with Rev Dr Chris Walker
Where is hope in 2020?
2020 has not started well. It seemed inappropriate to wish people a Happy New Year with bush fires burning across Australia. We have had so many fires, people’s lives lost, homes destroyed, farm and native animals unable to escape the flames, land decimated by the fires, poor air quality even in Sydney as a result. Overseas the situation for refugees continues. The war in Syria is still not over. Tension between the USA and Iran has resulted in a drone strike taking out an Iranian general and the mistaken downing of a passenger plane killing all 176 on board. I will say more about these matters and look for hope for 2020.
The unprecedented bush fires have not only resulted in what is mentioned above, they have also highlighted the issue of climate change and Australia’s inadequate response to it. There have been repeated protests calling on the Australian government to recognize the role of climate change in causing this extreme fire season. Not only has the government not listened to the warnings of experts in bush fires, there has been a reluctance to acknowledge climate change as a major cause of this new situation. The prime minister Scott Morrison has not responded well to the tragedies people are experiencing and people have understandably been critical of him. Only now is he finally saying the government will do more to help and has hinted at the possibility of a change of policy concerning climate change. But he is at best talking of minor change not the major change that is required. Moreover, he will have the conservatives in his own party holding back on any suggestions, in particular that Australia should phase out coal mining. Yet unless our government and the governments of the world take climate change seriously the scientific projections of rising temperatures are dire.
We are already seeing what extreme weather conditions mean. There is no time to delay. Australia needs to take responsible action. What has been proposed so far is inadequate. We are seen as a nation contributing to the problem, not doing much to reduce it. Our Pacific nation partners have called for greater action for they know climate change is already having an impact on their communities. Yet our government has not responded to their calls. Now that the bush fires have affected us directly, our Australian government should see the need for much greater action.
The situation for refugees is an ongoing one with the war in Syria a major contributor. There are some 30 million refugees with another 40 million displaced persons. Millions of Syrians have become refugees in nearby countries such as Turkey, Jordon and Lebanon. Turkey has taken 3.6 million refugees. The need to provide for Syrian refugees is a huge task for these nearby nations. Until the war in Syria ends, they will not return. When they do it will be to a country devastated by the war with a huge task of rebuilding infrastructure, businesses and homes.
While Syria has the most refugees, there are other nations from which people have fled due to war, violence, human rights violations, environmental issues and poverty. Syria has 6.7 million refugees with another 6.2 million internally displaced. Afghanistan has 2.7 million refugees, South Sudan has 2.3 million, Myanmar has 1.1 million including 670,000 from the Rohingya minority escaping persecution, Somalia has 900,000. News reports have particularly focused on people seeking to get to Europe. Many have died trying to cross the Mediterranean Sea. Germany was generous in its response but European nations have understandably been reluctant to take in many refugees given the numbers. The United Nations seeks to provide assistance for refugees. The preferred outcome is for people to return to their homelands. For that to happen there needs to be hope for safety and for rebuilding a new life. Governments have a responsibility to provide for all the people in their nation. Unfortunately, the poorest people and minorities are often neglected or actively discriminated against. These are the most likely to become refugees. They could assist the overall well-being of the nation if they were provided for better.
Terrorism has been a major issue since the September 11, 2001 attacks in the USA. President Trump’s justification for the drone strike on the Iranian general was because he was accused of carrying out and planning further terrorist attacks. The unfortunate missile strike on the Ukrainian passenger jet which resulted in the death of all on board came about because of the mistaken belief it was a US missile. The Iranian government has profusely apologised which was appropriate even if somewhat delayed. For such events to be avoided there is the need for greater respect and cooperation between Iran and the USA. Instead of violent tactics, negotiation and talking through issues should be the approach. Greater use of the United Nations could be made rather than nations taking their own actions of violence and retaliation.
As we move into 2020 my hope is in God and the vision of the prophet Micah who wrote:
He shall judge between many peoples,
and shall arbitrate between strong nations far away;
they shall beat their swords into plowshares,
and their spears into pruning hooks;
nation shall not lift up sword against nation,
neither shall they learn war any more;
but they shall all sit under their own vines and under their own fig trees,
and no one shall make them afraid;
for the mouth of the Lord of hosts has spoken (Micah 4:3-4).
If only the leaders of the world would look to God, consider the well-being of all people, and seek the peaceable kingdom Jesus proclaimed and lived by, then 2020 could be a better year. May God’s Spirit be upon them, even if they do not realise it explicitly, that the world may become a place in which people, and indeed all creation, are respected and cared for.
Chris Walker
Chris is currently serving the Assembly of the Uniting Church as the National Consultant for Theology and Discipleship.
He has served in a range of positions and places in the Uniting Church including local church ministry in three congregations in NSW, as a regional education and mission officer, and consultant for evangelism and discipleship, in Queensland, as principal of Parkin-Wesley College in SA, and as a mission resource officer for Parramatta-Nepean Presbytery.
He has a passion for theology, mission and discipleship. His interest in writing has resulted in various publications including five books, most recently Peace Like A Diamond: facets of peace (Spectrum, 2009) and Living Life to the Full: Spirituality for today’s baby boomers (Openbook, 2005).