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Religion Forum
Forum: Religion and Politics
Thursday, 13 November 2008
· What is the role of religion in politics and public institutions?
· Is there a rule for religious leaders as moral guardians in public debate?
· How do we handle issues such as abortion and bioethics in a secular Australia?
These were some of the issues tackled in a free public forum hosted by Lee Rhiannon on 28 October 2008 at NSW Parliament. Over 60 people attended the lunchtime forum.
Guest speakers delved into the tricky area of religion and politics. No one would deny the importance of both these pillars in our society. The question posed was how does religion and politics come together and where should the divide lie?
Dr Anne O'Rourke, Reverend Elenie Poulos and Coleen MacKinnon took to the podium then answered questions from the floor.
Dr Anne O'Rourke, Victorian Council of Civil Liberties, spoke on Victoria's reform of abortion laws. Anne is the Vice president of Liberty Victoria and a Lecturer in the Department of Business Law and Taxation at Monash University. This month Victoria decriminalised abortion. Dr O'Rourke has been a consistent advocate for reforming abortion laws. Read more about Anne's views on the Catholic Church and abortion in her recent Age opinion piece.
Rev Elenie Poulos, Uniting Justice Australia, spoke on the role of religion in politics in public debate. UnitingJustice Australia is the justice unit of the National Assembly of the Uniting Church in Australia. It helps to resource the Church as it considers its position on issues of national significance and responds to issues of public policy. Reverend Poulos is interested in the question: can you take politics out of religion? She explored how the Church should engage in politics and on what basis. Read speech
Coleen MacKinnon, St James Ethics Centre, spoke on the campaign for an ethics based option to scripture in NSW public schools. Currently in NSW public school students are barred from studying ethics, philosophy or comparative religion during weekly scripture time. A 2006 survey by NSW P&C Federation found almost 60% of parents thought it important or very important that their child be given the option of attending an ethics-based class. Coleen MacKinnon is managing the St James Ethics Centre's campaign in this area. Read speech