by Dr Greg Clarke
When planning their conference six months ago, did the Australian Christian Lobby, with some sort of prophetic vision, realise that Australian values would be the hottest potato in politics this week?
The release of a government discussion paper on a possible citizenship test, begs the questions: "What are Australian values?' and "How would you test for them?'
Almost certainly, there would be no religious restriction in such a test. And yet questions will have to be asked"”will all religious believers be able to pass it?
Which comes first: religious freedom or common values?
The Prime Minister has made his position clear on this many times, notably last year in a radio interview before a summit with muslim leaders, where he stated his intentions:
"I will be reminding them [Muslim leaders], as I remind all Australians, our common values as Australians transcend any other allegiances or commitments."
I am hard-pressed to think of any serious religious believer"”Jewish, muslim, Christian, or otherwise"”who would be satisfied with this comment.
In recent times, the word "values' has found acceptance by authorities as the term for "transcendence' that keeps religion out of the story. It seems not too difficult to identify a cluster of values that most people agree are Australian. But move beyond cute slogans such as "I like beetroot on my hamburger", and we start to see glimpses of the religious undercoat to the values debate.
Some of the values suggested as common Australian values that an immigrant might have to assent to sound classical"”respect for all the gods, decency, ; others are drawn more from Jewish or Christian sources"”treating men and women equally, working diligently, compassion for the poor. These are not universal values that all people everywhere have always held; rather, they spring from specific moral and spiritual wells.
Some values simply aren't common to all. For instance, cows are less valued in Australia than they are in India"”for religious reasons. And some of the things that matter most to people"”the things they most value"”are very specific to their religion, such as the veneration of the physical presence of the Koran for muslims.
When we start to talk about specific beliefs and the values that flow from them, the question of what values we share gets harder to answer. The only way I can see to answer the question, "Are Australian values Christian values?" is to say, "Some are, some aren't".
This moderate response steers a sensible path between the remote poles of theocracy and separatism. It admits that there is a Christian story in the background of much of Australian life"”for instance, in our approaches to work, law and education - "tools, rules and schools". It also recognizes that Australia is far from "a Christian nation".
It’s hard to sell a moderate approach to anything"”who can get excited about moderation? But it may be the right way foreward nevertheless.
I propose, then, a series of "Some' statements to guide Christians as they think about their involvement in the national values debate, and to guide others who are interested in sorting out how the Christian faith limits and directs a Christian's political priorities.
1. "Some Australian values are things Christians admire".
We might include here a version of "mateship', calling it "lovingkindness' or "brotherliness/sisterliness' instead. Other contenders include an idea of fairness, respect for individual freedom and individual responsibility, and pursuing peace.
2. "Some Australian values can be traced back to Christian ideas".
Here I am thinking particularly of caring for those in desperate need, a concept which in Australian welfare history springs directly from the words of Jesus in the Gospels (e.g. Matthew 25:35, where Jesus says if you did something for the "least', you did it for him).
3. "Some Australian values are not Christian values".
Just think of the flipside of the examples in our first two statements. One example is sticking with your mates, regardless of the cost to your actual sister/wife/children. What goes on tour stays on tour. Another is ignoring those in desperate need, as appears to have been the case with Delmae Barton up atGriffith University, lying for six hours in a bus stop after a stroke, without a helping hand being raised. When Australians act in this way"”Christians or not"”the Christians have a tiny, underused word that summarises the behaviour: "sin'.
4. "Some non-Christian values are not Australian values".
Despite the awkward double negative, this statement is important. There are aspects of non-Christian value systems that most of us would call un-Australian. For example again, feeding a cow instead of a disabled child is not in keeping with the way Australians value cattle or children. There will certainly be some values held strongly in non-Christian religious worldviews that are not compatible with broad Australian values.
5. "Some Australian values are common to many religious and secular faiths"
Here is where most politicians wish to locate the national discussion about values. There are plenty of values on which many religions agree; there is a lot of common ground. But to make this statement our leading statement, our guiding idea, as Howard seemed to suggest in his radio interview quoted earlier, we must ignore the insights in our first four points. We may lose a lot of significant input from specific religious traditions, too, and find ourselves flailing about for a new kind of religion without a creed, just values. As one commentator has said, "A policy based only on values eventually becomes a crusade."[ii]
Values will never be enough for a nation. And they might even be too much to ask of a state. Are we experiencing in our time a failure of nerve regarding the rule of law? Should it not be sufficient for governing a free people, without having to resort to nebulous, unenforceable pledges of cultural commitment?
At heart, it is beliefs, not values, that drive people's behaviour. And beliefs cannot be legislated for or signed as a pledge. They only come from genuine heartfelt, brain-satisfying convictions about reality. Christians are concerned with nothing less.
Dr Greg Clarke, Director of the Centre for Apologetic Scholarship and Education (CASE) at New College, University of NSW will deliver a speech on "Are Christian values Australian values?' at the Australian Christian Lobby conference in Canberra on Friday, September 22.
