July 2025 News Update

Choosing love over fear, together. 

This past month, we’ve seen two contrasting visions of justice for young people in Australia. In the ACT, a long-overdue but welcome reform has been passed, lifting the minimum age of criminal responsibility to 14. It’s a move grounded in the evidence and guided by compassion, and one that recognises the inherent worth and potential of every child.

But in the Northern Territory, we’ve witnessed the troubling reintroduction of spit hoods and the expansion of adult sentencing for minors; steps backward that deepen harm rather than prevent it. In the NT there is a disproportionate number of young people, particularly Aboriginal children, caught up in the criminal justice system. Some of the worst dimensions of colonisation was how it used fear, violence and punishment to control people. It's sad to see systems that still echo this approach, rather than ones that seek to build healing and hope.

As followers of Jesus, we are called to choose love over fear. Our faith compels us to pursue the flourishing of all people. Scripture tells us, "There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear" (1 John 4:18). At the heart of our faith is the belief that love is the very essence of God, and the most important part of who we are created to be (1 John 4:7-8). It is this love that heals, restores, and reimagines our communities—not fear, not control, not punishment. The evidence coheres with our faith, it is love, support and compassion that is being shown to transform lives, where punishment and fear appear to embed resentment, distrust and trauma. This crackdown on children comes even as more evidence emerges that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples remain among the most incarcerated in the world. Thirty years on, the vast majority of the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody recommendations remain unimplemented. Accepting and acting on those findings is long overdue. Supporting and loving our children is a good first step.

One of the reasons I love being part of this movement is hearing the stories of Common Grace members who so often choose love in a society that calls for punishment. I've been lifted up by the stories from our community who have felt the impact of youth crime firsthand, but respond not with calls for harsher penalties, but with a deep desire for justice that is restorative. They ask us to address the roots of harm with support, compassion, and structural change. If that's you, we would love to hear your stories too. Please reach out and share them.

July also saw our tiny pacific neighbour, Tuvalu, become the first country in the world to begin a planned mass relocation due to climate change. Of its 11,000 people, 8,700 have applied for residency in Australia as part of a resettlement agreement. The climate crisis is existential and present for Tuvalu. It’s heartbreaking that across the world, the people least responsible for climate change are paying the highest price.

Injustice and harm, whether in our youth justice system or our warming climate, are not abstract issues. They are real. They are urgent. And they call us, as people of faith, to respond with love, action and the prophetic imagination that believes a better world is not just possible, it’s inevitable.

Let us continue that work together.

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July 2025 Updates

This month we welcomed the news that the minimum age of criminal responsibility in the ACT has been raised to 14. This change offers a glimpse of justice and hope of reform in a system that continues to disproportionately harm Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. Eliza Johnson, Common Grace’s Policy Coordinator, reflects on this historic decision by the ACT Government in our latest blog. Read here.

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Our #EndtheWaiting campaign - organised in partnership with the Australian Churches Refugee Taskforce - is underway! For over a decade, thousands of refugees have been trapped in legal limbo in Australia - stuck on short-term visas, without certainty, stability, or a path forward. From August 1, advocates will be holding prayer vigils in electorates all over the country to call on the Government to provide a pathway to permanent protection. Find out more about how you can join in this prayerful witness.

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Season of Creation 2025 is almost here! Every year Christians around the world set aside this season to celebrate God’s beautiful Earth and renew our commitment to pray, act, and advocate for creation. Come and enter this season with us at our ‘Faith in Action for All of Creation’ webinar, exploring actions we can take for the flourishing and protection of creation. Monday 1st September, 7:30-9:00pm AEST. Sign up here. 

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This month we were pleased to see the Federal Government announce $3.8 million in new funding for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander-led community safety in NSW. This is a hopeful step toward ending domestic and family violence. It affirms what First Nations communities have long known - greater safety is made smoother by community-led solutions. We stand with First Nations peoples, calling for continued investment in justice, healing, and safety for all. 

Join Common Grace at the Faith, Hope, Love Conference in August. Find out more here.

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Thank you for joining us as we walk together pursuing truth, justice and grace.

With deep gratitude,
Gershon Nimbalker

Common Grace National Director