Notes: Tuesday, August 6-Tuesday, September 10, 2013 (part 2 of 2)

5. "CATHOLIC laws dating back to the church's inception no longer protect priests from civil and criminal law, a NSW inquiry has heard."

The quotation in that headline is the first paragraph of the very short (only three paragraphs) article "NO PRIEST SHIELD", no byline, p. 16, the Sydney Daily Telegraph, Thursday, August 1, 2013, Vol. 1, No. 2910, ISSN 1038-8745, published by Nationwide News Pty. Ltd. (The article seemed to have been a shortened version of the 9NEWS/AAP article "Church law no protection: inquiry", dated July 31, 2013, but "Church law no protection: inquiry" is no longer available, and nor is any version available at the Tele's website.)

The inquiry in question is the Special Commission of Inquiry into matters relating to the Police investigation of certain child sexual abuse allegations in the Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle, and the relevant portion of its transcripts is on pp. 64-127 here:

http://www.lawlink.nsw.gov.au/lawlink/Special_Projects/ll_splprojects.nsf/vwFiles/Transcript_Day_20_-_TOR_2_-_31_July_2013.pdf/$file/Transcript_Day_20_-_TOR_2_-_31_July_2013.pdf

But the earliest chronological reference I can find there is to the Middle Ages.

Labels: benefit of clergy, Church law, Church and State, civil law, Divine law, law

6. Some recent information regarding childcare in Australia

See the articles "More than 1m Australian children now in childcare", by Rebecca Puddy, dated August 4, 2013, downloaded from (behind the paywall at) The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/education/more-than-1m-australian-children-now-in-childcare/story-fn59nlz9-1226690884914

and "Childcare splits parents, experts", by Justine Ferrari, dated August 3, 2013, downloaded from (behind the paywall at) The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/education/more-to-childcare-than-safety/story-fn59nlz9-1226690481586

and "Budgeting for a million childcare places", by Peter Martin and Elli Harvey, dated August 11, 2013, downloaded from The Sydney Morning Herald's website:

http://www.smh.com.au/federal-politics/federal-election-2013/budgeting-for-a-million-childcare-places-20130810-2rp4t.html?skin=text-only

Labels: childcare, social trends

7. Dr. Zimmermann on divorce

See the article "Assessing the destructive impact of divorce", by Dr. Augusto Zimmermann, dated August 3, 2013, downloaded from News Weekly's website:

http://newsweekly.com.au/article.php?id=56299

Labels: divorce, marriage

8. Some recent information on social trends

See the article "We're older and working harder", by Rick Morton, dated August 9, 2013, downloaded from The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/were-older-and-working-harder/story-e6frg6nf-1226693852100

See also the Australian Government's Australian Institute of Health and Welfare's Australia's welfare 2013 (the report on which "We're older and working harder" was based):

http://www.aihw.gov.au/publication-detail/?id=60129543825

Labels: social trends

9. More from H.H. The Pope Emeritus (though at the time gloriously reigning) on a World State

See (a translation of) His Holiness's Address to Participants in the Plenary Assembly of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, Monday, December 3, 2012, downloaded from the Vatican's website:

http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/benedict_xvi/speeches/2012/december/documents/hf_ben-xvi_spe_20121203_justpeace_en.html

See also the Catholic News Service (C.N.S.) article "Pope calls for world authority as 'moral force'", by Francis X. Rocca, dated December 3, 2013, downloaded from the C.N.S. website:

http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/1205060.htm

(That Address came to my attention via this AQ post.)

Labels: Benedict XVI. Ratzinger, morals, politics

10. "In the evening[ of Friday, August 16, 2013], Her Excellency[ The Governor of New South Wales] delivered an Address and unveiled a commemorative plaque to mark the 125th Anniversary of The United Grand Lodge of New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, at the Museum of Freemasonry, Sydney."

The quotation in that headline comes from the webpage "Friday, 16 August 2013" in the "Diary of Engagements" pages of the offical website of The Governor of New South Wales:

http://www.governor.nsw.gov.au/news/diary-of-engagements/friday-16-august-2013/

(That event came to my attention via the "VICE REGAL" notices section on p. 35 in the classifieds section in the "Weekend Business" supplement of The Sydney Morning Herald, Weekend Edition, August 17-18, 2013, No. 54868, ISSN 0312-6315.)

Labels: Freemasons, Marie Bashir

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Feast of St. Nicholas of Tolentino, Confessor, A.D. 2013

Notes: Wednesday, February 13-Tuesday, March 26, 2013 (part 2 of 2)

10. A couple of recent items regarding 'established religion'

10.1 Mr. Rudd on how State agnosticism in Australia promotes multiculturalism, foreign relations, and the 'health' of society

"When people come to this country, I am all for people doing whatever they want to preserve the cultural inheritances they brought to this country."

This was assisted by Australia not having an established state religion, he said.

"We are all equal under the law and on questions of faith there is no preference of one against the other . . . and we have been an extraordinarily healthy society as a result," Mr Rudd said.

He said the diversity of faiths within modern Australia facilitated engagement with the Asia-Pacific, which "relatively monocultural" European countries found more difficult.
[ellipsis in the original,
"Nation's strength is its embrace of diversity, says Kevin Rudd", by Sarah Martin, dated March 7, 2013, downloaded from (behind the paywall at) The Australian's website:
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/national-affairs/immigration/nations-strength-is-its-embrace-of-diversity-says-kevin-rudd/story-fn9hm1gu-1226591936801]

Labels: Confessional State, multiculturalism

10.2 When the Colony of New South Wales had an 'established religion'

On Saturday, March 9, 2013, I read an interesting item in the "ON THIS DAY" section of the "HISTORY" page of the Sydney Daily Telegraph for that day (presumably Vol. 1, No. 2792, ISSN 1038-8745, published by Nationwide News Pty. Ltd.). Unfortunately, I forgot to rip it out and keep it, so I reproduce it here to the best of my knowledge:

1826 Letters Patent found the Church and Schools Corporation, privileging the Church of England and placing New South Wales government schools under its control, giving it the status of an established religion in the colony.

I could not find the text of that item online, and nor could I find via the "Advanced Search" page of The London Gazette website the text of the Letters Patent in question, but here are some related webpages which I found via Google, listed roughly in, from my point of view, descending order of utility:

http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/scott-thomas-hobbes-2645

http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/broughton-william-grant-1832

http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/therry-john-joseph-2722

http://acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/item/itemDetailPaged.aspx?itemID=945875

http://adb.anu.edu.au/biography/bathurst-henry-1751

http://trove.nla.gov.au/work/21634192?q=Corporation+of+the+Trustees+of+Church+and+School+Lands&c=book&versionId=25962366

http://acms.sl.nsw.gov.au/album/albumView.aspx?itemID=971395&acmsid=0

Labels: Anglicans, colonialism, N.S.W.

11. "In the evening[ of Friday, March 15, 2013], the Governor[ of New South Wales], accompanied by Dr Helen Crane, opened the “Consluencias” art exhibition at the Museum of Freemasonry, as part of celebrations marking the 125th Anniversary of Freemasons NSW & ACT, at The Masonic Centre, Sydney."

The quotation in that headline, including its italics, comes from the webpage titled "Friday, 15 March 2013", downloaded from the "Diary of Engagements" section of the official website of The Governor of New South Wales:

http://www.governor.nsw.gov.au/news/diary-of-engagements/friday-15-march-2013/

(That engagement came to my attention via the Vice-Regal notices on p. 31 in the classifieds section of the "Weekend Business" supplement of The Sydney Morning Herald, Weekend Edition, March 16-17, 2013, No. 54738, ISSN 0312-6315.)

Labels: Freemasons, Marie Bashir

12. Mr. Salt on family size in Australia

See the article "Big family loses out to work-life balance", by Bernard Salt, dated March 21, 2013, downloaded from (behind the paywall at) The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/opinion/big-family-loses-out-to-work-life-balance/story-e6frg9jx-1226601970873

See also the article "Mainstream mums: 40, with two children", by Rick Morton, dated March 21, 2013, downloaded from The Australian's website:

http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/nation/mainstream-mums-40-with-two-children/story-e6frg6nf-1226601981073

Labels: demography, families, social trends

13. What Proud Schools events look like

See the article "Colourful day of celebration", by Mel Smith ("a Country Organiser and the Officer attached to GLBTI issues" for the New South Wales Teachers Federation), on p. 13 of EDuCATiON, the Journal of the New South Wales Teachers Federation, March 11, 2013, Vol. 94, No. 2:

http://www.nswtf.org.au/journal/education-94-02/index.html

(That article came to my attention via Mr. Muehlenberg's blog post "A Minute To Midnight: Sexual Suicide in the West ", dated March 13, 2013:

http://www.billmuehlenberg.com/2013/03/13/a-minute-to-midnight-sexual-suicide-in-the-west/)

Labels: education, G.L.B.T., Proud Schools

14. More from Prof. Feser on Prof. Krauss's A Universe from Nothing

See Prof. Feser's blog post "Forgetting nothing, learning nothing", dated Wednesday, February 27, 2013:

http://edwardfeser.blogspot.com.au/2013/02/forgetting-nothing-learning-nothing.html

I especially liked this paragraph:

So, “nothing,” Krauss finally acknowledges, is “the absence of something.” So far so good. He’s acquired some knowledge of English over the last few months. Unfortunately, he still hasn’t taken that remedial logic course. For we are also told that nothing is a “physical quantity” which can be studied through “empirical” means. All of which entails that the absence of something is a physical quantity which can be studied through empirical means. Wrap your mind around that. Your couch has length, width, depth, mass, etc. and can be seen and touched. And it turns out that the absence of your couch has length, width, depth, mass, etc. and can be seen and touched. Does the absence of a couch look different from the absence of a cat? Do they weigh the same? And how many absences can you fit in one room? Don’t scoff! It’s sciiieeeeence!
[italics in the original]

Labels: philosophy

Reginaldvs Cantvar
Tuesday in Holy Week, A.D. 2013