The 'Mathematics' of Immigration

 

A spoken word poem by Holli NcNish has been doing the rounds on social media in the aftermath of the murder of Lee Rigby in Woolwich. People wanted a response and a reason to still fight for community cohesion.

 

In Hollie's own words:

 

"A poem about immigration, based on a guy I used to have to listen to when I worked in a clothes shop. The poem owes a lot to a book by economist Philippe Legrain called Immigrants: Your Country Needs Them: http://www.philippelegrain.com/immigr.... It's a good book, I wish we had it on the school curriculum."

The full lyrics can be found on the YouTube page: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bJX5XHnONTI - it ends poignantly, "And most times immigrants bring more than minuses."

Do you agree? Do you think the 'mathematics of immigration' are often made up? Who is to the blame? The media? How do you think the 'true value' could be shared?

Read more about Hollie here: http://www.holliemcnish.com/
Buy the track here: http://holliemcnish.bandcamp.com/album/mathematics

Can Muslims 'Reclaim' Jihad?

 

 

MyJihad is an organisation that is trying to change the public perception of the word jihad which has been distorted by extremists, both Muslim and anti-Muslim alike. It has taken out a number of bus adverts in Chicago.

 

As their website claims:

 

"Jihad means "struggling in the way of God". The way of God, being goodness, justice, passion, compassion, etc. It is putting up the good fight against whatever odds or barriers you face in your life. It is a central tenet of the Islamic creed that has unfortunately been widely misrepresented due to a) first and foremost, the actions of Muslim extremists, b) attempts at public indoctrination by Islamophobes who claim that the extremists are right and the rest of us are wrong, and c) a selective media that understandably focuses on the sensational."

 

They claim that the voices of moderate Muslims, living in the mainstream, are "either drowned out or diluted."

The MyJihad ads, feature young, attractive men and women with slogans such as "My Jihad is to build friendships across the aisle. What's yours?" and "My Jihad is to stay fit despite my busy schedule. What's yours?"

Here is a short video about the campaign:

 

 

Do you think think that MyJihad is a worthwhile campaign? Did you know what Jihad meant? Is Jihad misunderstood in the UK as well as in the US? Do you think the adverts will change peoples' perceptions? How do you think Muslims would feel about this?

A Christian Walks In Gay Man's Shoes

Kurek, centre

Timothy Kurek has just published his book, The Cross in the Closet. In it, he details a year spent as a homosexual living in the US.

This is particularly surprising as he went to a right-wing church, saw himself as a soldier for Christ and attended Liberty University, the "evangelical West Point".

After speaking to a lesbian friend who has been ostracised from her family, he decided to challenge his own views and beliefs.

He said, "In order to walk in their shoes, I had to have the experience of being gay. I had to come out to my friends and family and the world as a gay man."

The Observer newspaper said: "Kurek's account of his year being gay is an emotional, honest and at times hilarious account of a journey that begins with him as a strait-laced yet questioning conservative, and ends up with him reaffirming his faith while also embracing the cause of gay equality."

Naturally many of his friends from Liberty were not impressed. Many wrote him emails after he came out, asking that he repent of his sins and warning that he faced damnation. Likewise, his mother's initial  response was, "I'd rather have found out from a doctor that I had terminal cancer than I have a gay son.".

However, eventually she too was won over and changed her views. "My mom went from being a very conservative Christian to being an ally to the gay community. I am very proud of her," he said.

In one gay bar, Kurek said he was stunned to discover gay Christians discussing their belief in creationism, "I found gay Christians more devout than me!".

Kurek's journey ended when he revealed his secret and "came out" again, but this time as a straight Christian.

He says that one of the most surprising elements of his journey was that it renewed his religious faith rather than undermined it, "Being gay for a year saved my faith". Kurek also said his experience not only should show conservative Christians that gay people need equal rights and can be devout too.

Was Kurek right to go undercover? How do you think he new gays friends felt? How do you think his family felt? Do you think this experience and the book will have a positive long lasting effect on Kurek? How about the conservative Christians in America?

See original article: http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2012/oct/13/bible-belt-conservative-year-gay?mobile-redirect=false

The Paralympics: Celebrating Disability vs Abortion Laws

James Parker is the Catholic Coordinator of the 2012 Games and first ever lay Catholic chaplain to serve at the Paralympic Games has had an interview reported concerning his belief that many of the "superstar" "heroes" of the Games could well have been aborted under UK laws.

On his interview for Vatican Radio he calls for Christians and others who value human life to challenge the government with renewed effort to bring about change in Britain’s “discriminatory and outdated abortion laws”.


As the hugely successful Paralympic Games draw to a close, he said, “My own experience of the Paralympic Village, the heavily guarded home to all the athletes and officials alongside the Olympic Park, is that it is a sacred place.”

He said “the Village is strewn with wheelchairs, crutches, bodies of every shape, size, and so-called ‘disfigurement’ imaginable. And yet there is a stronger sense of community, and a vibrant tangible passion for life, that not even the greatest town or city could boast. The organising committee, LOCOG, has taken great care to provide an amazing ambience where people of every ability can live with ease.”

“The joy in the Village is palpable... It is a place where everyone is celebrated and honoured whether a medallist or not, and each person is in service of their neighbour. I am constantly reminded of the words of St Lawrence when, in the year 258, he was commanded by the Emperor Valerian to bring to him the Church’s treasury. Days later he brought before the Emperor the poor, crippled, and maimed and stated: “Behold the jewels of the Church!” He was then martyred for such a simple action.”

Parker had previously mentioned that “we see the word ‘Superhumans’ on our billboards and yet Paralympians are no different to any other human being. They often have greater degrees of adversity to overcome but this is an aspect of any life that truly wishes to be lived to the full."

“What is astounding is that Britain is enabling the eyes of the world to be opened to the giftedness and potential of those with disabilities through its hosting of the Paralympic Games. However, its own laws vehemently and shockingly discriminate against any new life in the womb that might possibly be affected by a physical handicap, genetic problems or a mental defect."

Parker was very surprised to discover that many Paralympians “don’t even realise that, should their team mates have been conceived in Britain today, they would most likely be aborted. If Britain wishes to retain its place towards the head of the medals table at future Paralympic Games in decades to come then it needs to seriously consider changing its laws to stop discriminating against what is presently termed as an ‘unacceptable quality of life’. Games aside, any society that wishes to be healthy needs to increasingly value disability and non-disability equally."

“The Christian community needs as a whole, along with others who share our beliefs on the dignity of human life, to continue to take the lead and, like St Lawrence, to stridently work towards changing Britain’s discriminatory and outdated abortion laws. If this issue is not addressed as we wave goodbye to the Paralympic Games from our shores, then it is hard to imagine when another opportunity of this sort will pass our way when British society and the world as a whole is celebrating the incredulous achievements of those with disabilities."

“Imagine how much lesser of a nation we would be without the lives of athletes like Ellie Simmonds, and how much greater a Britain we could be if more ‘disabled’ people of her ability were to be born, affirmed and celebrated.”


Read original article here: http://www.indcatholicnews.com/news.php?viewStory=20990

This raises the debate on abortion laws in the UK. Many questions are raised, given modern medicine, in what circumstances should be a request for an abortion labeled as Ground E be accepted. That is when there is a “substantial risk” that the baby would be “seriously handicapped”. However this is on occasion liberally interpreted... last year there was a report in to the number of babies with lips and palates, as well as with “congenital malformations of the ear, eye, face or neck” (this can include problems such as having glaucoma or being born with an ear missing) aborted under this category. Read more here.

Is James Parker correct? Is it sensationalist to claim that many of our GB Paralympians could have been aborted? He also seems to imply that these type of abortions are rise? It reverts to the fundamental question, on what grounds can an abortion be granted?

We loved our little Down's baby so much we adopted another

This family were interviewed in the Mail on Sunday after they decided, after having one child born with Down's Syndrome, that they would adopt another.

'Freddie and Mimi bring us a richness, a fulfilment we wouldn't have known if they hadn't come into our lives,' says Amanda, proudly. 'When we go out and meet other people, they assume I've given birth to two children with Down's syndrome and feel sorry for me. But I always try to tell them that Mimi is adopted. I want them to know we actively chose her.' The pitying reaction is indicative, she says, of the negative attitudes and prejudices that prevail towards people with Down's syndrome. And this is the very reason that Amanda is giving this interview. She wants to reassure people that having a child with the condition, far from being a 'bad' thing, is simply, just 'different'. 
Amanda is a GP and sees first hand the issues connected with mothers and children with Down's Syndrome:

"The very fact that expectant mothers can be tested for it is suggestive of it being a bad thing; that if your test is positive, the "difficulty" can be "sorted" with a termination."

The interviews continues explaining that they know life will be difficult, but that things are much better now than they ever have been:

"Amanda believes that although there remains some stigma attached to Down's syndrome, in some ways attitudes have changed for the better. 'Education has improved and you do see people with Down's syndrome in jobs, and some of them marry and lead semi-independent lives. Medical advances mean that the life expectancy is much longer now, too. There was a time when it was 20 to 30. Now it's 60 to 70."
It was difficult for them to adopt, but now declare themselves incredibly happy and want to share their story to encourage others and continue to work against the attitudes that some people have about having a child born with Down's Syndrome or other disabilities.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2121784/Downs-syndrome-We-loved-little-Down-s-baby-adopted-another.html#ixzz1qa4qGR2C

Do you think it is okay for the couple to specifically choose a child to adopt with Down's Syndrome? Do you think they are telling a very positive story? Do you agree that the language used reinforces the fact that many people see a child with disabilities as a negative thing?