{IMPORTANT: PLEASE NOTE ERRATA NOTICE AT BOTTOM OF THIS POST}

This monkey was heartened to see Fred Nile standing up against the Draconian legislation aimed at Churches.

You have lost nothing of the valour you displayed many years ago Rev Nile! My Blog salutes you as a fearless Christian warrior! Chugley

The Rev. The Hon. Fred Nile MLC ED., L.Th.,     Member of the Legislative Council Deputy Chair, Privileges Committee Parliamentary Leader, Christian Democratic Party Parliament House, Macquarie Street, SYDNEY NSW 2000 Telephone: (02) 9230 2478 Facsimile: (02) 9230 2098 Email: f.nile@parliament.nsw.gov.au

MEDIA RELEASE COVID-19 AND RELIGIOUS FREEDOM For immediate circulation   Yesterday, Rev Fred Nile MLC delivered a speech to the Legislative Council about the impact of the Corona virus on Religious Freedoms in NSW, particularly in relation to the granting of an exception to the Auburn Mosque to host an event for 400 people while Christian Churches are still restricted to 100 worshipers. The text of the speech is extracted from Hansard below.   We would like to also take this opportunity to remind supporters and friends of religious liberty that statements and submissions are open to the public for the ongoing joint inquiry into religious freedom and equality in New South Wales. Information about the inquiry can be found here, and public comments and submissions can be made by completing the survey at this link. Please note that the deadline for comments and submissions is 21 August 2020.

Reverend the Hon. FRED NILE (23:17:26): I will say a few words about the differential treatment of religious faiths in New South Wales, especially during the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Over recent years there has been a great deal of talk about the need for some form of legal protection of religious liberties in New South Wales. A federal inquiry into religious freedoms led by former foreign Minister Philip Ruddock even recommended that such laws be passed. As the weeks and months drag on, it appears that we are regularly reminded of the need for some form of legislative protection. Take the recent example of an exemption being granted to the Auburn mosque to host 400 people at its celebration and contrast that with the way that Christians in New South Wales have effectively been deprived of the right to celebrate Easter this year, along with other restrictions on numbers of 50 to 100.

I have been contacted by some of my constituents who feel they cannot go to church because they may have missed out on registration for service. The churches are fearful that they will be treated severely if the police find out that one additional person attended mass over the permitted quota of 100. This is the beginning of an unreal situation in New South Wales. I fully understand and appreciate the need for some of these restrictions, and we certainly do not want what is happening in Victoria to be repeated in New South Wales. But the authorities who create, impose and enforce the rules seem to have lost sight of the facts. A viral outbreak can occur in a setting where large amounts of people randomly congregate and thus spread the contagion, such as shopping centres, pubs et cetera. But a church, being a place of worship connected to a geographically based community, is very different.

These are not random people at all. In many respects, they are an extended family. The congregation is predictable, therefore the risk of spreading contagion through the community is significantly lower, yet Christians have had to comply with these severe restrictions. Christians by their nature render unto Caesar what is Caesar’s and they obey the law. When we witness special exemptions being granted to other religious communities, it sends a message that one religion is more deserving than another. That is very distressing. Why was this exemption granted? What possible reason could there be to do this, while not affording the same right to others? One can appreciate that this will cause anger among some people in the community. This is not just a religious issue. Australians of all faiths and none were prevented from celebrating Anzac Day this year. No special exemptions were offered.

There should be no place for political favouritism for any single group in our community. If we all have to comply with restrictions, then all means all. Otherwise many Australians who do the right thing or who endure restrictions in silence will start asking why they should bother. Indeed, they may ask whether we live in one community or in different communities with different rules. There have recently been massive protests in Germany against that country’s restrictions. We do not want to see that happening here. But if the authorities show favouritism between different faith groups, there is a risk that public sentiment will turn against them. Unfortunately, there still remains a void in our statute books for a legislative instrument to guarantee equality and fairness in religious practice. I commend the Hon. Mark Latham for his bill, which I will fully support when it is introduced in the near future. I hope this will remedy the situation.

END Media inquiries: Rev. Hon. Fred Nile MLC (02) 9230 2478       5 August 2020

ERRATA: I thank Don Batten for drawing my attention to some disputed statements contained in yesterdays video on my Blog to do with 5G. He has kindly included a link giving details of CMI’s view about this contentious subject. We heartily recommend that you study this carefully before making up your mind. May we emphasise, as we stated on this post yesterday, that we must all use extreme discernment – even monkeys – in these dangerous times.

5G technology has nothing to do with COVID-19. https://creation.com/5g-covid

Gibber! Gibber!

Chugley

The Christian Chimp