In the Shadow of Bondi: Michael Kirby on Love, Justice, and the Future of Faith

A special commentary for The Good News amid a national moment of grief and reflection

By Shane St Reynolds  |  Featuring commentary from The Hon Michael Kirby AC CMG

On 13 December 2025, The Good News reached a milestone of one million views—a testament to the growing hunger for progressive voices in faith and justice. Days later, Australia was shaken by the horrific murders of Jewish Australians celebrating Chanukah at Bondi Beach. In this moment of grief and reflection, I reached out to The Hon Michael Kirby AC CMG for his thoughts on the changing religious landscape, the role of accountability, and the future of equality. His response was profound, urgent, and deeply human.

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Honour and Praise for Dr Paul Inglis

“Honour and praise to Dr Paul Inglis for his service in contributing to the UcForum over the past 25 years. His stepping down is incontestably a changing of the guard. It happens at a critical time for progressive thought in the Australian and international religious landscape.”

The Bondi Tragedy and Accountability

“Most Australians, religious or not, have been shaken and shocked by the horrible murders of Jewish Australians celebrating the light and hope of Chanukah at Bondi Beach in Sydney, just before Christmas 2025. In other countries, especially the United States of America, multiple shootings in schools and other public places have become all too common. They are far less common in Australia. That is why they tend to shock us to the core.”

“We do not yet know the precise motives of the Bondi assailants. I am glad that the younger person, accused of involvement, survived and will presumably be obliged to stand trial for his alleged crimes. He will have to answer before Australian citizens, his friends, neighbours and families (and to his own conscience), for inflicting such cruelty upon strangers.”

“The problem in a shoot-out with police is that it usually leads to an empty chair in the public enquiries which law and justice demand to follow up such crimes. Most of all, a police killing, though sometimes necessary, terminates the opportunity for a detailed public examination of the motivation for such inhuman behaviour. It may terminate effective public examination of conscience that should follow all such events. It may allow those whose preaching and beliefs may have triggered such inhumanity to escape the necessity of public accountability. This was one of the reasons that lay behind the Nuremberg trials of the Nazi leaders in 1946. At least Judgement at Nuremberg demanded that the world should ask itself fundamental questions. Those who appear to have committed such wrongs in the name of God, a Leader, the Nation or Holy Text need to be exposed for what they are. Unexamined motivations leave unanswered too many questions, including sometimes about the cruelty and inhumanity caused by particular religious beliefs. Sexual minorities know this all too well.”

Religious Hostility and Slow Progress

“To increasing numbers, it seems specially puzzling and unacceptable that the hatred of queer people, including in Australia, can frequently be traced to deep religious convictions, actively propagated. Often it can be traced to holy texts, whose central message ironically appears to be that of love and reconciliation amongst human beings.”

“Every now and again, amongst major international religious denominations, questioning of such hostility is being raised, to demand re-examination of the detrimental beliefs and particular teachings. The exclusion of women bishops, priests and deacons from ministering to particular Faiths is a case in point. So is the blanket condemnation of LGBTIQ sexuality, natural to the minority involved. So is the prejudice against a particular skin colour. And the rejection of loving same-sex relationships that only ask for equality.”

Signs of Change and Hope

“Progress in such matters amongst the leaders of religious beliefs has often seemed painfully slow. Yet action is happening. Whilst popes continue to reject the consecration of women bishops and ordination of openly gay priests, some progress is being made. Increasing numbers of deacons are being accepted in that vocation. Criminal laws that punish gays are slowly being repealed. Some major religious denominations are apologising (as the Norwegian Lutheran church did recently) for the centuries of prejudice against queer adherents. A woman has been elected Archbishop of Canterbury. A female candidate for acceptance as a deacon, although living openly in a same-sex relationship, has been embraced and blessed. The arc of civilisation, increasingly, does appear, in some religious denominations, to bend in the direction of justice, equality and non-discrimination.”

“Still, such slow progress appears, so far, to be confined mostly to ‘non-conformist’ Protestant Christian beliefs. There is not much progress in Orthodox Jewry; nor in Greek or Russian Orthodox Christian Churches. Nor in Islam; nor in most branches of Buddhism; least of all in Mormonism and Evangelical Pentecostal Christianity.”

The Ongoing Conflict and Our Duty

“So there is a great conflict still going on in the world of Faith. For some, this is a pathway marked by love and acceptance. For others it is a journey marked by cruelty, rigidity and literalism in the reading of ancient Scriptures. The contrast is evident in international affairs and beyond religious beliefs. But it is also a feature of contemporary religious practice and individual beliefs. We will not see this conflict resolved in our lifetimes. But our individual duty is to make the path easier in the future than it has been until now. That was the challenge that Rev Dr Paul Inglis accepted. For this, the future will judge him kindly.”

— The Hon Michael Kirby AC CMG

Milestone: 1,000,000 Views Feature: Commentary Theme: Justice & Equality

As we celebrate milestones and mourn tragedies, our duty remains clear: to bend the arc toward justice, love, and equality—one voice, one act, one platform at a time.

Our Commitment Against Antisemitism

Antisemitism is an age-old prejudice that has no place in our world today. We believe it is important to name this injustice clearly and reject vague or universal statements that fail to address it. Every person is uniquely created with dignity and purpose, and mutual respect is essential for a just society. At The Good News, we stand for equality, compassion, and the right of all communities to live free from hatred and violence. Our commitment is simple: NO to prejudice, YES to justice, and YES to a future built on respect and understanding.

© 2025 The Good News. All rights reserved. Article by Shane St Reynolds. Commentary by The Hon Michael Kirby AC CMG.