Author Archive
SAS and the killing of prisoners
On the SAS and the killing of prisoners A complex situation requiring a complex response. Here’s a qualified opinion based on incomplete information: Firstly, the rest of Australia’s armed forces generally obey the rules of engagement. Secondly, it looks like some individuals in SAS have thought themselves so special that these rules don’t apply to […]
On megachurch services
On Megachurch services: personal view music.youtube.com/watch I have always looked at this type of evangelical service with disdain. Is it a genuine expression of faith? Or is it ‘worship as performance’? Is it fake spirituality? No doubt it gives spiritual expression to many genuine searching folk, and that is good (provided it is not manipulated by […]
Celebrating Chinese New Year
Brian Hennessy. Cairns, Australia. January, 2025 Chinese New Year, or Spring Festival as it is known locally, is China’s longest and most important festival. It begins with the first new moon of the lunar calendar and ends on the first full moon, 15 days later. In 2025, Spring festival will last from January 28th to […]
Catholicism & Buddhism: personal view
Brian Hennessy. An Australian in China. May, 2022 Time spent in China gave me time to explore the three main ‘religions’ of that society. I use the term loosely, because Confucianism, Buddhism, and Taoism (Dao) cannot be classed as religions in the Western sense. Briefly: Confucianism is a social construct; Buddhism is more a philosophy […]
The knock on the door
Brian Hennessy. An Australian in China. July, 2019 There are no secrets in China. Shortly before I flew there to reunite with my wife in our new apartment in Dujiangyan, I received a call from an old Western friend in Chongqing who told me that he had recently been invited to ‘have a cup of […]
Lightheaded in Litang
Brian Hennessy. An Australian in China. June, 2019. I hadn’t been up there for ten years. Would altitude sickness give me a headache to remember? Would my lungs be able to extract enough oxygen out of the rarefied atmosphere to keep brain and body functioning OK? And once extracted, would my heart cope with the […]
Monastery
Brian Hennessy. An Australian in China. The first snow has fallen. A soft, white, layer of magic. A sparkling membrane of tiny, tiny crystals resting gently on the contours of the Maoya valley, its protective mountains, and the Khamba Tibetan town of Litang. Monastery: in Litang _________________________________________________________________________ Apart from the snow, nothing much has changed. It […]
Five chickens in Chengdu
Brian Hennessy. An Australian in China. June, 2019 It was a long drive down from Litang on the Tibetan Plateau to Chengdu in the Sichuan basin. A nine-hour journey on a difficult road. Travelling with three Tibetan friends: Medok (the driver), Yinbo, and Qumei. Plus five live chickens in a bag. Five chickens in […]
Vale Chinese patriots
Brian Hennessy. An Australian in China. February 16, 2019 There are communists, and there are communists. Vale Li Rui 李锐; April 13, 1917 – February 16, 2019 Li Rui (李锐), who died today at age 101, was a typical, sincere Chinese communist in his early years. Later he became Chairman Mao’s personal secretary […]
Managing Depression: via neuroscience
Brian Hennessy. An Australian in China. January, 2019. Self-help information for expats in China who may have difficulty managing depression [sometimes associated with culture shock – see, https://ozinchina.com/2015/03/26/culture-shock-in-china/]. Derived from Alex Korb’s (2015) book titled, The Upward Spiral: using neuroscience to reverse the course of depression, one small change at a time. New Harbinger Publications Inc. […]