By Dr Douglas Pratt, Professor of Religious Studies, The University of Waikato
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or download the MP3
or download the PDF of the slideshow that accompanies this talk.
All posts by Guest Post
The Power of Listening
Can listening make a difference?
By Lisa Gellert.
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or download the MP3
or download the PDF of this page.
Lisa Gellert © 28 June 2015
I am here to tell you a story. When I asked Clay how I should give this talk he said: tell a story. They like stories. So here you go. I tell you a story. But to make it more interesting it is not just one, but actually I share different stories. And by the end, it is up to you to decide if and how listening makes a difference.
Setting the stage: 2014 in Germany
The Infinite Game: How to Live Well Together
Guest speaker Niki Harre, Associate Professor of Psychology at the University of Auckland, taught us the Infinite Game. The object is to understand current social structures that limit progress towards human and ecological flourishing and the vital role that organisations, individuals and communities can play in creating a better world.
As this was a live participatory event, no audio or text available this week.
Solidarity: A case for Unions in a Neoliberal World
The End of the Oil Age Needs a Resilient Community
The Gay Experience in Faith Communities – 2
Great Extrications.
By Geno Sisneros.
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or download the MP3
or download the PDF of this page.
Its Pride time! That means a festival and a parade and lots of parties and all sorts of festivities where LGBT people and supporters can take part and show their gay pride.
I have to admit, I’m not much of a parade person or, dare I say it, a ‘pride person’. I don’t get it. And I don’t feel guilty for not getting it. But since I’ve been invited to speak here this morning as part of those festivities, I thought I better find out how (or even if) I and my story might somehow fit into the grand pride narrative. Continue reading The Gay Experience in Faith Communities – 2
The Gay Experience in Faith Communities – 1
The Knowledge of Good and Evil (the simplicity of Love).
By Jim Marjoram.
Listen
https://aucklandunitarian.org.nz/podcast/20150215JimMarjoram_TheGayExperienceinFaithCommunities1.mp3″]
or download the MP3
or download the PDF of this page.
A little of my personal story to start with.
I was brought up in a very average middle class family in Sydney. The usual struggles and fun. Not perfect but I knew I was loved and safe. I was also gay. I knew I was different from quite young but couldn’t understand exactly how until puberty hit and I found that guys were who I was naturally attracted to and I simply had no desire what so ever towards girls. Continue reading The Gay Experience in Faith Communities – 1
Inequality: A New Zealand Crisis
Max Rashbrooke : Inequality: A New Zealand Crisis (PDF summary).
The gap between the rich and the rest has widened faster in New Zealand than almost anywhere else. So what does this mean for our values? Are we still an egalitarian country? And what is this widened gap doing to the social fabric of our country? Our guest speaker (whose great-great-great-grandfather and family were Unitarians from the UK who settled in New Plymouth), will discuss these issues and more in a thought-provoking look into one of the issues of our time. Max Rashbrooke is the editor of Inequality: A New Zealand Crisis, published in June 2013 by Bridget Williams Books, and the author of The Inequality Debate: An Introduction, published in March 2014, in paperback and as an e-book. He has written stories for national newspapers and magazines in Britain and New Zealand, including the Guardian, the National Business Review and Metro. He was also the recipient of the 2011 Bruce Jesson Senior Journalism Award. No audio available this week.
Great War, Great Peace
Reflections Upon Conflict and Reconciliation
by Myrna Mitchell
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or download the MP3A sermon based on her research on various contemporary approaches to peacemaking a propos the centenary of the Great War. Myrna Michell is a trained Unitarian minister who moved to New Zealand from the UK in January 2014 and is working now as an independent vocal teacher and piano accompanist.
The Compassion Deficit
The Quiet War on Asylum
by Tracey Barnett
Tracey Barnett has been a contributing commentator and columnist for The New Zealand Herald, The Sunday Star Times, and TV3, among others. She is the author of the new book, “The Quiet War on Asylum”, an introduction to asylum issues in New Zealand and the region and is the creator of the asylum rights campaign, “We Are Better Than That” (Facebook Page) for anyone who wants to learn more and stay up to date on refugee and asylum issues in NZ. No audio available this week.