Following is an excerpt from a story from the OZ, which should make every mother and father in Australia who loves their kids angry as all hell -
“AN excommunicated member of the Exclusive Brethren sect has been ordered by the Family Court not to expose his children to television, radio or non-members of the church in a landmark decision granting him access rights.
Despite finding Exclusive Brethren members and the mother had been “abusive” in denying the father access visits after the Tasmanian couple’s 2003 separation, his bid for full custody was denied because it would be too traumatic for the children to be removed from the secretive Christian sect.
The ruling, which took effect yesterday with the children’s first visit to their father, followed revelations about the sect’s attempts to lobby the Family Court and federal Government to bend legislation so that former members were kept away from their children who remained in the Exclusive Brethren.” Court lets sect kids see dad, but not TV
How long are we the ordinary people of Australia going to put up with this totally intollerable situation where we’ve got a Prime Minister who openly backs the goals and asperations of this most evil of sects?
Howard needs to be reminded of the long held and cherished political tenets of the separation of the Church and the State before it’s too late.
What has happened to our society and the free will of the people?
7 Comments
January 18, 2007 at 7:14 pm
Hi Bob
Just came in to agree. What a bunch of wankers they are! That is, the brethren, john howard and our right wing “friends” over at ozpolitics. This is about all I can stand – god? help us if by any chance they get another turn to rule us like kings. I think some anarchy will then have to be in order.
January 18, 2007 at 9:00 pm
Stunning post, Wallaby. I’m eagerly awaiting a follow up condemning “cat meat” Hilali, his dangerous religious-sect and the fact that “meathead” Paul Keating stopped his deportation.
January 19, 2007 at 12:24 am
A C – but what about the issue at hand? What is your response to that, we’re not interested in something that happened in the 80s.
What is your point of view about Howard’s cynical use of religion to gain votes?
January 19, 2007 at 10:45 am
Other comments were here once, I know.
Your fear and cowardice are forcing you to censor others’ opinions. I thought a liberal democrat like you wouldn’t!
January 19, 2007 at 11:15 am
I only exercise my right to remove comments that offend me and my social justice mores`, and I will continue to do so as is my want.
BTW, modern medicine has some wonderful medication to combat the multiple personality disorder you have. Or is it possibly that you exercised cowardice yourself in using yet another personality on my blog to peddle your diatribe?
Either way expect your current comment to be the last posted on my blog.
January 19, 2007 at 11:54 pm
Hi WB.
I think your thread is an important part of a much bigger topic which seems to not get much attention, and when it does arise only parts are touched.
The “rules” for interaction between government and organised religion were accumulated when the only religions that “mattered” were the mainstream Protestant religions (Anglican, Presbyterian, Baptist, etc) and to a lesser degree, Catholics. It was in this time that such things as tax deductability for religious works, Church building, religious schools and particularly for charities were introduced. The latter was then extended to the favourable tax treatment of “Op Shops” and the like, religious businesses raising money for charity in a generally charitable way and not in a fashion that would put them in competition with everyday businesses. Farms etc that were bequeathed to various churches also probably rightly fell into this category.
This whole concept was expanded with the coming of the religious hospitals, retirement homes and aged care facilities and schools. There was not much in all this to get upset about unless like some you objected to the state aid that many of these enterprises received.
Now many of the more bodgy of the “Christian” churches seem to be little more than either business cartels for their adherents (see Exclusive Bretheren) or multinational corporations hiding behind a cult of religiosity,(see Mormons and any number of cults like Hillsong) competing unfairly against legitimate businesses, using exemptions to labour and tax laws particularly to gain an unfair edge, whilst not contributing to the national infrastructure of which they are heavy users.
These are topics which urgently require mature examination and discussion. This is highly unlikely to occur when Mr Howard seems to be in thrall to the more loony of these organisations. Perhaps it is another bad habit he picked up in the course of his slavish kowtowing to GW Bush.
I wont hold my breath waiting for Rudd to do anything about the situation either, unfortunately.
December 16, 2007 at 4:07 pm
very interesting, but I don’t agree with you
Idetrorce