Author: Jimmy Day

“It’s not MY fault – it’s someone else’s.”

“I can’t help it – this is the way I’ve always been!”

Ever heard these statements?  Ever said them yourself?

We live in a world where personal responsibility is often sadly lacking.  It starts from childhood.  I went upstairs in our home a few nights ago and found several lights had been left on.  I asked our two eldest daughters who was responsible.  “Not me,” said one.  “Not me,” said the other.  It appears the lights had left themselves on!  No one was responsible.

This attitude was promoted recently by the study Hardwired for Chocolate and Hybrid Cars? The study examined “a wide range of consumer judgment and decision-making phenomenon and discover(ed) that many – though not all of them – are in fact heritable or influenced by genetic factors.”

The authors tested the preferences of 180 twins and discovered that people seem to inherit the following tendencies:
• To choose a compromise option and avoid extremes
• To select sure gains over gambles
• A preference for an easy but non-rewarding task over an enjoyable challenging one
• To look for the best option available.

They also found that likings for specific products seemed to be genetically related: chocolate, mustard, hybrid cars, science fiction movies and jazz.

I’m sure this is good news to chocolate lovers – including my wife!  When I open a block of chocolate it lasts me for weeks.  I eat one or two squares and that’s enough.  A chocolate lover – like Christie – cannot relate to such self-control!  But it doesn’t matter.  You can’t help it.  You’ve inherited this weakness.  Just blame your parents!

In Bible times the nation of Israel used a proverb that blamed their parents thus relieving themselves of personal responsibility.  The proverb is found in Ezekiel 18:2 – “The fathers eat sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”
God’s response to Israel was that this proverb was incorrect and was to not be used anymore:

“As surely as I live, declares the Sovereign Lord, you will no longer quote this proverb in Israel … the soul who sins is the one who will die.”  In other words, YOU are personally accountable!

This does not deny that we have all inherited various traits and behaviours from our parents – and passed some (good and bad) onto our children.  But no matter what we have inherited we are still responsible for the way we behave each day.

So, if you’ve been guilty of blaming your parents – stop it!  Take personal responsibility for your life and the way you live it.

There has been much celebration in the past few days as Pope Benedict XVI in St. Peter’s Square in Rome canonized Sister Mary MacKillop. Saint Mary MacKillop of the Cross is Australia’s first Roman Catholic Saint.  I’m thrilled for Australian Catholics as they have something to celebrate as members of a church that has received much bad press in recent years – especially because of paedophile priests and accusations of child sexual abuse and it’s cover-up by some church officials.  Interestingly, Sister Mary was excommunicated for a period five months in 1871 for exposing an Irish paedophile priest’s abuse of a child.

There is no doubt that Mary MacKillop had a genuine relationship with God and her faith was the springboard for a life of service to God and people in need.  The Australian Catholics website has this to say:“Mary’s deep interior union with God is the key to her greatness. She believed that God knew her intimately and loved her. She responded by giving all her love and her whole life to God. She felt sustained by God’s love, and the courage and strength she drew from God helped her to pursue Christ’s mission of bringing hope to the marginalized, particularly the young.”

I’m not a Roman Catholic, but I have no problem with a great saint of the past being honored by the church.  The Bible is full of great men and women of faith being honored – read Hebrews chapter 11 for a large list of them.  All four Gospel writers record the story of another Mary who anointed Jesus with oil just days before his death.  Jesus said of her, “wherever this gospel is preached in the whole world, what this woman has done will also be told as a memorial to her” (Matthew 26:13).

I do believe, however, that the Roman Catholic practice of sainthood in some respects goes too far and in other areas does not go far enough.  I will explain …

I believe it goes too far in that Catholics pray to the saints. It is the official position of the Roman Catholic Church that Catholics do not pray TO saints or Mary, but rather that Catholics can ask saints or Mary to pray FOR them. The official position of the Roman Catholic Church is that asking saints for their prayers is no different than asking someone here on earth to pray for you.  The challenge is that many Catholics do pray TO Saints and this practice is found nowhere in the Bible.  Effective Biblical prayer is always addressed to God the Father in the name (authority) of Jesus with the help of the Holy Spirit (See John 15:16; Romans 8:26-27).

Secondly, I believe the Roman Catholic practice of sainthood (canonization) does not go far enough in that it has strict qualifications of who is and is not a saint. In official Church procedures there are three steps to sainthood:

1. Venerable – a deceased person recognized as having lived heroic virtues.
2. Blessed – in addition to personal attributes of charity and heroic virtue, one miracle, acquired through the individual’s intercession, is required.
3. Saint – Canonization requires two miracles or Martyrdom.

While the Bible teaches strongly on the blessings of living a virtuous life – and death (martyrdom), nowhere does it specify these as qualities for sainthood. The Bible uses the word “saints” 69 times and it’s always plural.  It refers to the company of people – living and dead – who have faith in God and have lived lives of mercy, goodness and holiness in community with other believers.  In other words, there are millions of saints and YOU could well be one of them!

Praise God for Mary MacKillop.  Let us rejoice in the honor that has been bestowed on her because of her life of faith and good deeds.  But in the honoring of Mary MacKillop let us not think that sainthood is something that is not obtainable for us.  If Jesus is your Savior and you’re living a life that truly reflects your faith in practical ways, and you’re doing this in community with other believers, you’re a saint too!

Bayside Church Logo

Whenever there’s a disaster somewhere in the world we often hear a pronouncement from a Christian leader that this disaster is the judgment of God because of the sinfulness of people.

For example, Hurricane Katrina was said to be God’s punishment of New Orleans’ gay Mardi gras.   The events of 9/11 were said to be God’s judgment on “the pagans and the abortionists and the feminists and the gays and the lesbians” who had tried to transform America into a secular society.  A Christian evangelist claimed the earthquake in Haiti was God’s punishment for a legendary pact with the devil.   Closer to home the events of Black Saturday were said to be the God’s displeasure with the Victorian Government’s abortion legislation. And five years ago a church minister caused anger after he compared the Asian tsunami to Noah’s flood and claimed it was an act of God to punish “pleasure seekers” who broke the Sabbath.

I have a major problem with all of these pronouncements because the Bible contradicts them.  Consider God’s words to Jeremiah about the pending judgment on Israel in 597 B.C. –“Go up and down the streets of Jerusalem, look around and consider, search through her squares. If you can find but one person who deals honestly and seeks the truth, I will forgive this city.” (Jeremiah 5:1).  The tragedy was that one such person could not be found!

The same truth is emphasized in the dialogue between God and Abraham as he interceded for the city of Sodom (see Genesis 18:22-32).

Was there not ONE such person in New Orleans, New York, Haiti, Victoria or Asia?  I know for a fact that there were (and are) many such persons – some lost their lives while others suffered greatly.  Some are still suffering.

No, these were not the judgments of God.  As Abraham said to God, “Far be it from you to do such a thing — to kill the righteous with the wicked, treating the righteous and the wicked alike. Far be it from you! Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?”  Yes, He will – always!

The truth is this – people of righteousness, honesty and truth have an enormous preservative influence in their city – even if there’s only one of them!  This is the power of one.  Will you to be that one?

Bayside Church Logo

Burning the Koran is the latest example to hit the news of unchristian Christianity!  A Florida pastor last week announced that he would stage a Koran burning day (on the ninth anniversary of 9/11) as a protest over the proposed building of an Islamic Cultural Centre near the World Trade Centre site.

It is my personal opinion that building an Islamic Cultural Centre so close to the area where thousands of people lost their lives because of the action of Muslim extremists is insensitive and inappropriate.  But to threaten to burn the Muslims’ Holy Book is also insensitive, inappropriate and flies in the face of Jesus’ teaching – especially the Golden Rule: “So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you” (Matthew 7:12).

Almost all organized religions have such an ethic, and Islam is no exception.  Muhammad, in his farewell sermon said, “Hurt no one so that no one may hurt you.”  The Koran states, “None of you [truly] believes until he wishes for his brother what he wishes for himself.”  It also teaches, “Seek for mankind that of which you are desirous for yourself, that you may be a believer …”

Fascinating isn’t it?  That even in the light of Jesus’ and Muhammad’s teaching so many of their followers get it wrong.  And because of this we have “Christians” threatening to burn the Koran and “Muslims” blowing up buildings.  Would these people want others to do this to them?  Of course not!  So why – when their faith teaches so differently – do they behave so “unchristianly” and “unmuslimly” to others?

Of course this is not a new phenomena.  Muslims can point to numerous atrocities committed against them by Christians over the centuries – not least of all The Crusades.  And Muslims have likewise persecuted Christians, destroyed churches and have been guilty on many occasions of burning Bibles:

2005: Saudi Arabia desecrates hundreds of Bibles annually
2006: Muslim students urinate, spit on and then burn the Bible
2007: Christians in Gaza fear for their lives as Muslims burn Bibles and destroy crosses
2008: Muslims burn Bibles in Pakistan

Just put some key words on this subject into Google and it brings up a wealth of examples of both Christians and Muslims failing to obey their Golden Rule as taught by Jesus and Muhammad.

The biggest problem though is that many people – and often the media – tend to lump all Christians and all Muslims together in the same category, so that “all Muslims are terrorists” and “all Christians are Koran burners.”  Of course that is just not true.

We do far better when we stop making broad generalizations about categories of people and instead get to know precious people as individuals.  As a Christian I know many fine, genuine Christians who are horrified by the threat of this Florida Pastor.  Over the years I have also met some wonderful Muslim people who are equally horrified by the actions and attitudes of a minority who bear the name “Muslim” but do not live up to their faith’s teachings.

What the world needs to see is genuine faith without hypocrisy!

It never ceases to amaze me what some people post on social networking sites like Facebook – as if the rest of the world can’t see!

Even some people at Bayside Church have made statements or posted pictures that have surprised me for two reasons.  The first reason is for the lack of wisdom displayed and the second is because the post reveals a behaviour or character issue that is inconsistent with the person’s Christian confession.

It’s not surprising then that some of this “over-sharing” on Facebook has led to an overabundance of evidence in divorce cases.  The American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers says 81% of its members have used or faced evidence plucked from social networking sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, YouTube and Linkedin over the last five years – 66% of them from Facebook.

About one in five adults use Facebook for flirting.  I personally know of five marriages that have broken down over the past year because of inappropriate online activity.  And these are Christian couples!

There have been cases where children have been asked by one parent to “de-friend” the other parent because of separation or divorce.  Some of the other gaffs include:

 Husband goes on Match.com and declares his single, childless status while seeking primary custody of said nonexistent children.
 Husband denies anger management issues but posts on Facebook, “If you have the balls to get in my face, I’ll kick your ass into submission.”
 Mum denies in court that she smokes marijuana but posts partying, pot-smoking photos of herself on Facebook.
 A woman accuses her spouse of adultery and he denies this in court.  Meanwhile the girlfriend posts pictures of her and the man on Facebook!

And so on it goes.  It’s the “Second Life Syndrome” where there’s a disconnect between what a person is in real life compared with who they are online.  They live in a dream world, with a picture of who they’d like to be and who they wish they were.  Not one of us will attain perfection this side of heaven, but there is great peace in living a life without guile and hypocrisy – where what you see is what you get.

Facebook is an excellent site if used properly.  The internet likewise offers great benefits and resources.  But many good things can be a curse when not used properly.  If you find yourself struggling with “Second Life Syndrome” please seek help from a trusted friend who can hold you accountable. Don’t become another statistic from a Facebook foul-up.

In the news this week there’s been the ongoing debate about Earth’s limited resources and particularly how much oil is left.  Some say that we only have 20 to 30 years before oil runs out.  Others say we still have 75% of the oil reserves still untouched.

Whoever is right one thing is for sure – we live on a finite planet with finite resources that will one day be used up.  Of course some resources can be recycled, but others cannot. So once they’re gone – they’re gone!  The question then must be raised: Can people survive on this planet once key resources have been exhausted?

Two eminent scientists have recently stated their belief that the human race is likely to become extinct at its own hand in the next 100 years, as it drains resources through a population explosion and uncontrolled consumption.  Ninety-five year-old Australian Microbiologist Frank Fenner, who helped eradicate Smallpox says, “It’s an irreversible situation.  I think it’s too late.”

Britain’s astronomer-royal and president of the Royal Society, Martin Rees, questions whether humans are smart enough to use what they have learned to save themselves.  He warns that the promise of extended life spans through medicine, and prosperity through economic growth, could easily lead to oblivion by using up Earth’s resources and changing the planet’s climate.

It’s gloomy news – basically we’re all doomed.  That’s the best message our humanistic society can ultimately offer.  In the light of this we shouldn’t be surprised at the increase in popularity of political parties like the Australian Greens with a strong message of conservation and care for planet earth.  And this part of the Greens’ message is not at odds with the Christian faith.  In fact God’s first instruction to the first humans was “to work it and take care of it” (Genesis 2:15) – “it” being planet earth.

Ultimately though, if there is no God, we are all doomed no matter how hard we conserve, recycle and reduce emissions.  That’s why the Christian message continues to shine bright – and will shine even brighter in the darker days ahead.  We are not the result of some random accident.  We are not the product of a monkey that got lucky.  We are not all doomed.  We are on this planet because of a divine creator who loves us, cares for us and has our best interests at heart.
God made this planet finite for a reason – because he never intended us to live on it forever.  There will come a time when the prophetic words of the apostle Peter will come to pass:

“But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare.  Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness” (2 Peter 3:10-13).

Looking forward – what great words they are.  How wonderful it is to “look forward” to something.  Looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of those who have been made righteous by God’s free gift of forgiveness through the finished work of Jesus Christ.  We’re all doomed?  I don’t think so!

We live in an age where political correctness has gone crazy and where everyone has to win or get a prize.  Having only one winner just wouldn’t be “fair”, and we might end up hurting people’s delicate feelings.  This was typified on a Disney sitcom I was watching a while ago with my kids where the one of the characters said, “There are no losers, only winners – and people who are not them!”

A classic example of this happened recently when 54-year-old Emma Czikai announced a lawsuit for $4.3 million against Simon Cowell.

Emma appeared on the top rating show “Britain’s Got Talent” last May and claims she was ridiculed, humiliated and degraded in front of 20 million viewers.  Cowell said she had a “horrible singing voice” and actor Amanda Holden added, “I just can’t see how she can’t see that she can’t sing.”  Emma “sang” the stunning song “You raise me up” and Cowell said, “It is a beautiful song when you’re not singing it!”

After having three attempts at the song Emma blamed the volume of the backing track and then blamed the microphone.

Was Emma Czikai right or wrong?  Can she sing?  Is she a victim of unkind comments or just an honest appraisal from people like Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and Piers Morgan?  Before reading on, click on this Youtube link and form your own opinion:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ly3wMKDVFWY

Emma is blaming the judges for taking away her “self-respect and dignity in order to boost ratings and profit.”  She also attributes numerous painful medical complaints to her experience.  Emma was given a second chance on “Britain’s Got More Talent” some time later and performed marginally better.

There are truths that this incident should remind us of.  Firstly, Paul the apostle taught “do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment” (Romans 12:3).  In other words, learn to have a correct assessment of yourself, your gifts and talents.  What are you good at and what are you not good at?  If you can’t sing then don’t go on a national talent contest as a singer.

Secondly, you need people around you that can give honest input before you step out and embarrass yourself.  Proverbs 27:6 says “wounds from a friend can be trusted but an enemy multiplies kisses”.

And thirdly, realize that there is only ONE first prize.  The Bible teaches, “Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize” (1 Corinthians 9:24).   That’s good advice for a world that increasingly teaches there are no losers, only winners – and people who are not them!

Capital Punishment has been forever abolished in Australia by the recent passing of The Crimes Legislation Amendment (Torture Prohibition and Death Penalty Abolition) Bill.   Even though no Australian State or Territory has the death penalty, this law ensures none can ever reintroduce it.  As a Christian I fully support this move by the Australian Parliament – even though some parts of the Bible endorse the use of the death penalty especially for first-degree murder (see Genesis 9:6; 6:5,6; Exodus 21:12-29; Romans 13:1-4).

Sexual sins also commanded the use of the death penalty under the Old Testament law (Leviticus 20:10) and stubborn and rebellious children who would not receive correction could be stoned to death (Deuteronomy 21:18ff).  In summary, the Bible gives human government authority to resist evil in the world by means of the Capital Punishment.  But just because something is permissible does not mean it is beneficial or constructive (1 Corinthians 10:23).  Today the death penalty is mostly used by governments to eliminate their political opponents – including many Christians.

Obviously God did not see it as beneficial to take Cain’s life even though he had murdered his brother (Genesis 4:10-16).  Jesus didn’t see it as constructive to allow the Jewish religious leaders to stone the adulterous woman to death – even though the Law permitted such action (John 8:1-11)

There are many reasons why Capital Punishment is not the best course of action:  Some criminals cannot be reformed because they are mentally ill, brain damaged or mentally retarded.  Is it right to take their life because of a handicap?  The death penalty does not act as a deterrent – it is incorrect to think that those who commit heinous crimes rationally think through their actions before committing them.  Capital punishment is not a more cost-effective option than prison.  In fact it is cheaper to keep someone in jail for the rest of their life than to have them on death row.

The Bible sanctions the use of Capital Punishment but also gives the civil authorities the freedom to exercise it or not.  On this basis I agree with the Australian Government passing legislation that outlaws Capital Punishment in Australia forever.  In the light of this I also believe that Australia needs tougher sentencing including life sentences that mean life without the possibility of parole.  Our judicial system is often far too soft on hard criminals, and the media are guilty of glorifying them as seen on the Underbelly TV series and the recent media glorification of Carl Williams.

There are times when it is right to lock someone up and throw away the key, but Jesus made it very clear that “Eye for eye, and tooth for tooth” was a law that belonged to another era and not to the age of grace.

“I care for the environment – as long as it doesn’t cost me anything.”  That seems to just about sum up what many Aussies currently feel about environmental care. 

According to Market researcher Australia Scan, Australians are becoming increasingly disinterested in the environment.  This is for a number of reasons including the seemingly endless debate over emissions trading, and the impact of the Black Saturday bushfires that resulted largely from a failure to systematically back burn large areas of bush land – because trees are more important than people!

There is another reason though.  You see it’s easy to sit back in our nice comfortable lounges in front of our big screen TVs and wax eloquent on how much we care for the environment.  But we love our way of life and we don’t want it to change so, when the rubber hits the road, we want change as long as it doesn’t affect us.

This was born out recently when it was suggested that we could all pay a $50 annual garbage tax that would go towards more effective handling of recyclable rubbish.  A Herald Sun poll asked the question, “Would you be happy to pay a $50 garbage tax?”  The poll result: 8.9% YES and 91.1% NO.  Why?  Simply we’re not happy to put our money where our mouth is.

We want to seem like we care.  We want to seem like we’re doing something, but please don’t let it cost us, please don’t let it impact on the way we live our lives – at least for not more than one hour.

That’s what many people did again recently with Earth Hour, in which they turned off lights and other power-gobbling machines for 60 minutes.  Funny that this was done the night before the Grand Prix.  I bet the environment was fuming!  It’s all about seeming rather than doing.  We’re happy to do for one hour what we’re not prepared to do for the remaing 8,759 hours in the year.

God’s job to us

And yet care for the environment was amongst God’s first jobs for the human race: “The Lord God took the man and put him in the Garden of Eden to work it and take care of it” (Genesis 2:15).  Now of course there’s always the danger of worshipping the creation rather than the creator, and I’m also aware that at some point in the future God is going to create a new heaven and a new earth, but neither of these things are reasons to do nothing now to care for the first earth.

How to make a difference

So, what are some of the things we can practically do to make a difference to the environment?  Try these …

  • When your hot water service quits on you, consider purchasing a solar hot water system.
  • Purchase a nice looking water bottle and refill it with filtered water, rather than purchasing bottled water.
  • In summer use a fan as much as possible instead of air conditioning. Fans only use between 20 – 50 watts as opposed to 2000 watts for air conditioners. Or turn down your air-conditioning by 1 degree in winter and up by 1 degree in summer to reduce energy consumption by 15%.
  • Don’t buy cleaning products sold in flammable spray cans. Spray cans emit damaging greenhouse gases in to the atmosphere, and a dangerous cocktail of chemicals into the air.
  • Don’t let your taps run. If you allow the water to run for three minutes while you clean your teeth, wash your face or scrub your hands, approximately 15 litres of water goes down the sink.
  • Find more great ideas on caring for the environment click here

The Bible teaches, “Faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.”  In other words, if we really believe something then doing will follow our belief.  Do, do you believe that God created the world and asked us to care for it?  Do you believe that people have done great damage to God’s world?  Do you believe that you can do something to make a difference?  If your answer is “yes” then get to work!

Well, they’ve come and gone from what was described as the world’s biggest atheist conference. Author Melanie Phillips described it as 2,500 hardcore believers in the absence of religion [giving] a hero’s welcome to the high priest of belief in unbelief, Richard Dawkins. 

It’s interesting to me that Richard Dawkins, who has made a career out of telling everyone how much more tolerant the world would be if only religion were obliterated, demonstrated huge intolerance in some of his remarks.  He referred to the Pope as a Nazi, and described Family First senator Steve Fielding as “more stupid than an earthworm.” Oh, I see, we are to be tolerant but only towards those who agree with us!

The Age Religion Editor Barney Zwartz pointed out that “it was superfluous for speaker after speaker to point out that believers are deluded fantasists who believe in a magic friend who does magic tricks, because for almost everyone at the conference that was an article of faith already.”

But just because the conference demonstrated such arrogance and intolerance, don’t be lulled into the thought that the atheist movement has no agenda.  It does, and it doesn’t include you if you believe in a higher power!  Their number one goal is to reduce the footprint of religion in society. This they want to achieve via clear and focused targets that were identified at the conference: removing funding for religious schools, removing tax exemptions for religious agencies and working to make separation of church and state more explicit.

I agree with the separation of church and state.  Jesus made it clear that his kingdom was not of this world.  But that doesn’t mean that church and state need to be enemies. There needs to be mutual support, recognition and appreciation for the benefits that both provide. But what about the other two targets?

Removing funding for religious schools would actually cost the taxpayer more money. For example, one local independent school receives almost $3,000 of funding annually per primary student and about $3,800 per secondary student.  The average cost of educating a student in a government school in Australia is over $7,000 (primary) and over $9,000 (secondary).

In other words, every primary student at this local school saves the taxpayer over $4,000 a year and every secondary student saves the taxpayer over $5,000.  The combined saving to taxpayers from families attending this school is over $13 million annually.

What needs to be made clear is that scrapping – or reducing – government funding to independent schools will increase fees, force some families to send their children to government schools and put extra stress on the public school system.  This in turn will cost the taxpayer more.

The same is true if tax exemptions for religious agencies are removed.  These exemptions are given because the government recognizes the tremendous work accomplished by churches, and other religious institutions, in providing social welfare to poorer Australians.  If these exemptions are removed churches will have less money to continue their social welfare work.  The government will need to pay for what the churches will no longer be able to provide – and it will cost the government more because they do not have the ability that the churches have in mobilizing large numbers of volunteers.

Atheists need to wake up to these truths and, instead of making their agenda the tearing down of that which contributes much good to society, why not apply that same energy to making a positive difference in the World?  I am aware that Richard Dawkins recently spearheaded the raising of hundreds of thousands of dollars to help victims in Haiti.  That is wonderful.  But the atheists are still a long way behind those of us who are inspired to make a difference because of “our magic friend!”

The Global Atheist Convention is coming to Melbourne in March.  The theme is “The Rise of Atheism” and amongst the long list of speakers is world-renowned author Richard Dawkins whose book The God Delusion has been an international best seller.

I read The God Delusion a year or two ago and Dawkins makes some very good points.  However, his stated purpose in writing the book did not work on me – “If this book works as I intend, religious readers who open it will be atheists when they put it down” (Page 5).  It didn’t work because I used to be an atheist and, for the past 32 years, I have been a Christian.  I feel that I have a certain qualification to compare the two and Christianity comes up trumps every time!

The fact is that even the staunchest atheist cannot say unequivocally that there is no God – because no one knows everything.  Maybe God exists outside their knowledge.  The truth of this was recognized in the British atheist advertising campaign of early 2009 that stated, “There’s probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life.” Note the word “probably.”  I appreciate their honesty!

And now the Atheist Foundation of Australia is starting its own advertising campaign proclaiming “Atheism – celebrate reason.”  It’s an interesting statement.  Is it reasonable to state there is no God?  In The God Delusion,  Dawkins quotes Douglas Adams, the staunch atheist best known as the author of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy.  Adams says, “Isn’t it enough to see that a garden is beautiful without having to believe that there are fairies at the bottom of it too?”  It’s a cute saying but it is flawed because a garden is only beautiful if it has someone who not only designed and made it in the first place but also has someone to maintain it.  I don’t believe in fairies, but I do believe the Universe had a designer and a maker, and I believe that Divine Being also gave the human race the responsibility to maintain it.  Sometimes we do well; other times we don’t.

After reading The God Delusion I picked up another book, this time by a former skeptic turned Christian believer.  Ron Williams, a Sydney lawyer-turned-author who came to faith in Christ via parenthood, prodigious reading and a life-changing illness, wrote God Actually.  This book is the written record of his search for truth, and some amazing truth is recorded in it.  For example:

“The first remarkable thing about [the Big Bang] is the rate at which it happens … if the expansion rate were any faster, the matter in the Universe would not have aggregated into galaxies, stars and planets; if the rate were any slower, the Universe would have collapsed back into itself within the time required for stars to have created carbon.  In either case the conditions for life would not exist.”

“Consider another phenomenon: the relative sizes of the sun and the moon, and their respective distances from the earth.  The diameter of the sun is about 400 times the diameter of the moon.  However, the sun is about 400 times further away from the earth than the moon is.  This means that…during a solar eclipse the Sun is almost exactly obscured by the moon.”

“Think of an experience from your childhood.  Something you remember clearly, something you can see, feel, maybe even smell, as if you were really there.  After all, you really were there at the time, weren’t you?  How else would you remember it?  But here is the bombshell, you weren’t there.  Not a single atom that is in your body today was there when that event took place.”

If you are searching for truth and meaning in life I encourage you to read God Actually.  It may help you to celebrate reason and to know that there probably is a God so that you can stop worrying and really enjoy your life.  After all, that’s why Jesus came to earth (John 10:10).

Recently Sacred Heart Mission Chief Executive Michael Perusco asked Opposition Leader Tony Abbott whether a government under his direction would continue with the Rudd government’s goal of halving homelessness by 2020. His answer was no.

In justifying his stance, Abbott quoted from the Gospel of Matthew: ”The poor will always be with us,” and referred to the fact there is little a government can do for people who choose to be homeless.

I believe that Tony Abbott is very committed to his Catholic faith, but I wonder at the wisdom of a politician quoting Scripture to reinforce reasons for political policy – especially when the Scripture quoted is obviously misunderstood and in reality, teaches the opposite truth.

Jesus’ statement, “The poor you will always have with you …” (Matthew 26:11) was spoken by him to his disciples who were questioning why Mary had just poured an entire jar of very expensive perfume on his head. This jar of ointment was worth more than a year’s wages. It was an extravagant act which some of the disciples thought was over the top. Jesus disagreed. That’s when he made the comment “The poor you will always have with you, but you will not always have me.” In other words, you won’t always have the opportunity to do good to me because I’m not going to be around; but there will always be poor people whom you can help. Jesus is not teaching inaction towards the poor – he’s teaching just the opposite.

Jesus’ statement in Matthew’s gospel is a quotation from the Old Testament book of Deuteronomy 15:11: “There will always be poor people in the land.” Reading this verse in context reveals that the Bible is encouraging us not to be hardhearted or tightfisted toward the poor, but rather to be openhanded and freely lend whatever their needs. This passage also encourages us to give generously to the poor and do so without a grudging heart. “There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your brothers and toward the poor and needy in your land.” This is one of over 2000 references in the Bible on the responsibility of those who have to help those who have not. The Bible teaches action to alleviate poverty, not inaction because there will always be poor people.

People become homeless for all sorts of reasons including mental illness, domestic violence and neglect. Right now there are over 100,000 homeless people in Australia – over half of these are under 25. Political posturing or misquoting the Bible won’t fix this problem. It will take a concerted effort on the part of all sides of politics along with churches, charities and social welfare organizations all working together to make a difference to those who, for various reasons, find themselves homeless, poor or underprivileged. Let’s not look for reasons to do nothing to help them!