The Greens’ leader Bob Brown was the first cab off the rank, saying that the debate between our two would-be Prime Minister’s last night failed to address the two main issues, greenhouse gases and same-sex marriages. The atheists have now joined with a few vocal Muslims and Jews saying we need to get rid of the Lord’s prayer at the opening of Parliament. The battle for the heart and soul of Australia is underway.
Some of us came across it in the lead up to the opening of a new Parliament house in 1988, when we asked the question of the Christian community, “Do you want the Christian faith to go missing from the structures of our society?” There was a move from within the Hawke goverment of the time, for there to be no prayers at the official opening. Some of us did some networking – we had connections within the government who’d told us that there were some who were ideologically committed to steering Australia in the direction of multiculturalism and pluralism.
The outcome was 50,000 Christians came from all over the nation to surround new Parliament house in prayer the weekend before the official opening.
It then gave Christians in Parliament the courage to come out and declare themselves. Up until the current election we have had a greater percentage of Christians in Parliament than ever before.
The cold hand of secularism is it work again; we need to remind the secularists that they are the minority. 69% of the Australian population call themselves Christian.
What percentage of the population belongs to the Labor Party? I would be stunned if it was 5%…. it’s one thing to vote for them if you feel they represent your interests but a different thing to belong to the party – similarly with the Conservatives, and the Greens?
David Nicholls the president of the Atheist Foundation of Australia wants all prayer dropped from the opening of Parliament. Of course that’s a surprise! – Not! And it might be of interest to David Nicholls, to recognise that 80% of the Australian population pray from time to time and believe in God. He simply belongs to a noisy minority.
And it’s interesting to note, that eventually at the official opening in 1988 the Lord’s prayer was read out, because it starts Our Father… recognising the fatherhood of God; something 98% of all religions agree with.
Oh dear!!!
I am in favour of multi-culturalism. Christianity does not privelege one particular culture. Remember the verse about their being neither Jew nor Greek?
This kind of priveleging of culture has no place in Christianity. It avoids the hard work of implementing values (like justice, mercy and compassion). And avoids the critique which is part of the Judeo-Christian tradition: the prophetic tradition includes the criticism of the followers of God and their culture I seem to recall.
It also avoids the question of how some atheists and secular people live better lives than Christians.
Christians certainly have the right to engage in the democratic process the same as any other group. And this will be (if they are faithful to scripture) the championing of multi-culturalism.
good on you Daniel….
there is always a dominent culture…its the nature of that culture that matters,multiculturalism came initialy from canada..and coninues to divide the nation ,between the french speakers and english speakers,preventing the comfortable emergance of a strong canadian story …of course every nations story needs to be an inclusive story.
Your last sentence contradicts the ones before it.
You don’t make a case for why one is more Christian than the other (which is what I was objecting to).
Are you seriously saying that those opposing multi-culturalism are interested in being inclusive?!!!
The Roman culture used to be dominant. Should Christians not have changed this?
Should I not oppose capital punishment because America is a ‘christian nation’? Presumably it is as it has the highest number of practising Christians!
Please address the argument on Christianity priveleging one culture over another and on what basis it should do this. Is it adherence to denominations or on the basis of values?
what is culture evan?the genious of the christian faith was that was partialiy at home in most cultures….because culture is shared symbols of meaning…the human spirit ,is always in search..of meaning naming and knowing;”As the soul is to the body so the church should be to the world”,diognetus…but the church at its best spoke with the voice of a prohet…against those evils that dehumanised,and were not kingdom values.
great discussion,but hard to develop in the space thats apropriate here.all the best..
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A new book Reclaiming Patriotism: nation building for Australian progressives.
On Amazon http://www.amazon.com/Reclaiming-Patriotism-Nation-Building-Australian-Progressives/dp/0521134722/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1280652817&sr=8-2
Looks interesting. He might be willing to do an interview for your blog. Dealing with identity and multi-culturalism.
The Australian election campaign 2010 seems to me to be a waste of time because apparently none of the big parties are opining on the one vital issue issue – the re-nationalisation and restoring of Australia’s greatest banking asset, the Bank of the Commonwealth. No other issues are important by any comparison.
Thanks for the tip!
I am going to add your blog to my list!
I’m not sure I completely agree with you on this post
your welome ;thanks for thinking about ,hope you will continue to think,nothing so sad as a concluded opinion,and a closed mind.
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