Archbishop Julian Porteous of Hobart says the Christian church is entering a new era in its history in Australia “where it is no longer seen as a respected presence in the society, but is viewed by many as an obstacle to the wellbeing of society”.
“Governments hostile to Christianity are more emboldened than ever to pass legislation which they know is incompatible with Christian beliefs and practices,” he told the Australian Christian Lobby on 17 November.
“One would expect this to escalate in the years ahead. We are confronted with a new era of legal persecution of Christians by the State. Along with this more recent direct attack on Christians we have witnessed the slower and longer term effort to overthrow the Christian moral framework which has informed Western societies over the last millennium.”
Archbishop Porteous said this was due to the “final phase of the victory of secular liberalism as the new cultural theology”.
“It will mean that we must position ourselves differently than we have in the past when our presence was respected and our faith and works encouraged… We will have to learn to live under various forms of persecution, but we will live as a people of hope.”
In September, Archbishop Porteous and his fellow Australian bishops were referred to Tasmania’s Anti-Discrimination Commissioner for a possible breach of the state’s Anti-Discrimination Act 1998 over the distribution of the bishops’ pastoral letter defending traditional Catholic teaching on marriage, Don’t Mess with Marriage. The complainant is a Greens parliamentary candidate and transgender activist Ms Martine Delaney and the matter is expected to be referred to conciliation.
“The Christian church is entering a new era in its history in Australia,” Archbishop Porteous said. “It is entering an era where it is no longer seen as a respected presence in the society, but is viewed by many as an obstacle to the wellbeing of society. The Christian church is currently being forced more and more to retire within its own walls. There is a growing anti-Christian sentiment where the Christian churches are regarded as being out of touch with the realities of contemporary life, wedded to some bygone era.
AND … the heading has been changed …
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