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weekly insights
Light of Torah
May 3, 20244 min read
Screams Before Silence: A Film That Bears Witness
Screams Before Silence is a harrowing, yet sensitively crafted and ultimately viewable, documentary film about the weaponisation of rape...
272 views
Light of Torah
Mar 19, 20245 min read
Ten Ways to Avoid Anti-Judaism in Holy Week
“The Jews killed Jesus.” For much of church history, this erroneous, unjust and lethal accusation of Jewish collective guilt held sway...
180 views
Light of Torah
Feb 16, 20243 min read
Pope Francis: Antisemitism is "a sin against God"
Pope Francis has written a letter to “his Jewish brothers and sisters” in Israel (2 Feb 2024) in response to communications received and...
94 views
Light of Torah
Jan 30, 20244 min read
“Never again” means protesting Hamas’ brutal crimes against Israeli women
Will Catholic feminists be a voice for the voiceless when it comes to the Israeli, mainly Jewish, October 7 victims of rape who cannot...
104 views
Light of Torah
Jan 10, 20248 min read
'Baby Jesus in the rubble': handle with care
By Teresa Pirola and Julie McCrossin AM Historically, theologically and morally, the nativity scene of ‘baby Jesus in the rubble’ must be...
316 views
Light of Torah
Dec 24, 20231 min read
A light of hope & humanity in dark times
Amidst so much suffering in our world, the fact remains that there are people who continue to get up each day, every day, and apply...
79 views
Light of Torah
Dec 24, 20234 min read
May our Christmas remembrance be inclusive
Homily prompts for remembering Israelis in our hearts and prayers this Christmas As Christian homilists finetune their Christmas messages...
176 views
Light of Torah
Dec 14, 20233 min read
Open Letter from Jewish scholars and practitioners in dialogue is essential reading for Catholics
On 12 November 2023, a significant voice — indeed, a ‘cry of the heart’ — went out from the Jewish community, specifically directed to...
142 views
Light of Torah
Dec 4, 20234 min read
A plea from the relatives of hostages: Unite in prayer to bring them home
The six people seated before us are Israeli Jews, a small delegation visiting Australia – not dignitaries or VIPs but ordinary family...
144 views
Light of Torah
Nov 28, 20234 min read
Nine points about antisemitism for parents to discuss with their school-age children.
In pro-Palestinian protests by school students in Melbourne and Sydney, some students were quoted as saying “Hamas is doing a good job”....
257 views
Light of Torah
Nov 14, 20236 min read
What just happened?? Over a thousand Jews were massacred and the Catholic Church was silent
One would think that a massive act of terror involving murder, rape, mutilation and the abduction of civilians would constitute a clear...
195 views
Light of Torah
Nov 9, 20235 min read
Remembering Kristallnacht, in the wake of October 7
What was Kristallnacht? Kristallnacht is the name given to the night of 9 November 1938, when a Nazi-sponsored violent rampage in Germany...
281 views
Light of Torah
Oct 18, 20232 min read
Memories of Israel, near Gaza
Four years ago, I visited Sderot and other small communities in Israel which lie close to the northern border of the Gaza strip. The...
178 views
Light of Torah
Sep 23, 20233 min read
Sabbath of Return
In the Jewish liturgical calendar, the Sabbath between Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur is called Shabbat Shuva - the Sabbath of Return. One...
111 views
Light of Torah
Sep 15, 20232 min read
Rosh Hashana - jewish new year
Shana Tova U'Metuka Festival greetings to Jewish friends for Rosh Hashanah, and a wish for all the goodness and sweetness of the new...
62 views
Light of Torah
Sep 7, 20233 min read
God's Word is Near
In chapter 30 of the Book of Deuteronomy, Moses continues to prepare the Israelites for the journey ahead, the journey to be made upon...
45 views
Light of Torah
Sep 1, 20233 min read
Give Thanks, with a grateful heart
Come with us as we explore Deuteronomy 26:1-11, with the help of insights from the Jewish tradition. On the slopes of Moab in sight of...
39 views
Light of Torah
Aug 11, 20233 min read
Feasting and Sobriety
At times, Deuteronomy can appear to the reader as a formidable list of rules (e.g., ch 11-16) as Moses impresses upon the Israelites...
48 views
Light of Torah
Aug 4, 20233 min read
At the Edge of the Promised Land
In the Book of Deuteronomy Moses delivers a series of speeches as he prepares the Israelites for entry into the Promised Land. In chapter...
54 views
Light of Torah
Jul 28, 20233 min read
Letter & Spirit of the Law
“Do what is right and good in the sight of the Lord...” (Deut. 6:18). Over the centuries, this verse in Deuteronomy has attracted the...
66 views
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