Justice and Democracy Forum
This project came from a concern
to provide young people with an opportunity to do something about
their society. It enabled tem to work with some other young people
who were similarly motivated. It provided them with some skills
to address specific issues and engaged them in bringing about
change and raising awareness of social needs.
Aims of the Project
- The project was designed
to provide young people with an opportunity:
- to engage in a deliberative
exercise about democracy and justice
- to take part in a highly
interactive and collaborative exercise
- to identify an issue, select
a project focus and collect and critically analyse data
- to reflect on the situation
in the light of scripture and the social teaching of the church
- to present findings to a
range of audiences
What is the Justice and
Democracy Forum?
It is groups of students
in Brigidine associated secondary schools who are willing
to spend regular time together to:
- Reflect on their role
as Christians to work for a just and democratic society
- Exchange hopes and
ideas about aspects of their lives concerned with justice
and democracy
- Support the idea that
good citizenship flows out of a spirituality
- Grow in leadership
- Engage in some action
(either group or individual) related to an aspect of
justice and democracy
Our charter for the Forum
is...
We believe:
- The gospel calls us to justice in
daily life
- We need to work together to make things
better
- We can't be Christian by ourselves
- We can make a difference in ourselves
and in our world
We hope:
- Meetings will be an opportunity to
exchange hopes and ideas
- There will be opportunities for discussion,
dialogue, action and reflection
We will need to:
- Make a commitment to attend meetings
regularly during the year
- Be part of the process of trying to
relate what we say to what we do
- Support each other in the Group
- Be non-judgmental when listening to
the ideas and experiences of the other Group members
- Give up some of our own time
- Be willing to take appropriate action
What will the Justice
and Democracy meetings be like?
- There will be some time to reflect
together about a passage of Scripture or another piece
of reading that helps to inspire us.
- We will think about issues in our
life that we have encountered or are experiencing now
that teach us about justice and democracy.
- We will share what has happened to
each of us since the last meeting.
- We will make plans for things that
we can do - either together or as an individual.
- We will review the meeting to see
how it has gone.
How
often will the Group meet?
Regularly - each Group
will decide on its own meeting times
Will
the Groups from all the schools meet?
Yes, at least once. As
well there may be an opportunity to have contact in other
ways e.g. through a Home page.
How did Jesus approach injustice
in his day?
Luke, in his gospel, has Jesus
beginning his public life with the baptism of John the Baptist,
and, during the time in the desert following this event, wrestling
with certain life questions which we might translate as:
- To
what am I going to give my
life?
- What is the Father asking me to do?
- How will I carry out
my life's tasks?
Throughout
the gospel accounts, God's justice is shown to us, through the
person of Jesus, in ways that make it possible for us to enter
into the experiences .
What we see is justice being
done in the context of forgiveness of sins and a total reconciling
of person, and person with his/her world. The justice that is
revealed to us is not the legal meting out to everyone what
is their due; rather, in the mode of the Good Samaritan, the
justice-bearer is one filled with compassion and tenderness,
as well as a desire to put right the situation. This ministry
of Jesus whereby he sought recognition and hope and justice
for many of the people he met, has to be carried on by his disciples
in today's world.
We ask ourselves the questions:
- How
best do we work for these ideals today?
- Where
do we find continuing inspiration and energy to continue
that work?
The schools involved in this
Forum are:
- Clonard
College, Geelong West
- Kilbreda College, Mentone
- Kildare College, Holden Hill
- Killester College, Springvale
- Marian College, Ararat
- Marian College, West Sunshine
- St. Joseph's
College, Echuca
The
Brigidine Sisters are sponsoring
the Justice and Democracy Forum and supporting it financially.
A number of teachers in each school will work with the students
and help them in a variety of ways. As well there is a Panning
Group and the members
of this Group will:
organise
gatherings,
povide
resources
monitor
the progress of the Forum
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