It is our gas, we deserve a fair return. www.ourgas.com.au?recruiter_id...

Holy shit! Someone has pledged $100k to the AYCC to match any donations that come through today! This means the impact of every dollar you donate today is doubled. 💛 Get all the way amongst it here: www.aycc.org.au/emergencyapp...

So sorry to hear from the Antipodes of the closure of #Denby #Pottery via @bbcnews-uk-rss.bsky.social Denby's wonderful hand-painted Greenwheat mugs must've been produced in the thousands 60+ years ago - both my parents & aunt/uncle had a set. Superbly heat-retentive. share.google/nA51wQxXyGtj...

The Court Prophet and the King: Franklin Graham, Donald Trump, and the Sociological Consequences of Unchecked Religious Flattery open.substack.com/pub/gerardom...

Happy Earth Day!🌎✨ The health of birds reveals the health of our world.🐦 When migrating between their breeding and wintering grounds, birds use routes known as flyways – the superhighways of the sky – used by billions of birds every year.🦆 Find out more here👉 www.birdlife.org/globalflyways/

The spent flowers of #Bells-of-Ireland (Molucella laevis), showing their tracery in yesterday's afternoon light. I learnt something from a quick pre-post check: the plant is native to Asia Minor, and not to Ireland. Beautiful though, even in autumnal decay.

The evangelical magazine Christianity Today has a good article today really going after Trump--and it does it with a fairly resolute defense of the Pope, which is not historically the way these things have worked. www.christianitytoday.com/2026/04/trum...

youtube.com/watch?v=oUd4... Fascinating listen on #Unholy - drawing together threads running through history that our current media are unable to even grasp. Great insights on the history of Persia/Iran, on Judaism, Christianity, secularism and more from #TomHolland. So good.

From Kabul to an Australian classroom www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/life/2026/04... via @thesaturdaypaper.com.au This Saturday Paper article from Adeeb Nawim affirms the value refugees bring to their adopted home. From a retired teacher, welcome to the profession, Adeeb. We're lucky you're here.

Whole article from David Hearst on the consequences of the ill-advised attack on Iran is worth reading and cogitating upon. The depth of analysis we can only dream of from Australian media.

Complicity in Gaza. The bill for Australia's silence has arrived. Andrew Brown #Israel #Iran michaelwest.com.au/ignoring-gen...

Four days after his faith adviser compared him in suffering to Jesus, President Donald Trump spent Easter Sunday threatening Iran in a profane Truth Social post. baptistnews.com/article/trum... #trump #easter #iran #news

www.theguardian.com/us-news/2026... A sign of how things can change when "the penny drops" - a lucid and succinct statement from former Trump teamster Marjorie Taylor Greene on the insanity of the attack on Iran, and the insanity of the one leading it. Have a look please, @albomp.bsky.social .

At the #Adelaide #Kite Festival, filmed from Semaphore Jetty. Blessed with an offshore wind, and an appropriate song being played over the speakers...

"a regnant, malicious, corrupt and immoral world order, where the willingness to harm children is the ultimate expression of political power." - @timdunlop.bsky.social

www.theguardian.com/australia-ne... As Holly Parsons of @birdlifeoz.bsky.social says, it is not just #climate change that is threatening birds like the superb fairywren, it's our relentless destruction of their habitat. /2

I often use this quote, from Aldo Leopold's, A Sand County Almanac, publish posthumously, in 1949. It is crushing to fight so hard for something, and to be almost totally ignored, even though you're repeating verifiable facts.

www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle... The nub of these stories of globalised relationships is in the last line - feeling that you belong. We're a trans-Tasman couple in Australia. Occasionally I reflect that we're repeating our immigrant forebears' experiences. Separating generations is hardest.

“Although the definition of what it means to be a Christian should be broad, at some point ethics and morals matter.” baptistnews.com/article/what... #christiannationalism

The story of Alice Harris in King Leopold's #Congo is today's must-read story. Especially relevant for those who call themselves #Baptist. Thank you to @blakandblack.bsky.social .

Interesting. By the sunrise and sunset times posted on our #BOM (Bureau of Meteorology) forecast, the autumnal #equinox doesn't strictly occur in Ballarat until Tuesday 24th... Or does this take into account local topography the sun has to peek over in the morning, @windjunky.bsky.social?

#CSIRO cuts: "The attitude was that there was little more to be learnt about climate science, and that funding and professional attention should now be fixed towards solutions to climate change, whether that be in slowing, mitigating or adapting to it." www.thesaturdaypaper.com.au/news/environ...

nb.australiainstitute.org.au/scrap_cgt_di... Signed by an owner of 2 rental properties, @jimchalmers.bsky.social .

Amid holy war on Iran, will the West examine the roots of Christian and Jewish rage? url: www.middleeasteye.net/opinion/amid... A disturbing read, especially for Christians. That rage hasn't helped our witness a lot over the past two millennia.

www.biodiful.org#/forest This was a fascinating survey on #forests and our perception of them. Having grown up amidst "scrub" in Australia, & experienced the varied forests of this country, NZ, Britain, France & Japan, this highlighted for me just how initial perceptions... ...no, you find out!

What’s your favourite gum tree? 🌿 Voting for @eucalyptaus Eucalypt of the Year closes Monday at 11:59pm ⏳ Choose your champion from 10 incredible eucalypts that support Australian ecosystems. Vote in under 2 minutes: eucalyptaustralia.org.au/eucalypt-of-... #OurEucalyptHome

The climate water wars are upon us, but in some parts of the world water scarcity has been around for millennia. This interesting post by @richard.wickedproblems.earth explores how water scarcity shaped thinking in biblical times and how our societies today are blundering into water chaos:

"This version of Mary Magdalene — bruised, prickly, and filled with an immense capacity for love — is another chapter in an ancient, ongoing evolution." sojo.net/articles/cul...

c.org/j2RJf759sX Please sign. Incredible that the perpetrator was apparently asked by police to move on. What did he need to do to be arrested? Personally, I'm still perplexed as to why neo-Nazis were given permission to march the streets of #Ballarat five years ago...

The childcare groups say they are the voices for everyday parents. What they don't mention is that they are supported by a network of current and former Liberals.

This is the nub of the issue. As with Iraq, & with Gaza, it's always a matter of who profits from war, who is able to test their new weapons of terror & destruction, who will have new investment opportunities... ...that it's being done with a veneer of religiosity only makes it all the more venal.

A compelling summary of trends in US #evangelical worldview, which have spread too in Christian circles here in Australia. While we've been exhorted to look at "the world" for signs of evil outside the church, it's taken root within. C.S. Lewis would be aghast. buttondown.com/theswordandt...

Penny Wong was asked if the Australian Government believes that Trump's war on Iran - which Labor supports - was illegal. She couldn't answer. This is Australia under the ALP: providing political cover for a rogue state while it wreaks chaos and death across the world.

#Labor / #LNP want #AUKUS @ $400 Billion Both DON’T care about you or #ClimateEmergency #Gaza #Corruption #Transparency #Refugees #HousingCrisis #DomesticViolence Think we could fix #Australia with $400 Billion? Then REPOST. Compel them. #Auspol #Melbourne #Sydney #Brisbane @greens.org.au

Beaut story from #ABC #Landline about the precious endangered native #grasslands of Victoria. I'm experimenting at home with #Hemarthria uncinata (mat grass), accessed from our own back paddock, as a lawn grass. Would love more info about use of weeping grass. 🌱🧪 www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02...

Identifying bulbous 🌱 is a minefield, esp. starting with a common name. So I hope someone in the #botany realm can help identify my white 'lily'. Bought years ago as a "Veldt lily" (but it's not a Veltheimia), I hope I'm right with #Crinum moorei, #Natal lily. Flowering now (late Australian summer).

nb.australiainstitute.org.au/donate-gas-e... In support of @australiainstitute.org.au , and of @davidpocock.bsky.social and other independents in Canberra trying to loosen the grip of the #fossil fuel companies on Australian politics.

Two of the prettiest tree crops - #prunes and #quinces - grow on pretty trees. Some prunes are turning into sauce today; the quinces will be burgeoning for a while. For all the beauty of Australian parrots, it must be great to grow these trees where you can enjoy their beauty without netting...

"There is no ethical, moral or biblical justification for the killing of two American citizens in Minnesota. And yet, professing Christians continue to offer explanations...as though these outcomes are regrettable but necessary side effects of 'law and order.'" baptistnews.com/article/prac...

This is the first year our young #plumcot (plum x apricot) tree has borne enough fruit to turn into jam. Testament to its resilience, really - we've had a couple of 42°C days, and a very dry summer. A healthy grower too - no problems with leaf curl in a wet spring, so jam is organic to boot. 🌱

"The lies being told to discredit empathy are necessary for Trump because empathy and Christian faith discredit him. He represents...a view of the world that opposes everything Christianity teaches. He reminds us all the time. We should believe him." #PrayForAmerica religionnews.com/2026/02/12/h...

All while President #Herzog is taking selfies with #Australian politicians. Looks like "social cohesion" has a different meaning in the West Bank, eh @albomp.bsky.social @senatorwong.bsky.social ?

I think this is one for #FourCorners, @milliganreports.bsky.social . It's not good enough for media, including our beloved #ABC, to excoriate the incumbent government for inflationary pressure on consumers, when we know who's applying the tourniquet to buyers & employees alike - corporate Australia.

I'm "staying calm" about Pres. #Herzog 's visit to #Australia, though it's divisive, & immoral while Israeli attacks on villages in the #WestBank continue unabated. I will be calmly marking his visit by doing what I can - donating to relief works in Gaza. If others feel the same, pls do likewise. /2

What does the New Testament have to say about creation care? Dr. Jonathan Moo joins us to explore how Scripture shapes the way Christians understand—and care for—God’s world. Don't miss it! goodfaith.org/podcasts/dr-...

In amongst all the ugliness that life throws up, occasionally the sublime breaks in and just stops you with its beauty. A bit of Brahms Symphony No. 1 in C minor, from #ABC #Classic this evening.

Interesting just how much history repeats. I was just listening to the #TheRestIsHistory podcast on the lead up to the Battle of Britain. At the point where the UK (& it's empire) is on its own, the USA comes through with a deal to help protect Britain.../2 youtu.be/NrDNFvUhFGk?...

Hey, check out this! getup.to/BELd3qfqCqkwf7

Though I’ve brokered many disappointments in the last ten years, none has been so acute as seeing roughly half my friends and extended family members exchanging the “compassionate conservatism” for which I used to vote... #FranklinGraham https://loom.ly/4kJRaJk

"Jesus Christ had compassion for immigrants. Donald Trump practices cruelty toward immigrants." baptistnews.com/article/jesu... #trump #ice #opinion