Religious Freedom !

Scott Morrison is treading on shaky ground when he promises to enact laws to give religious freedom.  Even trying to define what " religious freedom " really means seems certain to divide the community.

There is no doubt that religion is a waning force in Australia.  Every census sees more people tick the " no religion " box and the numbers attending church are ever diminishing.  Australia started out as basically a Christian country but immigration has introduced other religions and there is no such thing here as a " state religion ".   Australians are free to practice whatever belief they choose and the law guarantees that right.

Where it gets tricky is where the custom of another country masquerades as a religious requirement. In some countries it is the practice to marry young girls at a really early age because of preserving the cult of virginity.  This same moral concentration on virginity causes some mothers to medically make changes that end sexual pleasure to ensure that their daughters do not " stray ".  Some claim that this is a religious requirement and its ban in this country is seen as a religious restriction.

We have many hard core Christians who believe that the law of their church should  also be the law of the land, and would seek to impose that belief on all, irrespective of what religion they profess to follow. In every religion there is a hard core that becomes very vocal about any law change that they believe impinges on their religious rights. They believe that religious law takes precedence over all forms of state law.

One of the problems of a democracy is that whatever is the most numerous religion usually elects members of that stripe to the parliament and they have the numbers to dictate what laws will be passed.  In many cases the broad will of the general population is at odds with a hard core of parliamentarians who cite a religious difference for impeding laws that have popular support.

In recent times it is noticeable that Christian pageants such as Christmas and Easter are subdued and not publicly celebrated.   Thee seems to be concern that street decorations celebrating Christmas would be offensive to other religions and Christmas music in shopping centres is becoming muted. This is despite lack of evidence on such concern.

We enter a mysterious world of unexpected consequences when we seek to codify laws to both ensure religious freedom and at the same time guarantee that normal commercial practice remains lawful.  A baker has a right to refuse an order for a wedding cake if work pressures are excessive, but if that refusal is because it is to celebrate a gay wedding it becomes a law breach.  We are entering a world where religious silence is imposing on our cherished right of free speech.

The more we try and clarify religion by the use of law, the more complicated it becomes.  We might be wise to back off and not try to bring all eventualities within the law.   If that baker offends someone by refusing to bake a wedding cake perhaps it is better left as a simple argument between two people - rather than a law breach.

One thing is certain.    We will never enact laws that satisfy all parties when religion is concerned !