It is an exciting development that Christian denominations across Australia are working together, through Freedom for Faith, to provide a collective voice for the Church on matters relating to religious freedom. In recent years, there have been many matters the Federal and State Governments have been considering that have serious impacts on religious freedom. These include anti-discrimination, gender conversion therapy practices, hate and anti-vilification laws, human rights matters, the forced acquisition of Calvary Hospital by the ACT Government and the Misinformation and Disinformation legislation. Freedom for Faith was formed to support all Christian denominations to understand and respond to this kind of legislation. They provide legal advice and analysis from their Board of prominent legal experts and scholars and also give advice and support for political strategies to fix legislation.
The five main denominations that are affiliated with Freedom for Faith are ACC, Baptists, Presbyterians, Adventists and Sydney Anglicans. They have also partnered on various campaigns and issues with many other denominations, including Catholic Dioceses, FIEC, Hillsong, International Network of Churches, Four-Square, Korean and Chinese Churches. Freedom for Faith also works closely with para-church organisations such as the Australian Christian Lobby, Christian Schools Association, Australian Association of Christian Schools and various State-based church councils. One of the ways that Freedom for Faith makes a difference is by helping churches hold ‘Meet the Candidate’ forums before state and federal elections to enable local candidates to understand issues that are important for Christians in their local area. A great outcome from these forums before the 2023 NSW State election was that Labor made clear commitments to protect religious freedom – commitments that have been mostly kept in the “Conversion Therapy” and “Equality Bill” debates in the past year.
In the lead-up to the Western Australian and Federal elections this year, Freedom for Faith is also looking for Churches across Australia who want to host face-to-face or Zoom ‘Meet the Candidate’ forums. They will provide all the support and advice needed to make hosting these forums easy. For more information or to express interest: freedomforfaith.org.au/forums/ To learn more about Freedom for Faith, see recent joint submissions or to subscribe to its e-news go to: www.freedomforfaith.org.au
Please pray for:
- Freedom for Faith to be a strong, credible voice.
- Wisdom for Freedom for Faith Board and staff in preparing submissions and advocating to Government.
- The Federal and State Governments to listen to and effectively address matters raised by Freedom for Faith
- For Churches to volunteer to host a Meet the Candidate event in every electorate.
- Continued and increasing unity amongst the Christian Church and denominations across Australia.
Source: Freedom for Faith
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