WHAT ARE THEY FRIGHTENED OF?

In today’s blog, I want to turn the tables on a favourite anti-Christian argument. After all, isn’t it time the anti-religion brigade had a taste of their own ‘medicine’?

How many times have we, as Christians, been challenged as to how same-sex marriage will hurt us? (Lots of ways, actually, but that’s not my point today.) How many times have we been told that profanity, sexual promiscuity and blasphemy are OK on TV because “if you don’t like it, you don’t have to watch it”? How many times have we been accused of trying to stuff our religion down people’s throats?

Well I happen to believe that Christianity should be a privileged faith in Australia. As Cory Bernardi so eloquently points out, the freedoms and riches that we enjoy in this country have come about through the Christian heritage that has always (until now) undergirded our sense of who we are.

Christian churches, rather than mosques or temples, have always dotted our towns and regional areas. We celebrate Christmas and Easter, not Ramadan or Hanukka. The Bible, not the Quran, has been our moral compass. Our Parliament still acknowledges God as does our Constitution.

So what are they so afraid of? What terrible things do they think will happen to their children if they are taught about Jesus and Christianity for half an hour each week? Do they imagine that Christians will formally gag anyone who dares disagree with their beliefs? Well that’s what they continually try to do to us, so maybe they’re frightened that, if Christians actually were allowed to speak up, that we might reverse our own Golden Rule and do to them what they have been doing to us!

I sometimes wonder how a truly Christian society would handle social problems like pornography, drug abuse and sexual promiscuity. I think we would have to discern between victims and perpetrators. We would have to show compassion on the former and prosecute the latter. For instance, we would not lock gays and lesbians in prison but our laws would prevent them from proselytizing, especially among children and teenagers. We would not forbid Buddhists or Muslims from practising their religion but we would not allow them to impose their culture on us, eg by bringing in aspects of Sharia law. We would respect all law-abiding, peace-loving people but we would expect the same respect in return, eg there would be laws prohibiting blasphemy against Jesus or God.

A truly Christian society would actually be a wonderful society, with a rich but fair culture, and the Church in Australia still has the opportunity to demonstrate that – in our own ranks to begin with.

I’ll tell you why people are afraid of Christians having any power in our nation. They don’t want their freedom to sin to be curtailed in any way. They are willing to tolerate other religions coming in if it means that Christianity is locked away in a box, preferably a coffin-shaped one. They want Australia’s social conscience to be forever silenced, so they can be free to do whatever they want, whenever they want. In biblical terms, they want to cast off all restraint (Proverbs 29:18).

Our goal as Christians, living as a Christian subculture, is not to “shove our religion” down anyone’s throat, but to demonstrate the benefits of a culture based on righteousness. This is the all-important challenge of the times in which we live.