By Rod Benson There has been a lot of chatter in the past few days about the faith of our new Prime Minister Julia Gillard. Or, more specifically, her apparent agnosticism or atheism. Ms Gillard acknowledges that she was “raised in the Baptist tradition,” even memorising Bible verses for prizes, but as an adult she …
Faith and federal politics
By Rod Benson Last Monday I headed to Canberra for the Australian Christian Lobby’s “Make It Count” event, where the then Prime Minister Kevin Rudd and Opposition Leader Tony Abbott spoke to 200 church leaders, and via webcast to Christians around the nation, on issues ranging from indigenous welfare, asylum seekers and climate change to …
Our first woman Prime Minister
By Rod Benson If you live in the city of Sydney, you have a woman Head of State, a woman Governor-General, a woman Governor, a woman Premier and a woman Mayor. And we all now have our first woman Prime Minister in Julia Gillard, elected unopposed by her Labor colleagues on Thursday. In her first …
The centenary of Edinburgh 1910
By Rod Benson Most of us like an anniversary, and a centenary is about as good as it gets. This week saw the centenary of the 1910 Edinburgh Missionary Conference, when Christians of many nations and traditions gathered in Scotland’s capital under the bold theme of “evangelizing the world in this generation.” Edinburgh 1910 is …
Economics and morality
By Rod Benson It seems that through good fortune, or good judgment, or perhaps a bit of both, the Australian economy has weathered the global financial crisis better than most. But what is the purpose of an economy? The Church of Scotland has just launched a Commission on the Purposes of Economic Activity, which will …
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