17 February 2023
Dear Reader,
The Eighth Dawson Centre Colloquium, Saturday 8 July 2023
WOKERY – A WAKE-UP CALL
FOR THE WEST?
“Alice laughed… ‘One can’t believe impossible things.’ I daresay you haven’t had much practice,’ said the Queen. ‘When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.”
Has there ever been a time when the gulf between reality and belief was wider than it is today? The idea that the naked emperor is actually wearing clothes has its funny side, but the humour is fast disappearing as school children are taught to believe that girls can be boys, that boys can be girls, and that grown-ups should be punished for denying it. This is no longer even remotely funny, but a serious threat to the stability of human society.
Not only is the belief in God as our ultimate reality widely denied, but our confidence in objective truth, goodness and beauty has been dealt a near fatal blow by the soi-disantintellectual elites that dominate the educational high ground. Our young people must be saved from this.
On Saturday 8 July the Christopher Dawson Centre for Cultural Studies will host its eighth annual colloquium in Hobart, Tasmania. The Dawson Colloquium is a conversation, rather than a multi-stream conference. There are no keynote speeches, as all are considered important to the flow of ideas, and speakers are encouraged to attend all papers.
CALL FOR PAPERS
We invite submissions from persons interested in addressing the topic. Speakers should not only identify and evaluate threats to the Christian culture which is our common heritage, but propose practical solutions.
Total time allocation for each paper will be 45 minutes, which should include time for questions and discussion (the proportion at each presenter’s discretion). Proceedings will be recorded and posted on the internet, and published in book form later in 2022 or early 2023.
Proposals should be sent to Dr David Daintree, Director, Christopher Dawson Centre for Cultural Studies director@dawsoncentre.org, 0408 87 9494.
IN THE NEWS
CARDINAL PELL LAID TO REST
Kevin Donnelly wrote this piece from the Spectator’s online journal Flat White. The Director’s article takes a different approach in trying to identify the reasons for the intense opposition to the Cardinal in some secular circles.
CURRENT AND PENDING EUTHANASIA LEGISLATION
The Hon Greg Donnelly is a Labor member of the Legislative Council (Upper House) of the Parliament of NSW. He is a man of great courage, being virtually isolated from other members of his party on Life issues. He is also an expert on the current state of play in Australia as well as overseas. We are posting his latest summary at the end of this newsletter
EDUCATION
GENDER CONFUSION
…IN AUSTRALIAN CATHOLIC SCHOOLS
This article by Dan Guernsey, from First things, is very critical of the Australian Bishops’ document Created and Loved, arguing that the acceptance of ‘preferred’ names and pronouns is ‘fundamentally at odds with the mission of Catholic education’. Meanwhile a Canadian Catholic School has suspended a student for opposing ‘gender ideology’.
…AND OVERSEAS
This piece from the Catholic Herald (UK) pulls no punches over the folly of the Church of England’s striving after a ‘gender-neutral’ God.
HOW TO RENEW CHRISTIAN EDUCATION
This conference (20 – 21 April), co-sponsored by the Classical Education Society and the Circe Institute, has as its theme ‘the Cultivation of Virtue, a call to renew Christian classical education through a humane and Logos-centered curriculum, an incarnational pedagogy, a pious heart, and a coherent mind!’
US HIGHER EDUCATION REFORM
Christopher Rufo outlines Florida’s plan to ban ‘DIVERSITY EQUITY AND INCLUSION’ (DEI) programmes in public universities. This short talk exposes the reality behind that seemingly innocent tag!
FAITH AND THE ARTS: A CALL TO ARTISTS
This short video by Joe Capuana of the Classical Education Society calls on artists to use their talents for good.
COMING EVENTS
Saturday 11 March – 6.00 pm
STEVEN MOSHER
The Present State of Christianity in China
Steven W. Mosher is the President of the Population Research Institute and an internationally recognized authority on China and population and development issues, as well as an acclaimed author and speaker.
Cathedral Centre – Level Two
Cnr Patrick and Harrington Streets
THIS TALK WILL BE VIDEOED AND POSTED ONLINE
Saturday 8 July – All Day
THE ANNUAL COLLOQUIUM
Wokery – a Wake-Up Call for the West!
(Location Jane Franklin Hall, University of Tasmania)
Wednesday 13 September – 6.00 pm
DR RALPH MARTIN
Dr Ralph Martin is President of Renewal Ministries and Director of Graduate Theology Programs in Evangelization, Sacred Heart Major Seminary, Archdiocese of Detroit, USA. He holds a doctorate in theology from the Angelicum University in Rome.
Topic: Living as Catholics in Challenging Times
(Location to be advised)
To close, this is the article referred to earlier in the newsletter:
THE HON. GREG DONNELLY MLC:
SUMMARY OF CURRENT ASSISTED DYING LEGISLATION
Commonwealth
On 1st December 2022 the Restoring Territory Rights Bill 2022 passed the Commonwealth Parliament. The bill received Royal Assent on 13th December 2022. The bill removes restrictions on the Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory from legislating on physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia. The following link will take you to the webpage relating to the billhttps://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query%3DId%3A%22legislation%2Fbillhome%2Fr6889%22.
Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory
With the passing of the Restoring Territory Rights Bill 2022 in the Commonwealth Parliament, it is now open to the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory to proceed with introducing physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia bills into their respective legislatures for debate and determination. How rapidly each of them will seek to progress the matter remains to be seen. It is the case though that in both legislatures there are individuals willing to sponsor bills as soon as practicable. It is expected that there will be public consultation regarding any proposed bills. However, it remains to be seen how thorough the consultation will be. The Legislative Assembly for the Australian Capital Territory and the Legislative Assembly of the Northern Territory are both single chamber legislatures. Accordingly, because there are no upper houses that are able to review and amend any proposed laws, legislation can progress through the legislatures rather quickly. Both the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory would hope to have laws passed and proclaimed by the end of 2023. If this is not able to be achieved, it is certain that there will be laws on their statutes books in the first part of 2024. The following links will take you to media articles relating to this matter https://www1.racgp.org.au/newsgp/clinical/territories-free-to-make-voluntary-assisted-dying andhttps://greens.org.au/act/news/media-release/after-26-years-territorians-have-their-rights-restored.
South Australia
The Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2021 became fully operationalised today. The following link will take you to a media article relating to the commencement of the legislation https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-01-31/sa-voluntary-assisted-dying-laws-take-effect-in-sa/101901158?utm_campaign=abc_news_web&utm_content=link&utm_medium=content_shared&utm_source=abc_news_web. For those interested in better understanding how the practice of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia is operating in the state, the following link will take you to a webpage headed “Voluntary Assisted Dying in South Australia” on the SA Health website
https://www.sahealth.sa.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/public+content/sa+health+internet/services/primary+and+specialised+services/voluntary+assisted+dying/voluntary+assisted+dying+in+south+australia. If you would like to join a mailing list to receive regular information about the implementation of Voluntary Assisted Dying in South Australia, you can emailHealth.VoluntaryAssistedDying@sa.gov.au with the subject line ‘Join the mailing list’.
Queensland
The Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2021 became fully operationalised on 1st January 2023. The following links will take you to media articles relating to this matter https://www.sbs.com.au/news/article/voluntary-assisted-dying-is-now-legal-in-queensland-heres-what-you-need-to-know/9lzfjxve2 and https://theqldr.com.au/queensland-news/2023/01/01/die_qld/. For those interested in better understanding how the practice of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia is operating in the state, the following link will take you to a webpage headed “Voluntary assisted dying in Queensland” on the Queensland Health websitehttps://www.health.qld.gov.au/system-governance/legislation/voluntary-assisted-dying-act. If you would like to join a mailing list to receive regular information about the implementation of Voluntary Assisted Dying in Queensland, you can subscribe at the following link https://www.vision6.com.au/em/forms/subscribe.php?db=775516&s=587912&a=100318&k=RuIXZMUuyafb72a83amAP_zepPyTXdHn1H5XFyXXvEg.
New South Wales
The Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2022 will become fully operationalised on 28th November 2023. For those interested in better understanding how the practice of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia is going to operate in this state, the following link will take you to a webpage headed “Voluntary assisted dying in NSW” on the NSW Health websitehttps://www.health.nsw.gov.au/voluntary-assisted-dying. If you would like to join a mailing list to receive regular information about the implementation of Voluntary Assisted Dying in New South Wales, you can subscribe at the following link https://www.health.nsw.gov.au/voluntary-assisted-dying/Pages/subscribe.aspx.
Victoria
The Voluntary Assisted Dying Act 2017 became fully operationalised on 19th June 2019. For those interested in better understanding how the practice of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia is operating in the state, the following link will take you to a webpage headed “Voluntary Assisted Dying” on the Victorian Department of Health websitehttps://www2.health.vic.gov.au/hospitals-and-health-services/patient-care/end-of-life-care/voluntary-assisted-dying. If you would like to join a mailing list to receive the Victorian Department of Health, Voluntary Assisted Dying newsletter, you can email a request to endoflifecare@dhhs.vic.gov.au.
Western Australia
TheVoluntary Assisted Dying Act 2019 becamefully operationalised on 1st July 2021. For those interested in better understanding how the practice of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia is operating in the state, the following link will take you to a webpage headed “Voluntary Assisted Dying” on the Western Australian Department of Health websitehttps://ww2.health.wa.gov.au/voluntaryassisteddying. If you would like to join a mailing list to receive regular updates on Voluntary Assisted Dying in Western Australia, you can email a request to VADImplementation@health.wa.gov.au.
Tasmania
The End-of-Life Choices (Voluntary Assisted Dying) Act 2021 became fully operationalised on 23rd October 2022. For those interested in better understanding how the practice of physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia is operating in the state, the following link will take you to a webpage headed “Voluntary Assisted Dying” on the Tasmanian Department of Health websitehttps://www.health.tas.gov.au/health-topics/voluntary-assisted-dying. If you would like to join a mailing list to receive regular updates on Voluntary Assisted Dying in Tasmania, please email vad@health.tas.gov.au with “subscribe” in the subject line.
Australian Care Alliance Website
The following link will take you to the Australian Care Alliance website https://www.australiancarealliance.org.au/. It contains valuable updates and information.
Protection of Conscience Project
The following link will take you to the Protection of Conscience Project website https://www.consciencelaws.org/. It contains valuable updates and information.
End of Life Law in Australia
Attachment one is a copy of a broadcast email from End of Life Law in Australia. This monthly newsletter contains useful information and is worth subscribing to. The website’s narrative is pro-physician-assisted suicide and euthanasia.
Dying with Dignity NSW
Attachment two is a copy of a recent broadcast email from Dying with Dignity NSW.
Overseas
The following link will take you to a documentary titled The Fifth Estate: A Complicated Death shorturl.at/jvV49. It is a powerful video that examines why Canadians who are not terminally ill are opting for medical assisted death.
The following link will take you to an article that appeared on The New Atlantis website titled No Other Option by Alexander Raikin dated 16th December 2022 https://www.thenewatlantis.com/publications/no-other-options. Once again, the article focuses on the disastrous situation that is playing-out in Canada.