Is Australia a Christian country?
The reason I pose this question is that yesterday, I had a knock at the door, and a young man stood there, inquiring if I identified as a Christian.
Typically, my instinct would be to tell him to leave my doorstep, but to my surprise, he wasn’t a Jehovah’s Witness.
Instead, he was earnest, youthful, and dedicating his time to engage with Australians and ask questions. More importantly, he demonstrated himself to be an attentive listener. I found myself peppering him with questions rather than the other way around, but I was taken aback when he raised the following question…
‘Why does Bill Shorten not want the people to have a say on gay marriage? Is it because he fears the response in a Christian country?’
I responded by pointing out that Shorten, as a politician, is likely more focused on gaining political points against the Prime Minister rather than on the issue of gay marriage.
Yet, this leads us back to the concept of Christian Australia.
Certain Christian denominations view marriage as a sacrament, and it is widely known among Christians who read the Bible that Christ transformed water into wine during a wedding celebration.
This suggests that God endorses marriages, but it does not support same-sex unions. There isn’t opposition to legal partnerships or the benefits associated with gay marriages as one would find in any other marriage.
Feeling perplexed, I posed a question to him: was he on a mission for Christ or for gay marriage? Being young—perhaps around 25 or 30—he might have lost his direction amidst our discourse.
However, he circled back to the initial question and wondered whether Australia could be deemed a Christian nation, and if I believed supporting gay marriage was justified… or if it was more aligned with Christian values to back gay unions.
I replied, ‘It’s a personal decision for everyone… but love shouldn’t be suppressed.’
So why was Shorten stalling the progress? Perhaps divine favor wasn’t on his side.
The young man concluded our conversation with ‘God bless you’ and cheerfully continued on his path.
I was left in a state of contemplation… did I sway him, or did he persuade me?
Meanwhile, Westworld was airing on TV, and there were far more pressing issues to consider before Selling Houses commenced.
by
TOG
