Publications

Shadow of the Cross

Catholic social teaching had a venerable influence on Australian political history, but does it still have anything to offer? Greg Craven argues that it remains an important resource for addressing the central challenges of Australian politics. Kevin Rudd, Tony Abbott, Frank Brennan SJ, Philip Booth and Sandie Cornish offer their own thoughts in response about what Catholic social teaching brings to policymaking.

Greg Craven

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Buraadja: the Liberal Case for National Reconciliation

“Bragg is up for a fight for a more just Australia.”

Stan Grant

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Faith’s Place: Democracy in a Religious World

“This important book examines the implications of significant societal changes for the vitality of civil society.”

Peter Kurti

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Tribalism's Troubles: responding to Rowan Williams

“Beyond political tribalism lie a deeper literacy about our histories, a commitment to identifying the grammar of a common language, and the work of negotiating a shared future by looking for solutions that have a degree of durability and credibility even if they are no-one’s ideal.” 

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The New Social Contract: Renewing the liberal vision for Australia

“From Menzies’s ‘forgotten people’ and the ‘Howard battlers’ to today’s ‘quiet Australians’, the Liberal Party has always sought to represent the breadth of aspiration in Australian life. We do this as Liberals through what John Howard celebrated as our broad church bringing together classic liberal and conservative traditions. Tim Wilson challenges us to reflect on the philosophical timbers that build modern Australia and to see how liberalism might be shaped in the 2020s. This book prods, stirs and challenges us but ultimately asks us to think about how we will leave future generations of Australians a country that is prosperous, fairer, and where the bonds between us all are strengthened.”

Scott Morrison MP

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Nonsense on Stilts: rescuing human rights in Australia

“This book will disrupt the mindset that has produced a rights infrastructure that is distorted, expensive, and frequently out of step with community values.”

Chris Merritt, The Australian

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Story of Our Country: Labor’s vision for Australia

“A timely reminder of the diversity of the Labor tradition to help us consider and counter the challenges ahead.”

Jim Chalmers MP

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Federation’s Man of Letters: Patrick McMahon Glynn

“This biographical study is both delight and revelation. Here was a Federation-era politician on the right side of so many issues, bold enough to advocate humane treatment of the Chinese in the Australian colonies and to urge free-trade rather than protection. As early as 1898 he saw the day when “the centre of the world struggle is being shifted west to east” and England may not be able to protect Australia. He was the one Catholic in the leadership of the non-Labor Parties; by any test as thoughtful and learned a politician as we ever had.”

Bob Carr

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The Market’s Morals: responding to Jesse Norman

“ . . . the purpose of politics is not to satisfy the felt needs of any individual or generation; it is to preserve and enhance the social order in the public interest.”

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Today’s Tyrants: responding to Dyson Heydon

“Even those who are not members of religious institutions and have no particular sympathy for them ought to fear the current war on religious faith”.

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Chalice of Liberty: protecting religious freedom in Australia

“The gift of humanity is to possess something as precious as life itself... That precious gift – dignity – is at the heart of this important book.”

Edward Santow, Human Rights Commissioner

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The choices before Australia

Julian Leeser MP delivered the Greg Craven Lecture for 2023 on "The Choices before Australia". The lecture discusses several pressing issues, including the need for a strong and confident Catholic voice in public debate.

Download "The Choices before Australia" (PDF, 7.2MB)

The Place of Religion in the School Curriculum

This paper outlines the reasons for including religion and teaching ethics in the curriculum and summarises the provisions of various state laws which expressly permit teaching religion in government schools, both in separate religious education classes and in the general curriculum.

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PM Glynn Survey on Hope, Trust and Belonging

The purpose of the PM Glynn Survey on Hope, Trust and Belonging is to look below the tumult and the shouting that fills up so much of the public space at the moment, to try and glimpse something of the thoughts and concerns that shape Australians’ attitudes to society and the future.

Download the Key Findings from the 2022 PM Glynn Survey on Hope, Trust and Belonging

Politics, identity and religion in a post-revolutionary world

A collection of four papers presented by Mary Eberstadt, one of America's foremost Catholic public intellectuals, during her visit to Australia in October 2022. The collection includes the Greg Craven Lecture on Ethics and Politics "Understanding secularization in the census".

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Finishing Up Business: What we can learn from Australia’s First Peoples about dying and death

Australia has 65,000 years of traditional Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander knowledge that remains undervalued when approaching issues in our contemporary society. One of these issues is our approach to dying and death.

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Re-evaluating Religious Freedom at Common Law

The common law’s approach to religious freedom as a fundamental right should be the starting point for considering how best to protect it in legislation, so it can continue to be enjoyed by all Australians.

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Neither Sword Nor Shield: religious freedom in principle and legislation

“Religious freedom will continue to be a controversial issue in Australia, and for this reason it is important to strive for an informed and reasonable approach to the discussion that does not collapse into mere ideology or partisanship.”

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Anchoring our Commitment in the Constitution: finding common ground

“We can uphold the Constitution and the liberal values that underpin it, and at the same time recognise Indigenous Australians within this very practical document.”

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Download For All of Us

Download Love of Country and a Fair Go

Speaking of suffering: towards a conversation about death and dying

“Australians are understandably reluctant to contemplate death, but there is a need for a public conversation about issues relating to sickness, death, and dying.”

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 So help me God: a history of oaths in office

“In certain circumstances, the state needs to establish there is reason to believe someone can be trusted for a specific purpose. The oath is an ancient way of establishing such trust.”

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Seal of confession: the public interest in confidential communications

“… when confidential communications are granted legal privilege or other forms of legal protection, it is because it is in the public interest to protect such communications.”

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A Snapshot of Palliative Care Services in Australia

“…palliative care should not only be available to everyone who needs it, but also available to members of society who are more disadvantaged than others.”

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10 Points on Religious Persecution: an overview

“When religious freedom is undervalued, ignored, discouraged or targeted, religious persecution sometimes follows”.

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The PM Glynn Survey on hope, trust and belonging

“The PM Glynn Survey is a biennial survey on Australian attitudes to hope, trust and belonging. It is aimed at investigating the underlying attitudes and concerns that shape responses to current political, social and ethical issues and their implications for Australian society.”

Download the PM Glynn Survey Series 1: About the Survey [PDF, 997KB]

Download the PM Glynn Survey Series 2: Human rights: an uncertain commitment [PDF, 824KB]

Download the PM Glynn Survey Series 3: Trading off human rights [PDF, 906KB]

Download the PM Glynn Survey Series 4: Trust and confidence in institutions: Australia's system of democracy [PDF, 793KB]

Download the PM Glynn Survey Series 5: Trust and confidence in institutions: Police, justice and courts systems [PDF, 684KB]

10 principles on religious freedom: a new perspective

“Understanding what religious freedom is and isn’t is essential if we want to have better conversations about how we disagree and how we live together.”

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Recognition in keeping with the Constitution: a worthwhile project

“A body that has the capacity to speak to the Parliament on behalf of Indigenous people should be of advantage to Parliament and, through it, the nation. But it will also, in a practical way, bind Indigenous people.”

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Amen: a history of prayers in Parliament

“In the cut and thrust of political life, it is easy to forget that the ritual of Parliament recognises these ancient traditions each day. This pamphlet contains a brief account of part of that ritual: prayers in Parliament.”

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Upholding the Big Ideas: options for discussion

“… how ensuring Indigenous voices are heard by Australia’s legislators, establishing a process for makarrata, and adopting a declaration of recognition can help Indigenous Australians take responsibility for their destiny and bring the country together.”

Download Upholding the Big Ideas [PDF, 24KB]

Download Journey from the Heart [PDF, 124KB]

Download Hearing indigenous Voices [PDF, 251KB]

Download Makarrata [PDF, 135KB]

Download A Fuller Declaration of Australia’s Nationhood [PDF, 113KB]