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At the recent anti-lockdown protests in Sydney, there was a striking sign: “The blood of Jesus is my vaccine”. Robyn Whitaker writes that while it might be tempting to roll our eyes at such a sentiment, the relationship between the “blood of Christ” – symbolised through communion – and protection against all kinds of ills, including disease, has a long and complicated history within Christianity.
It’s only a small group of people who hold these beliefs, but their ability to spread misinformation is profound – appealing to people’s faith can carry a particular potency. Taking communion daily, such people claim, prevents you from getting sick from COVID. Medical science will disagree.
Whitaker unpacks the linking of communion and protection in Christian thought, while pointing out that the vast majority of Christian leaders are urging people to get vaccinated. Nonetheless, she writes, the potential harm is real: “the line between taking the Eucharist (the blood of Jesus) for spiritual wholeness and taking it as a magical potion that will protect one physically remains thin enough to be abused by irresponsible people touting conspiracy theories”.
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Amanda Dunn
Section Editor: Politics + Society
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Wes Mountain/The Conversation
Robyn J. Whitaker
Communion – including drinking the symbolic blood of Christ – is a spiritual act, not a medical cure. To argue otherwise is a dangerous corruption of Christian belief.
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Lukas Coch/AAP
Catherine Bennett, Deakin University
20-39 year olds are ‘peak spreaders’. If we vaccinate them, it reduces the risk for all of us.
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Joel Carrett/AAP
Anthony Scott, The University of Melbourne; John P. de New, The University of Melbourne; Kushneel Prakash, The University of Melbourne
Cash incentives are likely to be effective for people who are willing to get vaccinated, but haven’t done so yet. Freedom incentives could shift those who are unsure or unwilling.
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Shutterstock
Claire Breen, University of Waikato
With proof of vaccination likely to become mandatory for travel – and possibly other activities – a careful balancing of individual and collective rights will be essential.
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This stone tablet records the restoration of certain lands by the Babylonian king Nabu-apla-iddina to a priest. Babylonian, circa 870 BCE. From Sippar (Tell Abu Habbah)
Wikipedia
Daniel Mansfield, UNSW
Ancient Babylonians achieved a practical application of trigonometry that was massively advanced for the time.
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Dan Peled/AAP
Naomi Barnes, Queensland University of Technology
We need to understand the student activities and movements that are spreading the Delta variant of the virus in the latest Brisbane outbreak.
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Musician Aidan Roberts performs Tubular Bells for Sydney Festival in 2012.
AAP Image/April Fonti
Andy Bennett, Griffith University
Rising to prominence in The Exorcist soundtrack and the first album from Richard Branson’s Virgin Records, the layered sounds of Tubular Bells became a template for further innovation.
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Environment + Energy
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Roel Plant, University of Technology Sydney; Laure-Elise Ruoso, University of Technology Sydney
For biodiversity offsets to work, landholders need to be on board, but their diverse perspectives remain poorly understood.
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Politics + Society
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Michelle Grattan, University of Canberra
Michelle Grattan discusses the next election with shadow treasurer Jim Chalmers.
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Alanna Kamp, Western Sydney University; Kevin Dunn, Western Sydney University; Matteo Vergani, Deakin University; Nida Denson, Western Sydney University; Rachel Sharples, Western Sydney University
Just 3% of Asian Australians in a new survey say they have reported racist incidents to the Human Rights Commission. Worryingly, many say they also avoid certain situations out of fear of racism.
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Science + Technology
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Ray Norris, Western Sydney University
Australia’s ASKAP radio telescope probes the Universe more deeply than ever before, revealing unseen features of the cosmos.
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Luke Halpin, Monash University; Rohan Clarke, Monash University; Rowan Mott, Monash University
At night the centipede crawls through thick leaf litter, using two sensitive antennae to navigate a labyrinth of seabird burrows across the forest floor.
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Arts + Culture
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Michael Westaway, The University of Queensland; Doug Williams; Jason Kelly, Indigenous Knowledge
Plans are progressing to rebury the remains of some of Australia’s most significant inhabitants. But scientists say this will see the potential to learn more about the origins of humanity vanish.
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Health + Medicine
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Lachlan Van Schaik, La Trobe University
It seems as though every other week there’s a study telling us coffee is good for us, or it’s bad for us. Here’s what to make of this new piece of research.
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Business + Economy
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Mark Crosby, Monash University
It is bad practice to compensate people who choose not to do the right thing, and it can create expectations.
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