Australia's Christian Heritage???
I grind my teeth in frustratiion when some on the Christian political right talk about Australia's "Christian Heritage". Sometimes they give the impression that things have fallend from some great religious height. If you wonder what our religious heritage is, look at the following comment from William Henry, a preacher in Sydney. It was written in 1799 -
"Religion is truly at a low ebb here, and there is little probability of its being otherwise until matters take a great change in the colony. It is become quite fashionable among the officers and others, who should set the convicts a good example, to stay away from church and neglect the worship of God, and it ceases to be deemed foolishness with some of them to scoff at religion and sacred things and treat the Holy Scriptures of truth with contempt and ridicule. In short, infidelity, at present, like a mighty torrent, runs through the colony, and threatens a universal deluge. There are few of the officers who are not either Atheists or Deists. I have had several controversies with some of them, but have been obliged to lay aside the Bible, as its authority was of no consequence with them, and reason with them from principles of philosophy in vindicating some of the great truths of Christianity. I am not fond of holding controversies with such persons."
(Source: Historical Records of NSW, Hunter 96-99, p 714-714)
