‘I think Jesus is the most famous person in history’, wrote Rachel Woodlock in an Easter reflection piece. (’Faith’, Sunday Age, 30 Apr. 2006)

‘Ho hum’, I thought, and apparently so did just about every fundamentalist in Melbourne. But unlike them I read on:

Even as a non-Christian, I have a satisfying familiarity with the traditional Jesus story … But the Jesus I have come to know and love as a Muslim is quite a different fellow from the one with long blond hair and flowing white robes, whom I knew as a child.

Rachel proceeds to outline the standard Muslim view of Jesus’ ultimate fate:

… [A]ccording to the Koran, Jesus did not die on the Cross. Only the appearance of his crucifixion occurred, sparing Jesus the ignominy of this cruel Roman punishment … For Christians, Jesus’ death on the Cross demonstrates his ultimate love for humanity. I, too, believe in a sacrifice - not his death but his life … So at Easter time, I paused and celebrated the life of Jesus.

Conservative Christians seem to be so busy fighting lost causes like RU486 that they can’t spare the time to respond to a well-written piece that strikes at the heart of their basic beliefs. Or maybe they’re all still recovering in hospital.

Filed in: General

Brigadier Jim Wallace, Managing Director of the Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) has responded quickly to Salt Shakers’ recent attack on ACL’s ‘relationship register’ policy (see Brian’s Blog, 8 May 2006). Wallace presents himself as the voice of sweet Christian reason, warning against sitting in judgment on others and offering this (apparently) trivial memoir:

Some time ago I met a Christian whose son was homosexual. Given his own faith and Christian leadership responsibilities, it was obviously a source of much hurt and some embarrassment to him. Nonetheless he resolved to demonstrate his love to his son without qualification, while making it plain that he did not support the sin. I could not help but think as I heard this man’s story that it was exactly how I would expect God would want him to act … (ACL National Newsletter, May 2006, 1, available at www.acl.org.au)

(more…)

Filed in: Christian Right, Sexuality

In my previous blog I noted that the Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) and Salt Shakers (SS) were heading for a fight over the upcoming ACT relationships legislation. The conflict has now gone public, with former bus driver Peter Stokes of SS taking on retired brigadier Jim Wallace of ACL. The real issue: who is the better Christian?

Rather than take sides in this epic struggle I’ll let Stokes speak for himself:

It is with great sadness that we [Stokes and his wife, Jenny] bring this message to you today … From time to time we have been required to challenge our own brothers and sisters in Christ about the social or political positions they hold and promote …

The Australian Christian Lobby and some Christian denominations and pastors in the ACT are rightly opposing the introduction of a Civil Union Bill because it is ‘like marriage’ - BUT, rather than stop there … they have actually called for the ACT government to ‘instead introduce legislation that would allow for the registration of same-sex and caring relationships, which does not mimic or diminish marriage, such as is in force in the state of Tasmania‘ …

[W]e do not think that is the Biblically correct way to deal with such an issue. We have made this clear to ACL, but have been unable to persuade them to change.

(more…)

Filed in: Christian Right, People, Sexuality

Professor David Flint, monarchist extraordinaire among many other accomplishments, is a good mate of Rev. Fred Nile (Christian Democratic Party, Festival of Light). Flint’s noble visage has often graced the pages of Nile’s Family World News (FWN), so it must have come as a bit of a shock for Fred to learn that there was ‘absolutely nothing wrong’ with his old pal, as Jerry Seinfeld might say:

For 30 years or more, Flint has lived in an apartment overlooking Bondi Beach with a partner he never mentions to colleagues or casual acquaintances … Forthcoming about everything else, he is silent about the person at the centre of his life. As a young man, he was open about his homosexuality. ‘I have never denied it. I’ve never hidden it’, he says evenly. It’s just that these days, ‘I don’t talk about it’. (Jane Cadzow ‘Stranger on the shore’, Age Good Weekend, 3 Jul. 2004, 29)

(more…)

Filed in: People, Sexuality

A significant rift seems to be developing between Jim Wallace’s Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) and other Australian Religious Right groups over the issue of same-sex relationships.

In general, organisations like these are flatly opposed to any extension of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (GLBT) rights. If we look at the past 40 years, it can fairly be said that if the Festival of Light and its ideological allies (especially the old ‘Tas Alert’ group) had had their way, no GLBT rights would exist and certain specific activities would still be punishable by law. Indeed, the situation as regards lesbian relationships would actually be worse than it was in the 1960s.

Back in 2003, the ACL was feverishly opposing the Tasmanian Relationships Bills, principally because they would provide adoption rights for gays and lesbians. But I noticed that an odd little sentence had crept into one of the ACL’s statements of policy on the issue: ‘…[W]e support registration [of G&L relationships] on the basis that it shows commitment …‘ (ACL National Newsletter, July 2003, 7) I didn’t pay much heed at the time as the sound and fury centred on the adoption rights issue.

(more…)

Filed in: Christian Right, Sexuality