Let us rejoice..in what is really happening

I am not a refugee but I am an immigrant to Australia. I note that in the more than forty years I have lived here every generation of immigrants has been viewed sceptically and  with cynicism. At the time I came to these shores, Italians and Spanish immigrants were regarded as a profound threat  to our lifestyle. Well that was wrong then! 
They appear to have entered Australian society and been hardworking, their culture, and society has deeply enriched our quality of life
Then there were the Vietnamese and the Cambodians. To some they spelled out the end of Australian society.  Next time you go to the doctor ask yourself where we would be if these devastated families had not encouraged their children to succeed and to be good Australians. To get good education and, indeed, to succeed!
I have encountered the Iranian, Sri Lankan and African communities who are in the process of doing likewise.
I don’t want to be naïve and suggest that everyone coming to Australia has been without problem, but it does seem to me that our recent history tells us that no one comes to these shores, girt by sea, wanting to ruin this country.
So I will be voting for those who tell me, not that they are repelling refugees, but to those who are telling me that they believe that those who are fleeing to Australia need to be encouraged to fulfill their potential. And by extension, to continue the history of this nation which is not only young but free and is deeply enriched by those who seek sanctuary and security for themselves and their families here

As the world turns

It was my great pleasure at the weekend to officiate at a wedding of one of my parishioners. I have known the family for nearly forty years. The uncle of the groom and I were mad Anglicans at university together.
His parents, who in a way look exactly the same as they did in 1970...except for the fact that they are frailer...have been faithful church people, I suppose, for all of their lives.
In fact when I said to their parish priest some weeks ago when we were bemoaning how hard things were...Thank God for KK ....and she said to me with liturgical vigour...Yes thank God for KK!
For that reason alone it was sufficient joy to do this wedding.
KK is probably the quintessential Australian born in the 1920s. Of Anglo-Celtic background, stable job for most of his life. Worked hard. Maintains a sense of humour and a strong sense of service, loyalty and friendship. He and CK, as faithful matriarch and patriarch beam benignly over their family...even though it has not been without its pain.

The groom is a great young man, who works hard and has a great sense of humour. He is lively and intelligent and socially and politically aware. His new bride looked, of course, stunning. She is of Cambodian origin though she was actually born in a refugee camp in Bangkok. Her parents finally ended up with their kids in Adelaide, and they sat with quiet and respectful demur throughout the proceedings. Conversation with them is good, though you are never quite sure of the transmission of subtlety from them to me and me to them. Always, always deadly polite.
The best man, older brother, I married five years ago. His wife today looking quite the mother, and their two daughters (both of whom I have baptised) looking gorgeous. Well, the best man spoke with a humour and dignity that shows the maturation of the marriage process on a man. And it was good to see it.
Did I mention that the uncle of the bride who works in a remote aboriginal community as the administrator/carer/ambulance driver...wasn't actually there, because well he lives remotely? Or that the groom's sister has a boyfriend who is Iranian.
I bumped into a man who told me he was baptised in the church where I am the priest, and he was blown away when I told him I knew his mother.
Much food for thought about our interconnectedness....I tend not to think of it as being inbred!
But any way it does suggest much about the nature of Australian society.
For those who live in small worlds where two chops and three vegetables automatically present themselves for dinner still, and everyone's ancestors were born in England, mainly, or Europe...it is not like that. Probably has never been like that. Thank God for open families. Thank God for culture-clash. Thank God for opportunities like this.