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Better Futures Forum, Australia 

Three brief reflections by Bishop Philip Huggins from his closing reflection Tuesday 17 August 2021 

1. IT IS ALL A MATTER OF LOVE

*For our children and all God’s little people. [1] 

*For our nearby neighbours on other islands, including in the Pacific.

*For our Barrier Reef, for the koalas and kangaroos of our great Southland. [2] 

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Love is our truest, most beautiful, and most powerful motivator. 

For love, we will do whatever is needed - lay down our lives for our friends. 

This is resurrection faith, and this is the time for it. 

Beyond adversarial, transactional relationships there is a place where humankind can flourish in the beauty of creation and in a springtime of new life. [3]

2. TODAY WE HAVE HEARD AND SEEN THE ROAD THAT TAKES US THERE

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It is familiar and yet an adventure, like travelling a bush track towards the horizon. [4] 

Today we’ve had inspiration from people of diverse backgrounds, offering their expertise as a gift, helping us colour in the track ahead: 

People of intelligent love and of a generous spirit. 

They model the relational integrity that will take us to a safer environment with economic and social well-being. 

Tomorrow and the next day there will be more wonderful people sharing about how to make a better future. 

Together we are encouraging our Federal Government to integrate all this intelligent inspiration in a plan for the contribution Australia will then take to the crucial November UNCOP26 in Glasgow.  

Therefore, a “Nationally Determined Contribution”, (in the language of the Paris Agreement) from Australia, which is sane, generous, and internationally responsible. 

3. SO WE PERSIST

The track ahead has been made difficult by the Federal Parliament these past years.  

Complaining about this now or complaining about what other nations do is really just a useless passion. 

We have to do our best on each new day. 

The expertise to apply is vivid in our “Better Futures” participants. 

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Many Australians are already building a better future. [5] 

We persist with our services, our research and our advocacy - ensuring the best of each interweaves to create that “Better Future”. 

On Advocacy, there are Multifaith Days of Action planned just prior to COP26- from Sunday 17 October. https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1XL1pi-HjhCRNG6CXb62cECr4JVWy8uq9LdHXwFK-bmw/edit?usp=sharing  

And this Sunday August 22, we are holding a National Day of Prayer - for the healing and renewal of all who are distressed and fatigued. 

A focus is the consequences of the pandemic as we recognise how this has meant months of exhausting crisis management, much suffering and further difficulties in  dealing coherently with the climate crisis.  https://www.ncca.org.au/ncca-newsletter/august-2021-1/item/2534-national-day-of-prayer-2021081 

We pray for grace so that our hearts are at one with all living beings. 

We pray for mercy - for divine compassion - so that, yes, “Love finds a way”. 

As the Saints remind us, like beloved Julian of Norwich, we have in us wonderful reservoirs of love yet to be fully expressed. 

We may know this is true personally. We can see it is true globally. 

Julian’s warmth and hope is in her affirmation: “All will be well; and all manner of things will be well.”  

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May it be so. May love find a way as we persist. May we heal the earth and make a better future for all. 

With profound gratitude for all who shared today, I offer this prayer, and from my tradition, I pray this in Jesus' holy name. AMEN. [6]

Bishop Philip Huggins

NCCA President