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A (Lay) Catholic Voice Against a National Consensus

Abstract In both a canon law student’s essay and in oral remarks to the 2017 Onclin Chair conference at KU Leuven, the author critiques his own country’s closed border consensus excluding admission of boat people. He argues this political consensus in Australia is at odds with the celebrated national identity of Australians. Moreover, the author identifies that the closed border consensus is contrary to the Gospel, because it does not welcome the stranger and because it betrays the universality of the love of neighbour which the Gospel demands. The author argues that the voice of the Catholic lay person is not to remain silent, but is to speak out against the injustice of the policy because the Gospel, the magisterium of the Second Vatican Council in its decree on the Apostolate of the laity, the Canon law, Catholic moral theology and the dictates of conscience all demand the articulation of a contrary view.