We are continuing to love being in Australia – and learning so much in so many ways….In some ways it is very similar to the UK, in other ways it is quite unique.
Liberal Progressive Indoctrination.
Liberal Progressives are attempting their indoctrination here. For example this week I was told of a Sydney secondary school which made boys go to the gym and walk round holding hands in order to help them understand what it was like to be homosexual. In another pupils were stand in rows to indicate whether they were gay or straight! I do hope that the school was up to date and offered the 71 genders that Facebook suggest!
They then went on to discuss the suicide pod –something to be created by a 3D printer at home – a perverse and sick idea to make it easier for people to kill themselves. Of course all the panelists were in favour of euthanasia – the farmers rep for example came out with the profound view – we euthanise someone’s pet dog so why not euthanize humans? (Because no-one made the obvious point, let me just simply say that we also put down dogs when they are too old, commit crimes or cost too much…is the comparison still valid?). The SMH guy was a bit more skeptical; there have to be ‘checks and balances’ (although of course no one says what these could possibly be? Check your printer is working?). All the panelists were in favour of euthanasia because ultimately it is about choice.
Meanwhile the indoctrination through soap opera continues. In a fascinating episode of the American show Law and Order we were given the politically correct view of a transgender man in the US army. The fact that he was involved in the rape and brutal beating a prostitute was not nearly as important as the fact that he must be seen as the real victim. I found it fascinating that the moral outrage here was not at the poor woman being beaten and abused, but rather at the possibility that his trans status might cause harm. I suspect our TERFS (Trans Exclusionary Radical Feminists) might not have been too pleased at the contrast between the real woman and the fake.
But it doesn’t always work –
Israel Folau has won his battle with the Australia Rugby establishment and the media. In this brilliant blog post he stood up for his faith and he won.
“This is not about money or bargaining power or contracts. It’s about what I believe in and never compromising that, because my faith is far more important to me than my career and always will be.”
The Bible in Australia
I have finished Meredith Lake’s fantastic book and will write a review latter….but meanwhile here are some fascinating and revealing quotes from the book.
Many socialists used to be inspired by the Bible – before the left wing was taken over by progressive ‘liberals’.
“The gospels were assumed knowledge for Australian socialists in the 1890s. In fact, in this period, the ideals of organised labour were deeply infused with a dynamic vision of Christ. ‘Honest Jim’ McGowen, a boilermaker, was an experienced unionist first elected to the NSW Parliament in 1891. For decades, he attended the evangelical Anglican church of St Paul’s, Redfern, whose socially aware minister, FB Boyce, promoted temperance reform, the introduction of age pensions, and the care of the poor. McGowen served as a lay preacher, church warden and parish councillor. He superintended the Sunday School for thirty-five years, even while Premier, openly revering the Jesus of the gospels in the various facets of his life. In numerous speeches, McGowen declared that the Nazarene Carpenter was his role model, and that Jesus’ teachings were the foundation of his view that government could and should make society more humane.”
Germaine Greer agrees that without God there are no rules.
“At any rate Greer abandoned her earnest teenage faith in the year after she left school: One of the sources of conflict that was distressing me during my first year of university was the collapse of my Catholic faith and my unwilling arrival at the conclusion that there was no God. Once that had been decided, there were no rules about anything else, either. I found myself thinking very hard about virginity and the morality of all that petting in parked cars.”
The Bible was and still is an enormous influence on Australian life.
“It is not surprising, then, that in 1960 nine out of ten Australians had a Bible in their homes – rivalled only by a cookery book and a dictionary (owned by 91 and 89 per cent of people, respectively). It far outdid atlases, encyclopedias and works by Shakespeare (owned by 42 per cent of people), and every other kind of book.
“Half a century after Menzies, about 8 per cent of Australians can be found in church on any given Sunday. This means participating in church remains a relatively significant occupation. For instance, twice as many Australians go to a service at least monthly as attend all AFL, NRL, A League and Super Rugby games combined per month during the football season.”
Immigration is a real blessing to the church
“By the 1990s, people born in non-English-speaking countries were much more likely to attend church frequently than those born here (31 compared to 19 per cent).20 In the early 2010s, twice as many recent immigrants attended religious services at least once a month as did Australians born of Australian parents.
“By the early 1990s, there were fifty-two Korean churches just in Sydney, and over 75 per cent of Koreans living in Australia claimed to be Christian, compared with about 20 per cent in Korea itself.19 Chinese immigrants formed distinct congregations within many Christian denominations. All together, new migrant churches added both vibrancy and strength to Christianity in Australia, bucking the trend of declining church affiliation that characterised the older British denominations.”
Real pluralism requires freedom to listen to the Bible.
“To restrict or exclude religious voices, or to treat religious texts as illegitimate reference points in public conversation, runs counter to the ideal of a plural but inclusive polity and society. This does not mean that the Bible, or perspectives informed by it, is entitled to any particular privilege. Nor should it be immune from rigorous public critique. But a confident, robust pluralism requires tolerance of religious voices, including Christian ones in all their diversity. It requires a willingness to hear and even engage with arguments nourished by Scripture.”
Some other lessons:
ANZAC is big here. (This is similar to our Remembrance Sunday where the fallen in war are remembered) This will occur on Wednesday, but was reflected in church services all over Australia last Sunday. I found it all very moving. And encouraging that whereas a few years ago it seemed to be dying out, now it has become more significant than ever.
At St Thomas’s Simon Manchester preached the best sermon I have ever heard on Song of Solomon – and he did so as part of the ANZAC service. It was a masterpiece of how to preach Scripture faithfully and contextually to the culture. As part of that service a bugle which had belonged to his grandfather in the First World War played The Last Post. It was deeply moving.
Moore College has been phenomenally influential in ensuring that the slide into 
There are some great Aussie books – as I have been discovering in the wonderfully quirky Bookery in Lane Cove, owned by two lovely ladies – Beatle and Karen. So much better having a book store staffed by people who know what they are talking about, rather than a chain where it is just a sales assistant selling a product.
The Three Service Model seems to be ubiquitous. I’m still not convinced this is a good idea – but am open to persuasion!
Aussie Humour works for me. Love the fact that in some bookstores. Steve Smiths book has been moved from the sport to the crime section!
Finally a couple of questions:
What is a tree fail?
Does anyone understand the Sydney transport system pricing? It’s a wonderful system but some times my bus journey costs me $4, a couple of times it has been $0? Any ideas how it works?
See you next week….