74-year-old Auxiliary Archbishop Gregorio Rosa Chavez from El Salvador.

The cardinals' diversity expresses the "Catholicity of the church, diffused throughout the earth," Francis said.

Francis is known for his concern for church to look to the peripheries and bring them to the center.

In this respect, the new cardinals have much in common with others Francis has appointed. Many are also from "far-flung, often overlooked dioceses where Catholics are a distinct minority".

The new cardinals are also joining a number of others who are eligible to vote for the next pope. All five are currently well under the age of 80.

(Francis has been increasing the pool of eligible voters for some years. Of the 19 new cardinals he created in 2014, 16 are under 80.)

The new cardinals roles will include working as papal advisors.

The new cardinals and Francis will say Mass together the day after they are appointed. It will be the feast of Saints Peter and Paul.

Source

• Crux
• DeutscheWelle
• Image: Spiegel

The school rolls also have 21% more pupils from ethnic minority backgrounds compared to other schools.

These insights follow a change in the annual Catholic Education Service Schools' census.

This year for the first time, the census collected data about the religions of pupils who are not Catholic.

The census was sent to over 2,200 Catholic primary and secondary schools in England and Wales.

It also found more than one in five "black children" and 26,000 Muslims in the census area attend Catholic schools.

In fact, aside from Christian pupils, more Muslims are enrolled at Catholic schools than children of any other faith.

In contrast, one of the biggest religious groupings was of pupils who have "no religion".

To add to the cultural mix, one in five pupils are from "minority white backgrounds" - many of whom are from Eastern European migrant families - are also Catholic school pupils.

Paul Barber, Director of the Catholic Education Service Catholic schools have again shown they are "the most ethnically diverse in the country.

" What's more, Catholic schools are not just more diverse but disproportionately more so.

"The fact that a tenth of all schools educates a fifth of certain ethnic minorities is an incredible achievement."

Barber noted Catholicism in England and Wales is a largely immigrant faith.

"Catholic schools have a strong track record of taking in children from a wide range of ethnic minorities and producing well-educated, open minded, citizens.

"It is very easy for secularist campaigners to claim that religious ethos schools are divisive and segregate communities but the evidence for this simply doesn't back this up."

Source

• Society
• Independent Catholic News
• Image: St Simon Stock Catholic School

A Catholic professor's views on diversity are making waves at the Catholic college he teaches at.

A row blew up after Professor Anthony Esolen published two articles recently

In one of them, Esolen says the "celebrate diversity" culture crowd is "at odds with…the diversity of male and female to be resolved most dynamically and creatively in the union of man and woman in marriage."

In the other, he expresses concern about the"relentless institutional persecution" Catholics are experiencing.

He asks readers to consider how they will prepare for the "onslaught" when it comes to them.

Esolen's definition of "diversity" has led some students at the Dominican-led Providence College in Rhode Island where he teaches to accuse him of racism.

Others have called for him to be sacked.

He says they are angry at his suggestion that "there was something totalitarian in the impulse of the secular left, to attempt to subject our curriculum to the demands of a current political aim."

Esolen says despite letting all students know he'd be happy to discuss their differences with them, no students have taken him up on the offer.

College President, Father Brian Shanley, suggests the meaning of the word "diversity" be debated.

Added to this, though, he says it's important to remember "words have an impact on those who hear or read them.

"When a professor questions the value of diversity, the impact on many students, faculty, and staff of color is to feel that their presence is not valued and that they are not welcome at Providence College," he says.

Shanley also points out Providence College's Catholic mission is to "embrace people from diverse backgrounds and cultures as a mirror of the universal Church and to seek the unity of that Body in the universal love of Christ."

He also notes Pope Francis embracing a variety of cultural backgrounds is a way of connecting with each other... like weaving a blanket "with patience and perseverance, one which gradually draws together stitches to make a more extensive and rich cover."

Source

• Breitbart
• Image: EWTN Bookmark

The president of the Sikh society said it is not something he thought he'd ever see when he moved to New Zealand three decades ago.

The new temple in Naenae is going to cater for a growing population, the number of people affiliating with Sikh in New Zealand has more than doubled since 2006. Continue reading

And she is incredibly proud of her school and its students.

At a recent mufti day which coincided with International Refugee Day, students shared stories, food and performed cultural dances.

Sawaya says a lovely thing happened recently; one of the Samoan students learned the dance of her Colombian classmates and performed with them.

She says inclusiveness is something she values a lot.

And that's why she is keen to be with the students every step of the way.

Extra steps are taken to help the new students feel comfortable.

During the week there are 2 teacher aides who speak Spanish and 2 who speak a variety of Burmese dialects.

"We have the teacher aides present when we have meetings with the students or at parent teacher meetings and even when we send newsletters to the parents we get them translated in their language," she says.

Sawaya is keen for New Zealand to increase its refugee quota.

"We support it completely, it's part of our ethical beliefs as a catholic school."

"They have a right to freedom, a peaceful life and when they come here they share their culture with us and that's a beautiful thing," she says.

Source

• newswire.co.nz
• Image: stuff.co.nz

The Open Day was one of the main activities of the Islam Awareness Week.

Sheikh said it was a very unique opportunity for people as "the treasures on display here are from volunteers' homes because there is no specific museum for such artefacts currently in New Zealand."

Artefacts such as a replica of the Holy Kaaba, life-size camel and posters in different sections such as Islamic arts, science, Islamic Foundations and Islamic culture were on display.

There were Ethnic food stalls, dress stalls, and fun activities for the children as well.

Organiser Hassan Raslan said it went "way better than expected" in light of wild weather the night before.

He said the event aims to show Islam "is not specific to any particular ethnicity" and celebrate the religion's cross-continent diversity.

Thousands of passers by stopped by for a taste of not only food, but art, history, and science from around the Muslim world.

Islam Awareness Week is an annual event that gives an opportunity to New Zealanders to know more about Islam, its teachings, its rich history and its artefacts.

During this week most of the mosques around the nation are kept open all day welcoming people from different faiths to interact with the members of the Islamic faith.

The week was launched by Hazim Arafeh, president of Federation of Islamic Association of NZ on Monday, August 22, at Kilbirnie Masjid in Wellington.

Fijians make up the majority of New Zealand's 45,000 Muslims, followed by Pakistanis, and a minority from the Middle East. Many were born in New Zealand.

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• indianweekender.co.nz
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The Randstad Workmonitor report found that more than three-quarters of Kiwi workers believe their company has an open and inclusive culture, while 88% of companies value diversity in the workplace.

9% of Kiwi workers said they had been victims of religious discrimination, while 16% of Aussie workers said they had been subjected to it.

The number of Australians subjected to racial, gender or age discrimination in the workplace is higher than the global averages.

Researchers also found that New Zealand workplaces were supportive of gender equality.

Just 16% of Kiwi participants said they had been subjected to gender discrimination - a rate that is significantly lower than the global average of 21%. A quarter of Australian respondents said the same.

New Zealand was also found to be among the most tolerant when it came to having workforces consisting of employees from various racial backgrounds.

Just 10% of Kiwi workers said they had been subject to racial discrimination at work, compared to 20% in Australia - a statistic that is 3% higher than the global average.

"It's great to see New Zealand as a place that recognises diverse cultures, which can be attributed in no small part to the steady inflow of immigrants into New Zealand for more than two centuries," said Penni Hlaca, head of client solutions at Randstad New Zealand.

"The fact that Kiwis love to travel abroad and embrace new cultures, provides us with a competitive edge on the increasingly global employment landscape."

Hlaca added that the results were "simply a reflection of New Zealand culture".

"But the key is to not get complacent, and whilst we are stacking up well on a global scale for acceptance, we should continue to strive to set the benchmark as a country where nobody feels discriminated against," she said.

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Parliament's first Sikh MP says there needs to be legislation around ceremonial daggers so it's clear they are not weapons and are safe to be worn.

National MP Kanwaljit Singh Bakshi said the biggest issue for Sikhs is being able to wear a kirpan - a short dagger that symbolises a Sikh's duty to come to the defence of those in need - at their workplace and at public events.

Recently seven Sikh cricket fans were barred from watching India play Zimbabwe in a Cricket World Cup match at Eden Park because they were wearing kirpans.

ICC spokesperson Philip Clark said he was comfortable with the way staff handled the situation at Eden Park and the policy banning all knives would be in place for the rest of the tournament.

He said the men were given the option of having their Kirpan respectfully removed and looked after or a ticket refund.

The Prime Minister, John Key, said the ICC made their own rules around the tournament, he did sympathise with the Sikh community regarding kirpans.

Labour's ethnic communities spokesman, Phil Goff, says maximum freedom for Sikhs to practise their religious beliefs and wear kirpans should be set out in law.

"In other countries, such as India, Canada, the United Kingdom and some Australian states, legislation has been passed recognising this right."

He said while safety needed to be considered - other countries have proven that the "right by law to carry the kirpan has not caused problems".

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• Radio New Zealand
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In the survey of over 2,000 households in New Zealand, conducted 89 per cent agreed with the statement "It is a good thing for any society to be made up of different races, religions and cultures".

The findings of this study suggest that in some ways, New Zealand can be considered a psychologically multicultural society, but in others, it cannot.

• New Zealanders appreciate cultural diversity and believe that it is good for society, but reject equitable resource distribution aimed to reduce social inequalities
• New Zealanders do not typically experience race-based rejection, but Asian and Pacific peoples are the most likely to experience this type of rejection
• Ethnic groups typically have warm intergroup feelings, but they have warmer feelings towards members of their own ethnic group. If one ethnic group likes another ethnic group, the feelings tend to be reciprocated
• Perceptions of economic competition tended to be low, but Asian New Zealanders were generally seen as the most threatening
• All ethnic groups displayed strong levels of patriotism.

When she was interviewed by Mervin Singham at the Ethnica Conference in Christchurch last year Professor Colleen Ward, referring to the survey said.

"In terms of the principle I think we're starting on firm ground in New Zealand. I think that diversity is appreciated here."

"But it's no good to say in principle 'I appreciate diversity, it's great to have it' on one hand, and then on the other hand, 'As long as it doesn't mean I have to do anything to respond to it."

"If you say 'Diversity is great but I don't want a synagogue, mosque or temple in my neighbourhood', what does that mean?"

'"All groups have to be able to accommodate difference in a reasonable fashion."

"If I value it, I have to accommodate to a certain extent."

This interview has been referred to in a recently posted blog on American Thinker which discusses the question "Can Muslims be multiculturalist?" i

The writer, a conservative American academic, Robert Klein Engler states "At its core, Islam does not allow for freedom of religion, yet this freedom would be considered one of the core principles of the multiculturalism we hear professed."

Engler challenged the opinion expressed by Ward that "...multiculturalism hasn't failed in France, Germany and the UK. They've never had it. It's never been tested."

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• VictoriaUniversity
• Victoria University
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The report - Our Futures: Te Pae Tawhiti - released today by an expert panel of the Royal Society of New Zealand, analysed data from the 2013 Census and other sources.

Seven key themes from the Census data and analyses were identified for the report — diversity, population growth, tangata whenua, migration, households and families, regional variation and work. Continue reading