Today is Social Justice Sunday and the Social Justice Statement this year is Listen, Learn, Love: A New Engagement with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Peoples. The theme for this year’s statement was chosen in May 2022, well before the Voice to Parliament referendum was mooted and before the timing of a vote was proposed. While the bishops don’t suggest how people should vote, Bishop Long says “whatever the outcome of this year’s referendum, we ask the Church in Australia to make efforts to lead the way for our fellow Australians in pursuing reconciliation. Our attitudes and actions towards First Nations Peoples need to be grounded in justice, love and humility. We need to listen with deep respect and learn from them about what needs to be done to improve their situations. We need to walk with them, day by day, and work with them to bring about change for the better – for their people and for all of us. Strengthening our relationship with our First Peoples is integral and indeed critical to the strengthening of the whole nation.
The full statement can be found at:
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