The principles of reconciliation are the same the world over - two sides in conflict try to find common ground in order to be able to move forward together. That does not mean they agree on everything, rather that they can acknowledge their differences and see them as a source of enrichment. So says Matt Milliken, a Protestant youth worker from Belfast who grew up thinking of Catholics as "the enemy". At a conference outside Dublin, he and Aboriginal leader Patrick Dodson share insights into Reconciliation with a hundred young people from diverse backgrounds, challenging stereotypes and confronting age old prejudices. Irish-born Siobhan McHugh recorded this provocative Encounter for Reconciliation Week.
What happens when Christians pray? Does God change, does the person praying change? What has Jesuit poet Gerard Manley Hopkins contributed to a Christian understanding of prayer? One of Hopkins' most rapturous and solemn poems is "The Starlight Night" where prayer is a response to the world and the presence of God. In this Encounter Catholic and Protestant theologians talk about Hopkins and picture some starlight nights of their own. They also ponder how prayer might occur after September 11th and what is at issue when men and women from different world religions meet and experience prayer.
It's two years since the devastating fire at Childers in Queensland claimed the lives of fifteen young backpackers. For the past two years the burnt-out shell of the Palace Backpackers Hostel has been a stark reminder of the tragedy but now there are plans to rebuild the hostel and construct a memorial. In this Encounter we meet members of the Childers community. They reflect on the last two years since the fire and discuss the questions of ultimate meaning which haunt all such communities.
In Encounter this week, Bill Bunbury talks with former Governor-General, Sir William Deane about his religious upbringing and the way it has shaped his thoughts about law and justice and the ecumenical views he now holds. He speaks about our achievements and our shortcomings as a society and the issues that still concern him; youth unemployment, reconciliation with indigenous Australians and our responsibilities as a prosperous nation to those in countries ravaged by war or hunger.
The Escaped Cock is a novella by D.H. Lawrence. It's a story about a man who on his resurrection from the dead sees a rooster straining at its leash. The bird's lust for freedom is a symbol of life. The man in the story represents both Jesus and the Egyptian god Osiris, and on emerging from his tomb he is seduced by a worshipper of the goddess Isis. This Encounter explores Lawrence's understanding of full body resurrection; an idea which leads to the re-consideration of good and evil.
Encounter this week looks at a burgeoning movement for a new approach to religious and values education in all Australian schools, independent and government. This ethics-focussed movement gathers around the Dialogue Australasia Network and it is based on a "five-strand" approach developed by philosopher Peter Vardy in Britain. In Australia they call it RAVE - religion and values education. Last week 250 teachers from around Australia gathered in Canberra to report on their experiences and to hear news of the first university-based post graduate course to offer training in RAVE approaches to primary and secondary education. And they also heard Peter Vardy explain why ethics could not be taught without religion along side.
Is there a connection between music and meditation? When it's done properly meditation gives us an insight into the idea of pure awareness - or put another way, it gives us insight into the awareness of nothing. For composers like Olivier Messiaen and Karlheinze Stockhausen this awareness is a crucial part of their musical meaning. For these two great composers musical meaning is inseparable from spiritual meaning. And both reflect the mystery of the universe.
The American Evangelist Billy Graham has visited Australia four times over the last forty five years but, by general consent, nothing ever matched the success of his fifteen week Crusade in 1959. In this Encounter John Russell looks back on that Crusade not only to see how it changed lives but to examine also how it was tailor-made to satisfy the post War thirst of Australians for all things
It's a musical genre which has its roots in slavery in the southern United States, and which became one of the most significant musical streams of the 20th Century. Now, black gospel is a favourite style in the repertoires of choirs and groups all over Australia, and black gospel workshops, concerts and festivals are drawing unprecedented numbers. Why? To what extent can mostly white, middle-class Australian singers claim this music tradition as their own? And will we see a distinctive Australian flavour of black gospel emerge?