Australian Christian Lobby National Homepage

Grim toll of abuse among Aborigines 'out of shadows'
The level of child abuse or neglect in indigenous communities is almost seven times higher than in non-indigenous communities. [Friday, 3rd July 2009]

Tony Abbott's smoking comment draws fire
Federal Coalition frontbencher Tony Abbott has accused NSW of being a nanny state for banning smoking in cars in the presence of children. [Friday, 3rd July 2009]

Parents to be offered test to detect inherited diseases in embryos
A universal genetic test for embryos that can screen for almost any inherited disease is to be offered to prospective parents within months, after research demonstrated its effectiveness for the first time. [Thursday, 2nd July 2009]

Missionaries providing lessons for Christmas Island detainees
Evangelical missionaries whose stated aim is to bring "non-Western" people to Christianity through such activities as English lessons are teaching asylum seekers at Christmas Island. [Thursday, 2nd July 2009]

The reasons why many Australians are opposed to a Bill / Charter of Rights
Information is provided below detailing the reasons why many Australians are opposed to a Bill / Charter of Rights. The deadline for submissions of 15 June 2009, has now passed. [Tuesday, 16th June 2009]

The Religion and Belief Project
Information on the Australian Human Rights Commission Freedom of religion and belief in the 21st century Project. [Friday, 30th January 2009]

Jim Wallace - Address to the National Human Rights Consultation - Parliament House 3 July 2009
[Friday, 3rd July 2009]
PDF article - File size: 52KB

Christian lobby questions inherent integrity of charter of rights
The Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) today questioned the inherent integrity of a proposed charter of rights which purports to protect human rights but – if it follows the model of the ACT and Victoria – would explicitly exclude the right to life of a child before birth. (ACL) [Friday, 3rd July 2009]
PDF article - File size: 70KB

Save our right to fewer rights
That even Knight, a man who just shot strangers in a street, can trumpet so noisily about “rights”. Yet the Rudd Government is now considering whether to give us even more “rights”— maybe even a bill or charter of human rights. [Friday, 3rd July 2009]

A tribute to influential Australian Christians - Samuel MacFarlane. Number 212 in our series.
On Saturday evening, 1st July 1871, the Reverend Samuel MacFarlane of the London Missionary Society anchored at Erub (Darnley Island - Torres Strait). The Islanders acceptance of the missionaries and Christianity meant the end of inter island conflict. Today, Torres Strait Islanders of all denominations, come together to honour this anniversary. [Thursday, 2nd July 2009]

ACL Monthly National Newsletter - July 2009
The July 2009 ACL Monthly newsletter includes a column from ACL Managing Director Jim Wallace about the way in which Christian views and values are decidedly counter-cultural in today’s society – meaning that Christians are really the radicals. [Thursday, 2nd July 2009]
PDF article - File size: 180KB

More rights for them, not you
Do the words “gravy train” resonate? [Wednesday, 1st July 2009]

Getting Real - Challenging the sexualisation of girls
Getting Real puts the spotlight on a critical issue of international concern: the sexualisation and objectification of girls and women in the media, popular culture and society more broadly. [Wednesday, 1st July 2009]

All Saints Anglican Church, Ainslie ACT
All Saints Anglican Church, Ainslie ACT was originally built as a railway station for the Rookwood cemetery in NSW. The use of the gothic revival style for a raliway station makes the building an archetypical example of the bold Victorian architectural spirit. It unites the traditional arts of stone carving and gothic forms with the "modern" (at that time) technology of rail transport. [Tuesday, 30th June 2009]

Britain no longer Christian: Anglican bishop
British Anglican Bishop Paul Richardson says that "Christian Britain is dead", while author Hal Colebatch writes that proposed anti-discrimination laws further erodes Church control. [Tuesday, 30th June 2009]

The battle of Broken Hill
Three months before the ANZAC forces landed at Gallipoli, two Turkish patriots launched their own guerilla-style military operation on Australian soil by attacking the citizens of Broken Hill. [Tuesday, 30th June 2009]

At least 85 sharia 'courts' operating in Britain, says Civitas report
At least 85 separate sharia "courts" are now openly functioning in Britain, almost 20 times as many as previously believed, a report by Civitas claims. [Tuesday, 30th June 2009]

In the name of the father - MPs flock to Jesus
A new study shows federal MPs are invoking Christian beliefs with increasing frequency to justify their policies and articulate their personal values and visions for the nation. [Tuesday, 30th June 2009]

The terrible human cost of legalising euthanasia
Why are the Greens and others continually trying to resurrect the issue of euthanasia? And why should Christians be so concerned? [Tuesday, 30th June 2009]

Love and marriage
A very brief news item caught my attention just recently which is worth commenting on. It had to do with where modern marriage is heading, and how some people are seeking to change the usual marriage vows to reflect their own preference for non-commitment. [Tuesday, 30th June 2009]

British doctors want the right to talk about faith with their patients
Doctors in the United Kingdom are demanding that National Health Service staff be given a right to discuss spiritual issues with patients as well as being allowed to offer to pray for them. Medics will tell the British Medical Association (BMA) conference this week that staff should not be disciplined as long as they handle the issue sensitively. [Monday, 29th June 2009]

Judge calls for action to stop British 'epidemic' of family breakdown
UK - A national commission should be created to tackle Britain's epidemic of family breakdown, a senior judge said yesterday. Mr Justice Coleridge, a Family Division judge, said that the commission should establish marriage as the gold standard for relationships and put an end to the constant games of musical relationships or pass the partner, which can scar children for life. [Monday, 29th June 2009]

National Marriage Week - Commencing Sunday 13 September
Marriage Week is a great time to reassess marriage. A time to see that it is more than a piece of paper, a word, or a contract. Marriage is a relational institution that makes two people one entity - a great team. [Monday, 29th June 2009]

National Marriage Day - Canberra - Thursday 13 August
The inaugural National Marriage Day celebration will highlight the unique benefits of marriage and seek to lay the foundations for a renewed culture of marriage within our nation. [Monday, 29th June 2009]

The forgotten faithful
Followers of Jesus for nearly 2,000 years, native Christians today are disappearing from the land where their faith was born. [Sunday, 28th June 2009]

St John volunteers attacked by rock thrower
Two volunteer paramedics were attacked overnight and their ambulance 'smashed up' by a rock-throwing vandal. [Sunday, 28th June 2009]