Dr Michael Bird breathes some common sense into what is fast becoming a ludicrous situation in Tasmania.
This is an important read for every Australian who believes in freedom of speech.
http://www.onlineopinion.com.au/view.asp?article=17832
A Christian response to Paris & the problem of religion
Australians (and the West at large) don’t know what to do with religion. We don’t want to say that one religion is better or worse than another, but how do we deal with aspects of religion that are unacceptable? While ISIL are not supported by most Muslims, adherents are nonetheless practicing a devotion to Islam that finds support in the Koran. However because their ideology does not conform to the accepted pluralist world-view that all religions are valid, we hear political and religious leaders being forced to explain them away.
I don’t claim to speak for everyone and I don’t want to suggest that what I’ve written isn’t without bias. What I have written is a list of criteria that I try to practice when I’m talking with people about my Christian beliefs.
1. Show grace. Pride is not a Christian virtue. The very nature of Christian faith is that knowing God is a gift from God through Jesus Christ. Therefore, as we engage in conversation with people from different religions we avoid arrogance and pride, both in what we say and in the manner we speak.
2. Be gentle and respectful. When we talk to men and women we are speaking with people who are God’s image-bearers. That imago Dei, like in ourselves, is broken, but we maintain that they have value and ought to be treated with dignity. Therefore we don’t support graffiti on Mosques or other buildings, and we don’t support verbal or physical abuse toward people of other religions
3. Be honest about differences, and recognise that some contrarieties really do matter. One of the great weaknesses in current religious discourse is the unwillingness to call a spade a spade. Where there is commonality and agreement it should be recognised, but the pretend game of sameness is intellectually dishonest and shows disrespect to the many who hold to those points of difference.
There is no value in diminishing, ignoring or lying about differences in theology, ethics, or politics. For example, Christians and Muslims must not pretend that they share the same view of Jesus: Muslims do not believe that Jesus is fully and eternally God, Christians do. Muslims do not believe that Jesus was crucified and died on the cross, Christians do. Muslims do not accept that the Bible is God’s authoritative, sufficient and final word, Christians do. In the same way Christians don’t accept the Koran as a holy book, whereas Muslims do.
There exists an epistemological crisis in the world right now. The current crisis is not merely a moral one, but it is about how we understand truth. September 11 2001 shocked the world, not only because of the scale of evil perpetrated, but because it exposed the foolishness of our deference to the philosophical liberalism in the West; we were reminded that not every world-view is equally good or valid. Despite the warning, 14 years have now past and most of us in the West continue to walk the line of relativism. Will the recent and appalling rise of ISIL rouse us from the age of the post-critical conscience or will we keep popping our everyone-is-right pills?
4. Don’t excuse or protect the sins of your family. Sin is sin, whether it is perpetrated by someone else or by me. Christians can be guilty of wrongdoing: sometimes they break the law, other times they act lawfully but in ways that are unloving and therefore spurious. In the name of Christ, men and women have committed acts of cruelty and hate, not because of the Christian Bible but because they have abused the Bible in the pursuit of personal agendas. Where and when we are wrong we need to confess and repent, and repentance includes accepting the cost of restitution.
5. Aim to persuade. Coercion, threats, insults, violence – such things don’t help anyone. Beating someone down with a string of rapid rhetorical assaults does little more than create more distance between people, making genuine communication even more difficult. Persuasion, however, is healthy because it gives due weight to the subject at hand and it shows respect for the person with whom you are dialoguing. Persuasion says that people matter and the topic of dispute is too important for flippant dismissal or violent suppression. Persuasion includes using considered argument, showing coherence in your reasoning and providing evidence, using story and testimony, appealing to peoples hopes and desires, pointing out the weaknesses and untruths in alternative beliefs, and speaking with clarity and conviction.
6. Don’t caricature people or their beliefs. Not all atheists are like Richard Dawkins. Not all Muslims support ISIL. Not all Arabs are Muslim. Not all politicians are self-seeking egomaniacs. Not all Baptists are tee-totalling anti-fun facebook club members!
7. Seek to understand. Too often we assume what other people think and believe. Let’s not ignore the power of attentive listening, and of asking questions and taking time to research what other religions believe, teach and practice.
8. Live what you believe. Christianity doesn’t begin or end on the blog or at the public meeting, it continues through every encounter in all of life. If what Christians believe is true and good then it will influence every aspect of our interactions, both private and public.
When was the last time we smiled at and said hello to someone who was Muslim or Hindu? When was the last time we invited into our home for a meal someone who practices another religion? When was the last time we shared the good news of Jesus with someone from another religion? Why not put these things on our agenda?
9. The State and not the Church has the role to exercise civil and military authority. Unlike Muslim Scriptures, the Christian Bible recognises a distinction between the Church and the State. Throughout history not everyone has properly practiced this, but that has been due to a rejection of the Bible’s teaching, not adherence. However, in Islam there is no such distinction between religious and civil law and Government, hence Saudi Arabia and some of nations, as well as the theology underpinning ISIL. Having said that, other Muslim majority nations such as Turkey, have managed to move away from this orthodox Islamic worldview. (This article in The Atlantic about “What ISIL Really Wants” is worth reading)
“For the one in authority is God’s servant for your good. But if you do wrong, be afraid, for rulers do not bear the sword for no reason. They are God’s servants, agents of wrath to bring punishment on the wrongdoer. 5 Therefore, it is necessary to submit to the authorities, not only because of possible punishment but also as a matter of conscience.” (Romans 13:3-5)
My point here, is that Governments have responsibility to protect its citizens and to punish those who harm its people. It is not wrong for the French people to desire justice, and we must recognise that issues surrounding a response are complex. Doing nothing is hardly going to stop ISIL and engaging militarily seems to play into their agenda. Recognising them as a legitimate state is out of the question, given their propensity to abuse and kill thousands under their the control, and they are clearly not content to limit their borders at their current places. What we can do is pray for our Governments.
Below is a diagram that represents various approaches to viewing difference:
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This article has been adapted from a piece I published last year at Engaging with Religions
Praying with our children about Paris
Praying with our children is a wonderful opportunity and privilege. It not only helps us in talking with our children about what happened in Paris, it reminds us that we can take everything to God in prayer, and it teaches our children how to pray when evil comes.
My suggestion is that you firstly sit down with your children and answer their questions about Islamic State attacks, and then explain the pray to them before praying it with them. There is little point praying what we don’t affirm or understand!
Here is a prayer that you might like to pray with your children:
Heavenly Father,
We thank you that you are God, and that you are good, and are in charge of the world today.
We thank you that we can talk to you in the good times of life and in the sad times.
We are sad and want to cry for the people of Paris, Beirut and Baghdad.
We ask that you may comfort them in their grief, and that you might show them your great love in Christ Jesus.
We pray for the injured, that they will receive the medical help and pastoral care they need.
We ask that Governments and authorities will have great wisdom as they protect their people and as they respond to these attacks.
We thank you for the refugees who are arriving in Australia from Syria. May they be welcomed and cared for. Help us to love our new neighbours as ourselves.
The Bible tells us that evil makes you angry and the cross tell us you have done something about it. Thank you Father for sending your only Son into the world to die on the cross and to rise from the dead so that we know your forgiveness, and have new life and hope.
May the world come to know and see the peace that Jesus brings.
Help us to keep trusting Jesus and to show others that he is trustworthy.
And we ask this in Jesus’ name,
Amen
Paris, Terror, and Hope
Here is the sermon I preached today at Mentone Baptist Church in light of the dreadful attacks on Paris. The sermon is an exposition of the book of Habakkuk.
“O Lord, I have heard the report of you,
and your work, O Lord, do I fear.
In the midst of the years revive it;
in the midst of the years make it known;
in wrath remember mercy.” (Hab 3:2-3)
The non-controversial controversial program in our pre-schools
In August this year the Daniel Andrews Government banned SRI classes from Victorian Schools. Despite the fact that this has been a valued program for many decades, and that many schools are still keen to give space for this 1/2 hour weekly lesson, the Government caved into pressure from various lobby groups. Replacing this opt-in program will be a compulsory ethics/well-being/religious curriculum. Whilst announcing that this program will run from the start 2016, the Government is yet to provide any details of its content and who will teach it. Indeed, schools remain in the dark as to what is happening.
Today, The Age has reported that ACCESS Ministries are now offering a program in Victorian pre-schools, called Explore Christianity.
FIRIS have notified their supporters on facebook, saying
“SPECIAL RELIGIOUS INSTRUCTION – COMING TO A KINDERGARTEN AND CHILDCARE CENTRE NEAR YOU!
ACCESS have now discovered a new mission field – they have transferred their proselytizing to a softer market.
They are like the Gecko, who loses its tail, only to grow another one back again. They have reinvented themselves and found another way to get to the children.
FIRIS has known about this for some time, and the VIC government was first notified about this from us back in May.
It appears that now very young children will be segregated by religion and parents who object to their children being indoctrinated while at child care will need to accept this segregation as the norm, or find another centre.
The government has been taken offguard by ACCESS’ metamorphosis and will have to either choose to deal with it – or look the other way.
The obvious concerns are:
* Proselytising
* Treats offered as an incentive to children
* Religious segregation of very young children
* The opt out nature of the program
- Adequate informed consent being provided to parents”
I agree that any program must have transparency, and provide adequate information for parents, and it should have either an opt-in or opt-out clause. These things are sensible and appear to be in place already.
But even if all of these ‘concerns’ were fully met, history gives reason to suspect that FIRIS will keep pressing for this program to be shut down.
Given that, let’s look at these important facts that The Age reported today:
- Parents asked the Emmanuel Early Learning Centre to introduce this program and the Centre management agreed.
- The overwhelming majority of families are participating. After receiving consent forms, only 3 families chose to opt-out their children.
- The program teaches, “Christian values and beliefs, in addition to stories from the Bible.” In other words, it is teaching they very things that a program about Christianity should teach.
- Volunteers who run the program are accredited by ACCESS Ministries, in accord with strict requirements that have been set by the Education Department for SRI teachers in schools.
Pre-empting any call to close down the program, Minister for Families and Children Jenny Mikakos said to the The Age that, early childhood services operated independently, and any “decision on offering religious education as part of a service provider’s program is a decision for each individual provider and parents of children attending the service”.
It will be interesting to see what and if any pressure that the Government will try to apply to these early childhood centres. As it stands, they are providing a program within the law, based on parental interest and request, and with substantial by-in from both the Centre and its families.
Where is the controversy?
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Photo from The Age (Nov 10): Joe Armao
Religion Makes us Meaner
I agree.
Like sharks smelling a drop of blood, the media is swarming around the latest ‘religion is bad’ news story. This time, it comes in the form of a report that has been published in the journal Current Biology, by a group of researchers at Chicago University.
Research leader, Dr Jean Decety, has said, “Together, these results reveal the similarity across countries in how religion negatively influences children’s altruism. They challenge the view that religiosity facilitates prosocial behavior, and call into question whether religion is vital for moral development—suggesting the secularization of moral discourse does not reduce human kindness. In fact, it does just the opposite,”¹
That is one gargantuan call to make, and with significant implications should the assertion be true.
The Australian newspaper offered this helpful summary of the study (Nov 6):
“In the study, more than 1100 kids aged between five and 12 were asked to share stickers with anonymous schoolmates. The subjects lived in North America, the Middle East, South Africa and China, and included Christians, Muslims, Jews, Buddhists and Hindus.
Those from agnostic and atheist households consistently proved less likely to keep the best stickers to themselves. “The more religious the parents, the less altruistic the children, irrespective of the religion,” Dr Decety told The Australian.
He attributed the findings to a phenomenon dubbed “moral licensing”, where people’s perceptions that they were doing good — in this case, practising religion — exempted them from the obligation to perform other worthy deeds. “Apparently, doing something that helps strengthen our positive self-image also makes us less worried about the consequences of immoral behaviour,” he said.
The study also found that when the children were shown videos of “mundane” affronts, such as people bumping and pushing each other, religious kids were more inclined to decide harsh punishment was warranted. Dr Decety said this supported previous findings that organised religion promoted intolerance and punitiveness.”
I agree…in part.
I affirm the idea that religion can make people meaner and more selfish. This idea is hardly new, Christians have understood this since its earliest days, and it conforms to what the Bible has been saying since it was first written, millennia ago.
As Tim Keller put it in The Reason for God, “Those who believe they have pleased God by the quality of their devotion and moral goodness naturally feel that they and their group deserve deference and power over others. The God of Jesus and the prophets, however, saves completely by grace. He cannot be manipulated by religious and moral performance–he can only be reached through repentance, through the giving up of power. If we are saved by sheer grace we can only become grateful, willing servants of God and of everyone around us.”
According to Roman ch.1 religion stems from suppressing what is true, and creating and then depending upon things that are not true for meaning and salvation.
Subsequently, it is unsurprising to learn that religion is largely about self-justification; it is the human attempt to persuade God and others of one’s worthiness and goodness. Religion is about doing things and saying things in order to win God’s favour. Even acts of kindness can be a cover for gaining approval and for feeling better or happier about oneself. In other words, we shouldn’t be surprised to find that religion can make people, even children, mean.
The study doesn’t only suggest that religion makes children mean, it would have us believe that atheism makes children kind. Does unbelief enhance out potential for true altruism? A survey of non Government welfare agencies and charities will be hard pressed to find more than a handful that don’t have their foundations and funding in organised religion, especially Christianity. How many atheistic organisations can you think of that are working in our local communities and across the world to care for the poor and needy?
The average Australian gives away less than $200 each year, whereas Christians give on average, 5-9% of their annual income, and many give considerably more².
While I know some very friendly atheists, atheists are also among the most intolerant people in our society; listen to how many journalists, politicians, and social commentators now address Christians. For not subscribing to the secular agenda, Christians are labelled stupid and bigots, and Christian programs are being shutdown across the country.
History and contemporary society demonstrate that both religion and atheism are a problem. Should we debate who is worse, ISIS or Stalin? Surely evil is evil, whether it is perpetrated by the religious or irreligious.
How then, do we explain the findings of this outcome?
While I’m not dismissing the research, there are problems. For example,
1. In my opinion the study does not adequately differentiate between nominal religious believers and those who actually practice their religion. In particular, I am thinking of the distinction between Gospel (or Evangelical) Christianity and cultural Christianity. The use of the Duke Religiosity Questionaire may be useful as a sociology calculator but it is a poor theological and spiritual one.
2. The findings don’t properly differentiate between various religions. Islam and Christianity are at times lumped together, while other religions didn’t receive a large enough sample size to warrant analysis.
3. The research is making strong claims based upon limited research. Children completed a game and parents filled out a questionnaire, and from this we can now confirm that non religious families exude greater kindness than religious families? I think we call that, overreach.
4. “Children from religious households favored stronger punishments for anti-social behavior and judged such behavior more harshly than non-religious children”. Why is this deemed a negative? It is quite possible that children from religious families have a stronger moral compass and therefore a greater sense of justice.
5. The study involved children from 6 countries: Canada, China, Jordan, South Africa, Turkey and the United States. To what extent have the researchers accounted for cultural differences, and how these affect the way children behave? The way that culture and religion relate in Jordan is different from China and indeed the USA.
In my view, there are simply too many questions for people to be jumping on the bandwagon. Remember, this is one study, and it is worth noting that its findings conflict with other research that has been conducted in recent times, which have found that belief in God makes people happier and more community oriented (https://murraycampbell.net/2015/09/24/new-evidence-suggests-that-the-closure-of-sri-was-a-mistake/).
Dr Decety and the team from Chicago University have driven us to an all to familiar dead end street: we want to maintain that religion and irreligion are our only options, but there is a third way. That is why the message of Christianity is so subversive and why it does not fit with the dimensions of human expectations.
Christianity teaches that everyone is sinful, yes, even children. Isn’t it ironic that when Christians make this suggestion it is called ‘child abuse’, and when secular academics make the same observation it is called science! We shouldn’t be surprised to learn that young children exhibit selfish and judgemental traits; it is human nature. Sometimes we clothe it in God-speech and promises of eternal reward, and other times we simply call upon humanitarianism.
Altruism is unattainable because we simply cannot do it. Both religious and non religious people are capable of love and acts of kindness, but inconsistently, partially, and often for self-seeking reasons. The history of the world is our autobiography, and we are seriously kidding ourselves if we think that we have climbed up the evolutionary tree: domestic violence in 1 in 3 Australian homes, over 80,000 unborn children killed each year, the revelations on Ashley Madison, cruel Asylum Seeker policies, ka-ching and the masterminds behind the pokies industry, and on and on.
But in Jesus Christ we see perfect love, selfless service and sacrifice for the good of others; he is uncompromising in holiness and generous in mercy:
“This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins”. (1 John 4:10)
This is the essence of Christianity:
“The gospel is this: We are more sinful and flawed in ourselves than we ever dared believe, yet at the very same time we are more loved and accepted in Jesus Christ than we ever dared hope.” (Tim Keller)
When a person comes to know this declaration of God’s love, they are changed, forgiven and liberated to truly love God with our whole being and to love our neighbour. It changes us to give without expectation of return, and to sacrifice for the good of those who despite us. Religion and irreligion are proven dead ends, but the Gospel of Jesus Christ promises a light that changes how we see everything.
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- http://news.uchicago.edu/article/2015/11/05/religious-upbringing-associated-less-altruism-study-finds
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See NCLS research for information regarding giving habits of Australian Christians. A summary of broader Australian giving can be found here – http://www.businessinsider.com.au/here-are-the-top-20-most-generous-suburbs-in-australia-2014-5
Dr Paul Ehrlich accusing Scripture classes of child abuse on QandA
Last night on QandA, guest panelist, Dr Paul Ehrlich (Professor of Biological studies at Stanford University), made an astonishing allegation regarding religious instruction in schools.
“We did, but we didn’t have child abuse required in those days. We didn’t have any religious instructions in the schools,” Dr Ehrlich said.
“Did you just say religious instruction is child abuse,” Jones asked the outspoken panellist.
“That’s what Richard Dawkins and lots of other people have said; that you teach people details about non-existent supernatural monsters and then behave in reaction to what you think they are telling you.”
“That’s child abuse. You don’t raise your kids that way,” Dr Ehrlich said.
Audience members then responded with applause.
I have heard similar comments before, made by angry and uninformed persons, but not by an intellectual and person of public standing. We have come to expect these types of accusations by supporters of FIRIS and others, but do the allegations have warrant? If this is a case of name calling, it is truly bad taste and Dr Ehrlich should apologise. If, however, the allegation is serious, action must be taken by both Government and police, for child abuse is rightly deemed appalling and never acceptable.
According to the Department of Human Services (DHS) child abuse is defined in the following ways:
“Child abuse is an act by parents or caregivers which endangers a child or young person’s physical or emotional health or development. Child abuse can be a single incident, but usually takes place over time.
In Victoria, under the Children Youth and Families Act 2005 a child or young person is a person under eighteen years of age.
Physical abuse
Physical abuse occurs when a child suffers or is likely to suffer significant harm from an injury inflicted by a child’s parent or caregiver. The injury may be inflicted intentionally or may be the inadvertent consequence of physical punishment or physically aggressive treatment of a child. The injury may take the form of bruises, cuts, burns or fractures.
Sexual abuse
Sexual abuse occurs when a person uses power or authority over a child to involve the child in sexual activity and the child’s parent or caregiver has not protected the child. Physical force is sometimes involved. Child sexual abuse involves a wide range of sexual activity. It includes fondling of the child’s genitals, masturbation, oral sex, vaginal or anal penetration by a penis, finger or other object, or exposure of the child to pornography.
Emotional abuse
Emotional Abuse occurs when a child’s parent or caregiver repeatedly rejects the child or uses threats to frighten the child. This may involve name calling, put downs or continual coldness from the parent or caregiver, to the extent that it significantly damages the child’s physical, social, intellectual or emotional development.
Neglect
Neglect is the failure to provide the child with the basic necessities of life such as food, clothing, shelter, medical attention or supervision, to the extent that the child’s health and development is, or is likely to be, significantly harmed.”
Do Scripture classes fall into any of these categories? What are the facts?
-Scripture classes are voluntary, with parents having the choice to opt-in their children or not.
-In the case of Christian SRI, these classes teach students basic Christian beliefs by reading and thinking about the Bible.
-Students are free to explore and ask questions.
-No one is compelled or forced to believe the ideas that are communicated, although students are encouraged to use their minds and hearts as they consider the big questions of life.
– The worldview taught in SRI is about truth, love, hope and kindness. Everything that child abuse is, is opposed by these programs.
The reality is, there is no substance to Dr Ehrlich’s allegations; certainly not in the case of Christian instruction classes. I cannot speak on behalf of other religions as I don’t have experience there, but no doubt they will respond for themselves.
Such a misuse of language may garner rapturous cheers from anti-religious supporters, but it contributes nothing to wise and constructive discourse. In fact, Dr Ehrlich’s comments are incredibly irresponsible, and no doubt victims of child abuse would be justified for being hurt and outraged by them.
Imagine the public outcry if a Christian panelist on QandA said that refusing children the opportunity to explore theism was akin to child abuse? What would Dr Ehrlich think if a person on national television accused him of child abuse? My point is, his comments are not mere rhetoric, they are allegations of utmost seriousness, and Dr Ehrlich, if he has any intellectual and moral integrity, should withdraw them.
A True Halloween Story
One of my children came home last week and told us that he had to come up with an idea for a Halloween story, which he was to write in class the following day. I asked him if he would like to tell a true story. He said, ‘no’. So I thought I’d tell you instead!
First of all, let me premise the story by saying that I like to think of myself as a rational and sane person, perhaps slightly quirky on the edges, but nothing too weird. I have a very high view of things like human reason and science. But I also know that these things sometimes fail us, and they don’t answer every question there is.
Also, I don’t belong to the anti-halloween club, although I’m sympathetic toward them. My children read/watch Harry Potter and Narnia, and so do I! And, yesterday we went trick or treating.
The story took place over a couple of weeks while I was still living in the family home and studying at university. I was 19 or 20 years of age at the time.
One afternoon my Dad came downstairs and walked into the living room. As he turned, he bumped into someone. This wouldn’t normally be odd, given that there were 5 adults living in the house. The problem was, no one was there. He then saw a group of shadow-like figures walk through the house and then disappear.
A few days later, one evening my sister and I were watching television with my parents when someone behind us began talking. We all turned around and no one was there (no, we didn’t have surround sound!).
The following night I was getting ready for bed when I noticed a person walking outside my room along the balcony. I opened the door and stepped outside, but no one was there.
I can appreciate that some people will be sceptical, and that’s fine. But keep in mind that there were 3 separate incidents and there were 4 witnesses.
To this day, I don’t know what or who these figures were, and why they were showing themselves to my family at that time. It is believed that the house was built on a site where a church and cemetery once existed, but I don’t know that for certain, and should that matter? I am pretty sure that these ‘persons’ were not from God, because the incidents don’t shape up with what the Bible teaches us about how God works and ministers to his people. Even angels, whom I believe do exist, appear to people in the Bible, carrying with them the words of God, and speaking these words to the people to whom they appear (the word angel means messenger).
Perhaps the founders of Halloween, the Celts, were closer to the truth than we realise when they believed that the spirits of the departed returned to their homes at that time to visit loved ones. There is, after all, some sort of precedent in 1 Samuel ch.28, which tells the account of when King Saul used a medium to call Samuel from the dead. While I am curious, I am also ok with the idea that I probably won’t understand these events until I reach heaven. I’m reminded of the book of Job and how Job was unaware of the Devil’s involvement in his sufferings, but his lack of knowledge didn’t deter him from trusting God and from being proven right in placing his faith in God.
Here are 4 things to consider about the spiritual world:
1. There is a spiritual world. There are too many personal stories, from history and from today, from different cultures, ages, etc. I too have seen and heard first hand. More than that, the Bible speaks of such a reality, and if you believe in God you do believe in a spiritual realm.
2. Personal experiences (whatever they are) need to be interpreted in light of God’s word. The Bible is the definitive guide to all things spiritual. Don’t guess, and don’t turn to Hollywood or Harry Potter to work out what is what (you’ll be surprised how many people do this). The Bible is God’s true revelation for understanding things spiritual, as well as material things.
3. The incarnation is the definitive expression of God meeting man. God is Spirit, and this eternal Sovereign God, in the second person of the Trinity, “became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” In the person of Jesus Christ we see God; fully man and fully God.
4. The cross is the definitive answer to destroying false spirituality and to granting true and lasting spirituality:
“See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the elemental spiritual forces of this world rather than on Christ.” (Col 2:8)
“And having disarmed the powers and authorities, he made a public spectacle of them, triumphing over them by the cross.” (Col 2:15)
Children dressing up in costumes for Halloween is about fun and games; and just like spiderman and minions, scary goblins and most ghost-like creatures are inventions of our human imagination. While some people might naively attribute everything with a spiritual explanation, others are naive by attributing everything spiritual to the world of imagination.
I suspect one of the reasons why we have become largely ignorant of spiritual realities is that we are blinded by the arrogance of our materialist beliefs and practices. We look to science for most of our explanations and we look to material comforts for all our satisfactions. Most of us are probably not intellectual materialists, but we are functional materialists, living as though all there is to have and enjoy exists in and for this world. The Bible warns us against such a reductionist worldview.
So this is my true Halloween story. It didn’t actually take place around Halloween, but it is a living reminder to me that the Bible is again true. The Devil’s greatest trick is perhaps to convince us that he is not real, and indeed, that the only real is that which pertains to the universe. And we entreat him by obliging his whim. We can also entertain the Devil by making too much of him and listening to strange teaching on the subject. As Christians know and we need to remember that Jesus is victorious, and we stand firm “against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms”, by holding onto the truth of the Gospel (Eph 6:10-20).
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The photo is of a really big pumpkin that we saw in Seattle on Halloween in 2013
Is it a donkey? Is it a lion? What has happened to freedom of speech?
“You think freedom means doing what you like. Well, you’re wrong. That isn’t true freedom. True freedom means doing what I tell you.” (Shift, in The Last Battle)
I can’t remember many times when I have found myself agreeing with Germaine Greer, but on this occasion I am at least sympathetic with her situation. A petition with over 800 signatories is pushing to ban Germaine Greer from giving a lecture at Cardiff University, on account of her views about sexuality. That’s right, one the world’s most outspoken voices on women’s rights and sexual liberties is apparently too orthodox for these students.
The author of the petition commented, ”Greer has demonstrated time and time again her misogynistic views towards trans women, including continually misgendering trans women and denying the existence of transphobia altogether.”
“While debate in a university should be encouraged, hosting a speaker with such problematic and hateful views towards marginalised and vulnerable groups is dangerous. Allowing Greer a platform endorses her views, and by extension, the transmisogyny which she continues to perpetuate.” (quoted in The Age October 25, Petition calls for university to ban Germaine Greer from event over ‘hateful’ transgender views)
Based on this explanation it sounds as though Germaine Greer must hold some very distasteful views about transgender people. However, when I listened to Greer’s views, it appears that the accusations are false. The point that so riled these Welsh students is that Greer believes that surgical and hormonal treatment does not make a man into a woman. In fact, Greer does little more than state a biological fact. Listen to this interview by the BBC (language warning):
The allegations are so ridiculous; I feel like I need to rub my eyes to make sure that I’m not living in some fantasy land. But no, this isn’t Narnia or Animal Farm.
The allegation of transmisogyny maybe unfounded, but that doesn’t matter because the accusation itself is an effective way to silence opposing views. It may not have worked in the case of Germain Greer, not but not everyone is boisterous and thick skinned.
These students from Cardiff University have used a tool of debate that is becoming all to common:
- Silence your opponents by accusing them of hate.
- Silence your opponents by insisting that their views will lead to abuses.
No one is doubting that homosexual and transgender people have suffered abuses, and speaking out about such treatment is only right. The issue here, however, is not about protecting transgender people from hate and abuse, it is about denying people the freedom to discuss and disagree with the current sexual milieu. What makes this whole approach particularly ugly is that it is using people’s vulnerabilities and fears as a smoke screen for social engineering.
Germaine Greer is not the first victim of these Calormene-like speech police, this is the growing experience for many groups in the UK, Canada, Germany and the USA; especially Christian groups.
Sadly, this change of climate is also moving over Australian society, and a cold winter is gradually freezing out free speech. Take for example, Bill Shorten’s op-ed piece for Fairfax on the issue of the plebiscite for same-sex marriage:
“But I don’t think enough attention has been paid to the biggest risk a plebiscite brings – the danger and the damage of unleashing a divisive, drawn-out debate.
A plebiscite could act as a lightning rod for the very worst of the prejudice so many LGBTI Australians endure. A platform for people to attack, abuse and demean Australians on the basis of who they love.”
In other words, we should by-pass public opinion because public views may not necessarily conform to the progressive agenda.
“You thought! As if anyone could call what goes on in your head thinking.” Just as Shift challenged the Bear who dared question him, we seem to be moving toward a democratic totalitarianism, where society permits us to support same-sex marriage and sexual fluidity, but we are no longer free to offer a dissenting voice. Nowhere is this more evident than perhaps in Victoria where the Daniel Andrews’ Government is introducing policies that deliberately target the removal of Christian ideas and values from the public arena.
Deitrich Bonheoffer observed how the Reichstag Fire Decree of 1933 changed the public space in Germany. He wrote,
“Restrictions on personal liberty, on the right of free expression of opinion, including freedom of the press, on the rights of the assembly and association, and violations of the privacy of postal, telegraphic and telephonic communications, and warrants for house searches, orders for confiscations as well as restrictions on property, are also permissible beyond the legal limits otherwise prescribed.”
We have begun down this insane path, and if the media and certain political parties are anything to go by, the journey is just beginning.
In light of this, I offer these 3 suggestions:
1. Don’t accept the premise behind the case for marriage change. Disagreement and disapproval does not equal hate. The Bill Shorten’s and Cardiff students of this world would have us believe that there are only two roads to travel, either total acceptance or hate and fear. Both options are untenable. Christians know that the Gospel of Jesus Christ offers us a third way, that of loving and reasonable disagreement.
2. Don’t yield to the pressure and remain silent. It is important for the plurality of Australian voices to be heard in the public space.
3. Speaking up is no longer free; it will come at a cost. Our situation is unusual in light of world history; we have enjoyed social freedoms that people in many other parts of the world have never experienced. It has been possible to speak openly without any genuine sacrifice, perhaps a few crude comments thrown our way but nothing more. We need to wake up to the fact that Australia has changed, and for Christians, Jesus’ words about taking up our cross may become more than just words.
A donkey dressed up as a lion is still a donkey, no matter how much a monkey tells you otherwise. That old Narnian like Bear, Germaine Greer, has spotted a fraud in public discourse and we Aussies’ would be wise to also question the course that national conversation is now taking.
Why we send our people to Ridley College
I am often asked what I think of different Theological Colleges in Australia, and where we send our people to study. There are certainly many colleges across the country; Melbourne alone has no fewer than 9 Protestant Bible Colleges.
I thought I would take an opportunity to talk about where we have been encouraging our people to study.
For sometime our preference has been to send students to Ridley College. This does not mean that there are not other suitable colleges, and this doesn’t mean that we agree with everything that takes place at Ridley, but it does mean that we have a confidence in the college to help equip our people for Gospel ministry.
Here are 8 reasons why we choose Ridley College (I appreciate that some of these points are true for others college as well):
- Ridley is an Evangelical College in the Reformed tradition. Sending people to liberal colleges is a poor investment and will likely cause them spiritual harm. Sending students to colleges where theology and Bible subjects are not core is also a poor choice. It is exciting to hear students wanting to learn about ministry, but without proper theological foundations they’ll practice poor ministry.
- Ridley is located in Melbourne (we want to encourage local training, and we are conscious of the fact that students need to develop local networks with other like-minded Gospel workers).
- I need to trust the Principal. Principals have the unenviable job of leading the college through all manner of changes and challenges. The Principal needs to be a godly man with deep evangelical convictions and Gospel vision. I have a high regard for the Principal, Dr Brian Rosner, as I have for his predecessor, Peter Adam, who worked tirelessly in growing the college.
- Baptists are welcomed. Ridley College has trained baptist pastors for many years and will continue to do so in the future.
- Not only are baptists welcome, but students of a reformed and complementarian persuasion are also made welcome and respected.
- They exercise Gospel generosity. Several faculty have given their time and skills to help us at Mentone in different ways and times.
- Ridley has an excellent online Correspondence Course that can serve local churches well in training lay people.
- Ridley offers useful academic and pastoral courses for pastors seeking to continue their education beyond their basic degree.
There is no perfect institution for theological training, and any college doing its job is one working closely with the local churches. We value the relationship we have with Ridley College, and we commend the college to others who are considering training for Gospel ministry.
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