What about the Father Son rule?

Felt proud that the AFL and my football club the Western Bulldogs (reigning premiers for 1 more week) came out in support of the YES campaign. 

And yet a lot of people aren't happy about it. Sam Newman of the Footy Show (which I haven't watched in many years cos he generally makes me want to vomit) was particularly vocal in his scorn for the decision. Referring to the AFL as a bunch of obsequious, fawning, sycophantic political whores that had no right to get involved in political messages. Essentially asking who are they that they should tell people what to think and how to vote?

Eddie McGuire countered with that there is an old saying that if you don't stand for something you stand for nothing. Was also particularly scathing of elected officials who won't do anything unless there is a vote in it, hence leaving a leadership vacuum that it is the responsibility of others - organisations included to fill.

I thought about it.

Sam had a point. And I've since read lots of comments from people who would agree with him and seen many a facebook post reading likewise or congratulating the few clubs that made statements distancing themselves from declaring for one side or the other. It would have been a stronger arguement if Sam had said that the AFL don't own the game, the people do, and that's a statement I'd have to agree with.

Eddie scored a point too, albeit a rushed one. Finding myself agreeing with Eddie was almost as a hard a leap for the ball as conceeding that Sam might be lining up a goal. Having put their feet in their mouths so many times over the years I generally just boo them from the cheap seats . Yet I'm angry that obsequious, fawning, sycophantic political whores that are as weak as shit have plunged a whole Nation into this divisive debate. Pitting friend against friend and families against each other on a $122 million survey as to whether their party should allow a conscience vote. I'm not a member of the Liberal party, why am I being asked? Have a conscience vote or don't. But if this is how it gets done then so be it.

The debate has most certainly been ugly at times and the NO team rightly has jumped on a headbutt to Tony Abbott, a sacking and name-calling as showing that the YES side has the capability to play dirty. But when I see someone railing against AFL political correctness on social issues being offensive to them, I wonder if what they want is to be politically incorrect and unsociable. I'm not always empathetic to those feeling persecuted and silenced for saying its ok to say no. I've tried really hard to keep quiet and not get in peoples faces but feel compelled to write this with my social media filling up with people who feel silenced. I hear you! Your voice is loud and clear. And while I might agree that some things that are said or done aren't warranted, have you ever stopped to think, just for a second, that maybe that's how the homosexual community have felt for eons?

I'm one that subscribes to that everything is political. I also think everything is spiritual. I believe in the seperation of church and state in that one should not have power over the other. You cannot however remove politics from spirituality or spirituality from politics. You can't expect someone who believes in a God to not carry some bias with them into parliament. We are all biased in all we say or do or choose not say and do. And you can't expect a believer to not hold political views. Do some really want a parliament of only atheists? That's problematic in itself in that it will not represent a large portion of the people. And to suggest atheists don't hold their own biases is ludicrous. There has to be a place for all. A place for all is what this is about to me.

When many Churches or Religious groups tell people what to think - and when they hire and fire on their values. Well the AFL and clubs have a right to at least declare what they think which is hardly telling someone how they should vote. Everything is political and spiritual and art and inextricably tied together. Including us. All our choices have consequences. I choose inclusivity, I'm glad the AFL does too.

P.S. To those few that actually fear for the father son rule (those making the joke are fine) or that we will end up in a position in the near future with no new players being born due to everyone suddenly turning gay. Please God, help me refrain from belittling their insane lack of logic, it's so hard.

Lighting the Dark

"This is what going to Church should feel like," Biz says to me as we walk our suburban streets hand in hand. We cross the road to the train station on our way to the 'Light the Dark' candlelight vigil.

 

Normally I face forward in the train to see where I'm going and Biz likes to sit backwards. I choose to shake things up and join her in sitting backwards to watch the scenery fall behind, like I'm acknowledging where we've been over where we are going.

Sydney teems with people, each with their own identity, their own thoughts. They are all going somewhere. I catch the eyes of a few people going in the opposite direction but on the whole to most I am but a momentary blur in the corner of their eye. Some are moving in the same direction as us and we filter into the town hall square with them under the shadow of the ornate stone masonry Church that stands to one side. There is already a gathering of people waiting in anticipation for the nights event. They are mostly older folk with bright eyes and smiles etched into their faces.

Their presence surprises me. I recall one of the defining moments in the development of my identity when I was a teenager. In the movie 'The Breakfast Club' I identified with the 'freak' as they were discussing not turning into their parents (not that my parents were an issue). She said “it's unavoidable, it just happens, when you grow up, your heart just dies.” Judd's character interjects with “who cares!” and through tears she replies “I care.”

Well I'm all grown up now and the young who now swarm into the square probably see me as a bit of an oldie but that's ok. I've gotten this far in avoiding the death of my soul and around me I see hope in my fellow bleeding hearts that I will not turn into what I hated the idea of becoming. And shouldn't our hearts bleed for the refugees we deny hope and for Reza Berati the gentle giant who came to us for protection and a new life and instead was brutally killed?

The dark envelopes the few thousand gathered here and we stave it off with the lighting of our candles. The candle I brought with me was the candle that the Church community of Deloraine gave me when I was commissioned as a Chaplain back in 2007. It has a now faded cross painted on it above the Deloraine High School emblem and written beneath are the words 'Here is my servant, whom I have chosen.' This candle of symbolic and sentimental value hasn't held a flame for seven years but tonight I light it because while I may not be a Chaplain anymore, I still feel called to serve the beliefs and values that I held and that I hold.

We find a vantage point near the rear of the crowd overlooking a sea of flickering flames to the town hall steps where the organisers have set up their cameras and microphones. With hot wax already periodically dripping onto my hand that holds the candle we are encouraged to vocalise or whistle rather than clap in response to the activists and religious leaders that are to address the crowd. Chris Taylor of the Chaser is up first acknowledging that he is not one of the religious leaders, “there's still time!” some wacko yells. From that light moment Chris builds to something heavy and the response is a clamouring of whistles, woohoo's and a few thousand raised candles. I'm glad we've left applause behind, it doesn't suit the atmosphere.

We listen to refugees and activists and people representing different faiths. I appreciate the different faiths and denominations expressing solidarity with each other, and with those of no spiritual belief, in standing together with those that we have neglected. The Jewish leader expressing that his people still remember the trauma of fleeing from persecution and so stand with all asylum seekers receives one heck of a 'hell yeah.' And the Christian leader who addressed Tony Abbott's quote that 'we will not succumb to moral blackmail' as meaning that Tony is choosing to take us on a course to moral bankruptcy elicits a chorus of “Shame, Shame Tony Shame!”

Sydney has often felt like a place without a soul to me in my short time living here. As tonights events end and as people mill around the square and I see their faces lit by the candles they hold, I sense a heart here connecting me to these others. There is a pulse here despite where forces of selfishness and fear and bigotry want to take us.

Biz and I move toward the memorial for Reza at the foot of the steps leading into the town hall. An Iranian flag is flown for him and mourners gather round flowers, pictures and messages to Reza that people are encouraged to write. We deliver our message. We walk away from that scene, a scene that is usually reserved for viewing on our tv screens of pain half a world away. But this is not half a world away, this I see with my own eyes, this that has happened in our name. This is not the Australia that I want.

Perhaps I should be facing forward as I ride home on the train but I don't know if we've turned a corner yet so I find myself facing backwards again. And it falls away behind me as I plug some Billy Bragg 'waiting for the great leap forward,' into my ears. That sacred moment of fellowship where people of different ages and shapes and sizes and cultures and beliefs can come together as one to stand for something bigger than themselves. If I was more poetically inclined I'd turn to Biz and say “yes, that is what going to Church should feel like.”

No Flying Spaghetti Monsters

The atheist movement are mounting a campaign at the moment cos of the census to make sure people list 'no religion' cos they want to take religion out of politics. I agree with them to a point but beyond that point I almost don't have the heart to tell them that they've already succeeded due to the fact that we already have the seperation of church and state so that neither one can have power over the other. How far do they want to go? If you believe in the great flying spaghetti monster (no one believes in the great flying spaghetti monster) then you cannot hold a position in government – that seems very extreme and controlling. Others might as well start a campaign to remove atheism from politics, if we all succeed then we'll have done away with government forever, hooray!

The other disturbing campaign is the one that screams at you in CAPITAL letters to make darn sure that even if you don't call yourself a Christian you better mark down that you are or we will be overun by millions of Muslims and you can kiss our Easter parades and Christmas carols goodbye. I reckon Muslims probably get sick and tired of being blamed for political correctness gone mad when they are on the whole totally fine with others celebrating whatever religiousy stuff they want to celebrate. So for God's sake, if you believe in God, say so, if you don't, then state that, don't be a census troll. It's just a frikken census, nothing to get hysterical about. 
 
And why isn't there a question about sexuality, is data not helpful? The census is hardly an invasion of privacy because they destroy all the records after the raw data has been gathered. They say one concern is that those collecting the form especially in small towns could read it and invade someone's privacy, which would be illegal. Surely we could fix that with sealing the forms in an envelope that explodes when meddled with or something. One other concern might be that there would be a campaign from certain elements to encourage people to inflate the gay and lesbian number in an attempt to move things like the gay marriage debate along quicker.

I'd like to know the statistics on all manner of things and I'd like to trust that those statistics would be used to help meet the Australian people where they are at. And I'd like to trust that people would answer it honestly. I'm fairly certain that the 64% that put down Christian in the last census will be significantly lower this time around but that's ok as it will be an accurate reflection of where we are at. I guess the danger is that some people will use the statistics to oppress others but if the statistics aren't there they'd probably just make them up anyway. 
 
I wish it wasn't a religion question as I don't consider myself as belonging to religion (depends on your definition) I wish it were a question about belief but I will be putting down Christian because that best represents what they want to know if I don't want to get all uppity about the wording. If you don't believe in a God and if you feel 'no religion' best represents that then I'd encourage you to put that down. Religion, spiritual beliefs and atheism etc. are all here to stay and cannot be gotten rid of so live with it. I'll say it again, It's just a frikken census, they happen every 5 years, it's not big brother out to get you, there is nothing to get hysterical about.