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The above statement was recently made by a woman on talk-back radio. Her statement was probably endorsed by a large
number, if not the majority of listeners. However there needs to be a closer look at what she is saying here. For instance, how does one define “religion on the far right”. It seems too often elements of the time-worn wisdom of the ages based upon and promulgated by religion, is dismissed by people, even politicians, as being on the “far right”. Rather, these people make claims made about being open and secular. But this in itself can lock people into a narrow world view that is based on the “now” and is dictated to by political correctness and any other loud voice of fashion. Perhaps also a closer look is needed at the assumption made above that we live in a secular society. It seems, that despite the drop off in Church attendance and the increase of non-believers in the Australian census, there are people who are voting with their feet and going the opposite way. Consider the one-third of Australian children who now attend private schools. The vast majority of these, 94% , are based on religion. |
This means a third of the parents and a third of the so-called secular work force want religion to
be a key component in the education of their children.
This is not a matter of bias. It shows that mainstream people are interested in where their culture and value system has come from and they want their children to be grounded in a religious value system. Objectively speaking Western society and its culture has evolved from Judeo-Christian origins. Australian society may be described as multi-cultural. But this does not mean it is “secular” The values of Islam for instance, like those of Christianity, are ultimately derived from Judaism. As well, there are strong parallels between the values of Christianity and the values of Buddhism and even the Taoism of China. Living in a multi-cultural society does not cancel out the relevance of Christian and religious values in day-to-day living, whether it be in politics or the world of work. Rather in so many ways the co-existence of Christianity with other world religions allows these values to be seen and appreciated from a whole range of angles and insights. They allow them to be understood and appreciated in a new way. |