'Untranscended / life itself': the poetry of Pam Brown

Pam Brown's cynicism, satire, attractions and repulsions seem built around an absent centre, something always already in the poetry lost in the tedious non-occurrences of contemporary Australian life. Brown has typically published in a scattered, small-press way and while this small-press, small-readership approach is something most Australian poets know intimately, Brown has made it into an art form, and one which seems in keeping with her own ironic and at times cynical approach to the world of appearance, celebrity and media hype.

The use and misuse of religious language: Zionism and the Palestinians

Every discipline which deals with the land question in Canaan-Palestine- Israel is afflicted by the problem of specialisation. The political scientist and historian usually discuss the issue of land in Israel purely in terms of interethnic and international relations, biblical scholars concentrate on the historical and archaeological question with virtually no reference to ethics, and scholars of human rights usually evade the question of God. What follows is an attempt, through theology and political history, to understand the history of the Israel-Palestine land question in a way which respects the complexity of the question. From a scrutiny of the language used in the Bible to the development of political Zionism from the late 19th century it is possible to see the way in which a secular movement mobilised the figurative language of religion into a literal 'title deed' to the land of Palestine signed by God.

The impossible infinite: Les Murray, poetry, and the sacred

In 1983, the provocative and idiosyncratic Australian poet Les Murray published a volume entitled The People's Otherworld. At the heart of that middle volume of Murray's work is a poem about grace entitled Equanimity. Here, McCredden examines how does the poetry of Murray seek to represent the sacred.

The impact of religious affiliation while growing up on substance use by African-American crack cocaine users

This paper explores the relationship between church attendance while growing up and the substance use issues reported by 159 African American crack cocaine users in Houston Texas. It was found that more frequent juvenile attendance at church was associated with being less likely to suffer withdrawal symptoms or to take drugs to avoid withdrawal. However/ there were no differences between regular/ irregular and non-attendees in respect of number of substance use issues reported or attendance at a self help group for substance use/ even though these are often faith-based. The relevance of including questions on religious participation when young in screening instruments to be used with adult substance abusers is questioned.

The accounting profession: a religious and community platform for change

Following the failure of large corporations in both Australia and the United States, considerable dialogue has been generated on the integrity and role of accountants. This focus of this study was to examine the role of the professional accounting community, which shapes, and is shaped by the value, religion and culture of accounting members. In view of the impetus towards internationalization of accounting standards it is suggested the accounting profession re-examine its position as part of the international human community
and re-examine its core values.

Accounting measurement in the religious perspective : conservatism or optimism

This paper concerns about accounting measurements from the socio cultural values’ perspectives. By applying Hofstede (1980), Gray (1988), and Perera (1989) studies, first of all, the study develops a theory to concern about accounting values in a religious perception. Then Islam, as one of the most debatable religion in the world, is considered as an instance. Islamic compliance accounting measurement has developed in next stage to understand how the accounting value could be different from this viewpoint from the Western conservative historical cost. This study theoretically proves that Islamic compliance accounting measurement conforms to the exit price method which is different from the Western complaisance accounting measurement.

Death, mortality and religious diversity

Developed in partnership between the Immigration Museum and Deakin University, this exhibition examines how eight different groups in Victoria deal with death. It includes representatives of Moslem, Hindu, Christian (Catholic, Anglican, Greek Orthodox), Jewish, Buddhist faiths and those with no religion.

Contemporary poetry and the sacred: Vincent Buckley, Les Murray and Samuel Wagan Watson

VINCENT Buckley's Golden Builders and Other Poems (1976) is an important poetic experiment in its direct and exulted address to the city and to the sacred. The city is Melbourne in which Buckley lived, worked and wrote for forty years. In the original volume, the epigraph to the twenty-seven part sequence 'Golden Builders' is from William Blake's Jerusalem, a profound and idiosyncratic yoking together of the corporeal and the sacred