Writer
George Browning
George Browning is president of the Australia Palestine Advocacy Network (APAN). He was Anglican Bishop of Canberra Goulburn 1993 -2008.
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Politics should be about transformational leadership
Our Prime Minister has shown he is incapable of anything other than transactional leadership…. Continue reading »
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Seditious assault on Congress. Why is Christianity so grafted to corrupt politics?
The link between the Christian right and Trump has nothing to do with Christian discipleship. Trump provides the evangelical right with the closest thing they have found to a theocratic state and in return Trump gets a strong voting bloc…. Continue reading »
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Prime Minister: Saying you no longer intend to cheat on climate change does not merit applause
The Prime Minister has brushed off his failure to gain a speaking role at the Glasgow global warming summit as inconsequential. But the reality is that the Prime Minister and his government continue to fail us…. Continue reading »
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George Browning. Is the Anglican Church about to split?
‘The Conversation’ recently published an article co-authored by Dorothy Ann Lee and Muriel Porter under the heading “Is the Anglican Church about to split? It is facing the gravest threat to its unity in more than 200 years”…. Continue reading »
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A Warrior Culture
The Prime Minister warned us that we would be in for some shocking reading as the report into Australian war crimes in Afghanistan was released. That there were 39 alleged murders, and 19 Australian soldiers involved, is indeed shocking…. Continue reading »
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Military and Economic Deals aren’t ‘peace arrangements’ just because Trump says so (Canberra Times Sep 19, 2020)
‘Peace’ is not in the air, (Carlill, Canberra Times, 16/9). The deal done between Israel, Bahrain and the UAE, boastfully brokered by President Trump, has little to do with ‘peace’, but much with military hardware and hoped for economic gain…. Continue reading »
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Bernard Collaery, East Timor and Governmental Duplicity
The extent of the outrage and the reason the government is desperate to keep hidden its unlawful behaviour through the prosecution of Bernard Collaery and Witness K has now had a little further light shone upon it. … Continue reading »
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Do we share the same values as the US?
No, we most certainly do not… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Trump vs Christianity
Just as Muslims worldwide have been expected to stand up against the appropriation of their religion by extremist ideologies that have expressed themselves in various forms of terror, so the Christian community must make it clear that Christ and the Gospel will not be sullied…. Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Australia’s two personalities-pandemic and climate change
In recent domestic policy and international engagement Australia is demonstrating two contrasting personalities. One is demonstrated through our response to COVID 19 and the other through our troubled inability to form responsible climate and energy policy. Why do we have two personalities?… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. The power of narrative: Nakba, annexation and antisemitism
Friday, 15 May, was Nakba Day, Nakba, (al-Nakbah, literally disaster, catastrophe, or cataclysm), is a commemoration of the events in 1948/1949 which saw approximately half the pre-war Palestinian Arab population driven from their homes…. Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Australia turns its back on the rule of law
Australia’s efforts to block an International Criminal Court investigation into alleged war crimes in Palestine are inexplicable, given the court’s brief to investigate abuses from all sources, be they Hamas, Palestinian paramilitary, or Israel…. Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Trump’s definition of peace in Israel
The strong prevail – the rest submit… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Change the date!
The reasons why the date for Australia Day are contentious will not go away. … Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING.CONSERVATISM, BEAUTY AND SIR ROGER SCRUTON
The philosopher, Sir Roger Scruton, the darling of contemporary conservative politics died on 12 January 2020 aged 75. Tony Abbott is reported to have said that if John Locke is the father of western political conservatism, Roger Scruton is its contemporary intellectual son. However, from their words and actions, it appears Tony Abbott and presumably… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING.- How good are the fires?
The country clearly owes a debt of gratitude to the Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his government for their sterling leadership, their visionary approach in vastly changed and challenging circumstance and for their assurance that under their leadership all manner of things will be well…. Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Morrison Government you are a disgrace
NSW is alight, and it is still not the right time to talk about Climate Change!!!!! What message of commitment did we have to give the world community in Madrid? – nothing. You said Australia is reducing its emission year on year. Your own department’s graphics shows this to be untrue. Asserting untruth does not… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Peace on Earth, Good will towards all: Tale of Two Jerusalem Prizes
The holy city’s name focuses the universal longing for peace: the hope, indeed the expectation that diversity and difference do not need to issue in animosity, injustice and violence, but in mutuality, enrichment from the other’s difference. It is associated with blessing from Melchizedek the mysterious the King of Salem to Abraham, ancestor, founder and… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Please Leave.Please Come Back
In his speech at last week’s Sydney synod, Archbishop Glenn Davies made it clear he wished those who support the blessing of same sex marriage unions to leave the Church because ‘you cannot bless sin’. Subsequently he attempted to clarify his statement which had caused enormous anguish and resentment by saying he intended the message… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Zionism – the ugly truth
Alex Ryvchin’s article “Zionism and the big lie. How Soviet anti-Semitism shaped contemporary anti-Zionism”, published through the ABC’s “Religion and Ethics” site, is too cute by half. Of course the strong critique of current Israel (which likes to call itself a Zionist State) has a history, but it is primarily fuelled by the reality that… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. We are the company we keep – A theology of eating
Prime Minister, Scott Morrison has announced he is to go to Washington to have dinner with President Trump. In the past such an invitation would be considered a great honour, especially as few other world leaders receive similar invitations. But these are not ordinary times. What does accepting this invitation mean for Scott Morrison and… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING Former Middle East diplomats urge PM to reject Trump Middle East plan.
In response to the Kushner announcement about an economic plan for Palestine, 18 former Australian diplomats have written to Prime Minister Scott Morrison calling on him not to support the plan. The signatories include two former Australian Ambassadors to Israel and many Ambassadors to other Middle Eastern countries…. Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Democratise Energy: Reform Taxation: Save the Planet.
Stuck in a traffic jam every day on the way to work do you imagine this is the way it is always going to be – only a little worse? If your livelihood is agriculture, like your father and his father before him, you face challenges they did not have to face. Weather patterns are… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Is Christian Zionism contributing to the Israel Palestine Impasse?
The insidious influence of Christian Zionism on domestic American politics and through these politics on actions that prevent a just outcome to the Israel Palestine impasse is far deeper and more threatening to peace and security than is popularly understood. It is past time that it is called out as having no biblical foundation, that… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Peace on Earth, Goodwill to all Humankind
Is ‘peace on earth, good will to all humankind’ a cruel fantasy? Are we destined to live in increasingly walled off environments, afraid of losing the little advantage we think we have? I have recently returned from 10 days in the Palestinian Territories. The highlight was my journey to Nabi Saleh in Palestinian area C,… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Nationalism: the world’s greatest threat
We owe President Emmanuel Macron a debt of gratitude for yesterday’s speech in Paris. “Patriotism is the exact opposite of nationalism. Nationalism is a betrayal of patriotism,” the French leader said. “In saying ‘Our interests first, whatever happens to the others,’ you erase the most precious thing a nation can have, that which makes it… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. The Jerusalem Embassy thought bubble.
To contemplate moving the Australian embassy in Israel from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem to shore up the chances of the Liberal candidate for Wentworth, Dave Sharma, is a small but very significant example of what is horribly wrong with Australian politics and why so few Australians now have any trust in the political process. That… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. HOMO SAPIENS – REALLY?
Along the evolutionary trail we have somewhat ambitiously called ourselves homo sapiens, or humans who are sapient – knowing or wise. The truth of the matter is tragically far from this: we seek to resolve difference through violence rather than dialogue; we give greater weight to possessing rather than being (our other species name); we… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. The Prime Minister: personal faith and public values
On 29th August comedian Tom Ballard chose to parody the faith of the new Prime Minister, Scott Morrison, on the Tonightly ABC series by contrasting his perceived lack of love or concern for refugees with his espoused love of Jesus. The ABC has come in for criticism for putting this sketch to air. However, given… Continue reading »
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GEORGE BROWNING. Alternative facts & fake news – the lubricant of conservative politics.
We are spending an inordinate amount of money on ‘defence’ and ‘security’ to protect ourselves from an enemy without, but it is now clear that we face a far greater threat from the enemy within, revealed through ‘alternative facts and fake news’, the lubricant of conservative politics. In the disgraceful power struggle between so-called conservatives… Continue reading »
