Weekend Wrap for 16 March 2025

Anika Baset: Dancing across differences: How to challenge polarisation by changing the metaphors we use to describe it
"Polarisation has been most widely discussed as a phenomenon in the United States, where divisions fall along partisan lines. But this problem is not limited to the West. In India, for example, two competing religious visions — Hindu majoritarianism versus a secular state — has led to political polarisation and an increase in sectarian violence, particularly against minority groups. In Australia, social polarisation is not neatly divided along political or religious lines. The Scanlon Institute’s 2024 Mapping Social Cohesion study reported that social cohesion in Australia is “under pressure but has not cracked”. Positively, despite an increasingly fraught global context, Australia’s social cohesion has remained steady. The connections and belonging that exist at the local and neighbourhood level in Australia are proving resilient and are a uniquely Australian strength. Strong, broad-based support for multiculturalism is another unique feature of the Australian context, serving as a buffer against deeper social and ideological polarisation." (10 Mar 2025)
Read more at ABC Religion & Ethics

Trevor Cobbold: Government funding increases entrench private school resource advantage
"Government funding increases for Catholic and Independent schools have outstripped those for public schools since 2009 and entrenched a major resource advantage for them. New figures published by the Australian Curriculum Assessment and Reporting Authority show Catholic and Independent schools have a much higher income per student than public schools across Australia and in nearly every state/territory. ... The increase in total income per student in Catholic schools was nearly double that in public schools – $3706 in Catholic schools compared to $1960 in public schools. The increase in total income per student in Independent schools at $3237 per student also far exceeded that for public schools. Government funding was the main source of increase in income per student in both Catholic and Independent schools, making up 84% of the increase. Private schools are more dependent on government funding than they were in 2009. Government funding accounts for 75% of the income of Catholic schools and 49% of the total income of Independent schools." (14 Mar 2025)
Read more at Pearls & Irritations

Judy Courtin: The Catholic Church’s legal loophole for abuse
"The Catholic Church insists that its clergy members are not employees. In Bird v DP, not only did the High Court agree with this, it held that the relationship between a clergy member and the institution is not even akin to an employment relationship. As such, the church cannot be found liable for the sex crimes of its clergy members. The Catholic Church chose not to accept the decisions of the Supreme Court trial judge and the Victorian Court of Appeal – namely, that there did exist a relationship akin to employment between the clergy and the church. Instead of practising their teachings of compassion, they instead saw it as an opportunity to mount a complex legal challenge in the High Court. The High Court relied on the black letter of the law and overturned the decisions of the lower courts. This decision means that thousands of survivors of Catholic clergy child abuse in Australia are denied justice." (15 Mar 2025)
Read more at The Saturday Paper