Christmas 2020 in the age of COVID-19

Christmas in 2020 under the presence of COVID-19 will be memorable for the manner in which the virus creates an environment that is diametrically opposite of the meaning and purpose of this time in the calendar. 100 years ago during the Spanish Influenza pandemic (designated H1N1 influenza A) a similar impact would have been felt however there are few, if any, people alive who would be able to recall this public health catastrophe.  

Coming together at the end of the year is the traditional custom however the most effective means to prevent the transmission of COVID 19 is to do the opposite and stay apart. At this time, compassion and kindness remain key to managing the pandemic as much as control measures and vaccines.

Christmas has different meanings for different people. The word itself is derived from 'Çhrist's Mass' during the 11th Century it evolved to 'Cristenmasse' (Middle English) and the 12th Century it became Cristes-messe. It has also been translated as Christian mass.

Wherever you are, may peace and tranquility bless you during this difficult time.

Saint Nicholas - the original Santa Claus

Saint Nicholas - defender of the faith

Shopping centres have live dress-up versions for children to have their photo taken with; large inflatable dummies are available as Christmas decorations; and streets are festooned in reindeers, sleds and a large, jolly, laughing man with a beard dressed in a red outfit. Santa Claus. Otherwise known as Saint Nicholas.

Who was the real Saint Nicholas ? He is considered to have been the Bishop of Myra, located in modern day Turkey, but a Roman town in the late third century AD. During this period, he was imprisoned during the Great Persecution in 303 AD and was only released when the Emperor Constantine issued the Edict of Milan. Nicholas was known to be the defender of Church doctrine and not so easily dissuaded from his faith. He died around 343 AD however over the centuries since, his fame has grown to the extent that it has become independent of the Christian origin. He is known as the patron to many groups of people from sailors, orphans and prisoners but especially children and the fables record his generosity with gifts and miracles he performed. During the Middle Ages, his image assumed a distinctively European deity form with both Roman and Norse characteristics.

The oft-used picture of Saint Nicholas as a bearded man dressed in a red, fur-lined coat  from the North Pole is a very recent one from the 19th Century originating predominantly in North America. This image has migrated back to Europe and been accepted as the cultural norm. He was closer in fact to the one portrayed above which also to an extent is more of the Romanticist portrayal.

At this time, perhaps the strong, committed example of Saint Nicholas has an application well beyond the Christmas season.

'Brief Answers to Big Questions' - Stephen Hawking's final book

The Summer reading list for 2019 included the final book of renowned physicist, Professor Stephen Hawking who had died in March 2018.  The book is essentially a collection of answers to various critical questions drawn from Hawking's archive and accumulated over many years. In addressing the varied issues, Hawking and his assistants have sought to compile answers to complex yet widely asked issues such as: is there intelligent life in the universe ? Can we predict the future ? Is time travel possible ? Will artificial intelligence outsmart us ?

Most telling, Hawking also confronts the most immediate concern of climate change  and the environment directly by asking - can we survive on Earth and should we colonise space ?

With his characteristic humour, the book is full of quirky quotes - for the question as to whether there is intelligent life elsewhere in the universe, he concludes "..it must be a very long way away otherwise it would have visited Earth by now. And I think we would've known if we had been visited: it would be like the film Independence Day".

In confronting the biggest threat to planet Earth, Hawking concludes that while an asteroid collision is possible, the last big event was sixty-five million years ago. The immediate threat is runaway climate change. As he concludes, "A rise in ocean temperature would melt the ice caps and cause the release of large amounts of carbon dioxide. Both effects could make our climate like that of Venus, but with a temperature of 250 degrees Celsius".

This book is made for a non-science reader with the extra treat being that it includes Hawking's work on black holes and the relationship between Einstein's General Theory of Relativity and the later theory of Quantum Mechanics  - explained in clear, simple language. This is a must read book confronting some of the major science and ethical questions of the era.

Easter - Jesus, eggs, Heaven and Hell

Shutterstock                                                                                                        

Easter - the festival commemorating the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead - has several separate distinct elements which stretch over a full week from Palm Sunday to Easter Sunday. Easter also coincides with the Jewish festival of Passover. 

How much is actually known about Jesus ? His life, teachings and practices are drawn from the New Testament Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. The archaeological evidence however for Jesus is non-existent although much effort has been spent over the centuries since his death (around 30AD) to find actual proof. 

After his resurrection Jesus ascended to Heaven, a form of existence to which all Christians are meant to aspire.  As academic Robyn Whitaker points out, the concept and understanding of Heaven is  fairly varied and most often relates to a 'paradise' which appears to be a description of the Persian Royal gardens.  The word for heaven in Hebrew (shamayim) and Greek (ouranos) also translates to the word for 'sky'.  It could be argued that this is more a cultural influence than a religious one.

The perspective taken on Hell is more diverse. The Old Testament merely refers to Sheol or a realm of the dead however the New Testament  has multiple terms - Gehanna, Hades, Tartarus or the Abyss. Whitaker sees this as more a case of the New Testament writers being influenced by both the Greek and Jewish cultures and incorporating concepts into their writings. Of interest Gehanna was a valley near Jerusalem which had a perpetually burning rubbish dump hence the association with wickedness and fire.

Easter eggs and Easter bunnies have little to do with the actual events of Easter and have their origins in Europe, the German Lutheran Church and some of the Eastern Orthodox Churches. This mainly involves the tradition of fasting during Lent and the painting of eggs in bright colours rather than making them from chocolate. Easter in essence is not about the Easter bunnies or chocolates.

Happy Easter !

Christmas 2018

Shutterstock                                                                              

Christmas, a time of celebration, a time for relaxation with family and friends. The Christmas celebration  itself is a mixture of orthodox religion, tradition and pagan ritual. The Christmas tree itself originates from medieval eastern Europe before being adopted in Lutheran Germany and thereafter across the Christian world mainly during the later 19th century. Decorations on the tree were much less flash and sparkly in the 19th and early 20th Centuries with coloured paper roses, wafers, apples and other small edible items. Only later were candles added and in the 20th century the Christmas tree became a light show in itself.

Wherever you may be, happy Christmas !

Is Paris passe or simply overrated ?

The Seine looking toward the Eiffel Tower in the distance

Paris - a city famous for having being the centre of the Age of Enlightenment, for its grand architecture, world famous institutions, intellectual culture, the creative arts, Parisien lifestyle, boutique shopping, high end fashion and so on. Names which come to mind include the Musee d'Orsay, the Louvre, Champs-Elysee, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame de Paris, Arc de Triomphe, the Cabaret, the Paris Opera to name a few.

Major civic works by Napoleon Bonaparte and Napoleon III created large boulevards, straighter roads (as far as could be achieved in this city) as well as major landmarks, commemorative structures and institutions. A range of major figures throughout history from Cardinal Richelieu to former Prime Minister (and President) Georges Pompidou have contributed to the Paris skyline.

But is Paris essentially over-rated ? Has the city itself reached a point where it is.... passé ?

Paris streets in some of the best known arrondisements are littered with dog excreta, cigarette butts and discarded train tickets with seemingly little interest from civic authorities in creating a better environment. It is without doubt, a dirty city.

The much lauded art museum, The Louvre, now has a boutique shopping mall within its perimeter and visitors must walk through this shopping mall in order to exit the world famous institution. Its gift shop barely gives representation to the vast collection which the museum holds and contains souvenirs best left to tourist kiosks located near the Seine.

The world famous Paris Metro rail system has station transfer configurations so long and complicated that the Paris Tourist Office recommends visitors avoid them altogether. Paris commuters comment that they find themselves getting lost when trying to change trains.

The once intellectual and artistic hub of Paris, the Left Bank, has disappeared and now consists of high end, wall-to-wall art dealers and accessory sellers with more style than substance.

The Eiffel Tower is surrounded by a large metal, graffiti covered perimeter wall at ground level and the immediate area around the landmark is populated by scam operators, spivs and aggressive sellers with a high police presence required. Arrests are not uncommon.

Parisians themselves do not present a happy exterior and seem discontented. Terrorism, despite being a serious threat, is not a situation which they confront daily, but rather petty theft and general criminal activities is more the norm. Police arrests in parks and on bridges over the Seine are visible on a daily basis.

A simple coffee in Paris can cost between four and upwards to six euros (over $9 AUD) which is higher than neighbouring countries. Has Paris lost its lustre ?

Luxembourg Palace - French Senate building

New Year 2018

Shutterstock

The new year beckons and brings with it the hopes, dreams and aspirations for many people around Australia and world-wide. But will it also be a year of disappointment ? The portents do not appear particularly favourable with a mix of political, economic, military and international situations which leave little reason to be confident.

On the political front particularly international, Trump's America, North Korea, the Brexit process and instability in the Middle East seemingly will continue from 2017 travelling on the same trajectory. Terrorism will remain a central concern as the ISIS/Daesh collapse leaves many foreign fighters considering a return to their countries of origin. 

Economically, there is some level of confidence as the US has continued with year-on-year recovery, Europe is following a similar path with 2.60% of GDP growth in the last quarter of 2017. China remains the largest question with constant adjustments and interventions being made by the Government in Beijing. China's economy however remains relatively opaque.

Military actions will continue in Syria, the Ukraine and Yemen with a number of smaller regional conflicts occuring with insurgent activities in the Philippines and Thailand.  Whether peace returns to South Sudan is a matter of continued speculation.

2018 - a year with more of the same. 

Christmas 2017

Christmas, a time of giving, of reflection and temporarily at least, standing aside from the day-to-day business and work life.

So where does Christmas come from ? Simply it is the Mass of Christ as practised by those of the Christian faith. In its earliest form, this religious communion (or Mass) had to occur after sunset usually at midnight and many of the Orthodox Christian Churches have retained that custom. Over the past century, increasingly other non-Christian societies have adopted the practice of Christmas as a holiday rather than the religious belief.

With the commercial promotion of consumer purchases and retail sales that now dominate the public domain, what is the origin of the giving of presents and gifts ? According to Matthew 2: verses 1-12 of the Christian Bible, three wise men came to the town of Bethlehem in then state of Judea and brought gifts of Frankincense, Gold and Myrrh.  Referred to as Magi (or Magos in Ancient Greek and Magupati in Ancient Persian), this is a title often bestowed on priests or astronomers/astrologers. The three wise men are also often referred to as Kings: Gaspar the King of Sheba, Melchior the King of Arabia and Balthazar, the King of Tarse and Egypt.  Their gifts were symbolic and represent specific meanings within the region - Gold represents kingship, Myrrh is death or mortality and Frankinsense as a symbol of deity.

Wherever you are and whatever your belief, Happy Christmas and as the late Irish comedian, Dave Allen often remarked, 'May your God go with you'.

The 2017 Archibald Prize for portrait painting - review

The inner stillness of Eileen Kramer: Andrew Lloyd Greensmith

The perennial social voyeur's exhibition at the Art Gallery of NSW, the Archibald (or 'Archies' as they are affectionately known) is on again for 2017. Each year this exhibition attracts a wider public audience than is normally the case for art exhibitions at the state gallery due to the subjects of the paintings and their portrayal. Which painters are finalists, whom are the subjects and how are they being presented on canvass attracts more than its fair share of commentary and opinion.

This year, the Trustees of the AGNSW chose  Mitch Cairns portrait of his partner, Agatha Gothe-Snape as the winner of the $100,000 prize money which in the true spirit of the competition attacted criticism and controversy. The overall selection of 43 finalists is nonetheless very solid with a range of excellent portraits painted by Tony Costa, Lucy Culliton, Anh Do, Robert Hannaford, Peter Smeeth, Natasha Walsh, Marc Eetherington, Jun Chen, Nicholas Harding to name a few. The subjects themselves have a broad range of connection to the arts including retired art dealer Ray Hughes, former politician Michael Chaney, TV morning show presenter Lisa Wilkinson, philanthropist Ruper Myer AO, actor and theatre producer John Bell, painter John Olsen AO OBE, Professor Gillian Triggs and many self portraits.

The portrait of Eileen Kramer and its painter is synonymous with the often interesting back stories behind many of the paintings. Eileen Kramer, aged 102, is Australia's oldest working dance choreographer and costumer designer and having spent a lifetime travelling the world in her profession returned to Australia at the age of 99. Her portrait was painted by Andrew Lloyd Greensmith who is a plastic surgeon practising at the Royal Children's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia.

The Archibald, Sulman  and Wynne exhibitions run from 29 July to 22 October 2017.

National Parks in the United States - visits increase but not for millenials

Yosemite National Park with Bridalveil waterfall - Shutterstock

In both the United States and Australia, visits to National Parks have shown a consistent and in some cases, dramatic increase in visitors over the past few years. But the increased interest although impressive disguises another aspect - the actual composition of the visitors. While Millenials constitute 21% of the US population, they only contribute 14% to the visitor cohort to the National Parks. Baby boomers in contrast are 24% of the US population but are 39% of the park visitors.  Despite a high level of environmental awareness amongst Millenials, there is not a corresponding level of practical engagement with nature. In the table below, the visitor data from the 15 most popular parks are listed. For ongoing public support for the parks in future decades, a high level of commitment will be needed from today's Millenial generation.

Major US National Parks

	National Park	2015	2016	Change %
1.	Great Smokey Mountains	10,712,642	11,312,786	5.6 increase
2.	Grand Canyon	5,520,736	5,969,811	8.1 increase
3.	Rocky Mountain	4,155,916	4,517,585	8.7 increase
4.	Yosemite	4,150,217	5,028,868	21.2 increase
5.	Yellowstone	4,097,710	4,257,177	3.8  increase
6.	Zion	3,648,846	4,295,127	17.7 increase
7.	Olympic	3,263,761	3,390,221	3.8 increase
8.	Grand Teton	3,149,921	3,270,076	3.8 increase
9.	Acadia	2,811,184	3,303,393	17.5 increase
10.	Glacier	2,366,056	2,946,681	24.5 increase
11.	Cuyahoga	2,284,612	2,423,390	6.0 increase
12.	Joshua Tree	2,025,756	2,505,286	19.1 increase
13.	Hawai’i Volcanoes	1,832,660	1,887,580	2.9 increase
14.	Bryce Canyon	1,745,804	2,365,110	35.4 increase
15.	Hot Springs	1,418,162	1,544,300	0.8 increase

Source: National Park Service Visitor Use Statistics https://irma.nps.gov/Stats/Reports/Park/GRSM

ANZAC Day 2017

While the focus of ANZAC Day remains firmly planted on the Gallipoli peninsula with the Dawn service commemorating the landings on 25 April 1915, increasingly over the years, greater attention has been paid to the Australian National Memorial,  located outside of the village of Villers-Bretonneux in France and the Menin Gate in Belgium which commemorate losses and sacrifice on the Western Front of World War 1. This will be even more important next year.

ANZAC Day in Belgium honours the almost 13,000 ANZACs who fought and gave their lives in the battles of the Ypres Salient during World War One.  In effect there were four actual battles in the Ypres salient but for Australians, the Third Battle is of most significance and 2017 marks the 100th anniversary. Of note, most Australian soldiers buried in Belgium died during the Third Battle of Ypres (comprising of the Battle of Menin Road, Battle of Polygon Wood, Battle of Broodseinde, Battle of Poelcapelle and the Battle of Passchendaele).

In 2018, there will be commemorations to mark the 100th Anniversary of the Armistice which ended World War 1. At that time of the Armistice, the Australians were part of the 100 Day Offensive and for the first time were in a single formation, the Australian Army Corps with Australian officers and commanded by an Australian General, Lieutenant General Sir John Monash.

Lest we forget.

General Sir John Monash with Australian Prime Minister Billy Hughes, 1918