In its defence of prayers being read in Federal Parliament, the Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney cited the Leader of the Senate, Eric Abetz as `describing the prayer at the start of each sitting day as `` a very rich part of our cultural tradition and a humble acknowledgement by the Parliament collectively of its responsibilities (and that) part of the Greens on going attempt to rewrite our history, and deny our heritage`` and pointed out that Australia`s freedom and wealth have been built upon our religious underpinnings, making us the envy of the world`(adding) `` the Greens refusal to acknowledge their country`s own heritage and rich traditions and belief is as sad as it is divisive.`` 4
Whether these heritage and traditional claims are true or otherwise is left to others to adjudge. One wonders if Parliamentary prayers are ever answered given the quarrelsomeness displayed among the Members and if the (Forgive Our Trespasses) interpretation of the Lords Prayer (below) is correct. Additionally, where Governments and Oppositions have conflicting policies , how are `our deliberations ` resolved - which policy will succeed; and further, why (presumably) have Governments, since 1901, made mistakes.
The problem with this defence of prayers is the absence of other (relevant) `parts of our culture tradition` -
What about the heritage and tradition of inclusiveness
What about the heritage and tradition of representation.
To this-
QUESTIONS FOR EACH AND EVERY MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES TO ANSWER:
(1) WHEN YOU PARTICIPATE IN PRAYERS IN PARLIAMENT
DO YOU REPRESENT ONLY YOURSELF OR
DO YOU REPRESENT ONLY PART OF YOUR ELECTORATE OR
DO YOU REPRESENT ALL OF YOUR ELECTORATE.
(2) HAVE YOU EVER ASKED THE MEMBERS OF ALL THE FAITHS (OTHER THAN
CHRISTIAN) IN YOUR ELECTORATE
IF THEY ARE HAPPY FOR ONLY CHRISTIAN PRAYERS BE READ IN
PARLIASMENT OR
WOULD THEY PREFER THAT PRAYERS ASSOCIATED WITH THEIR PARTICULAR
FAITH ALSO BE READ IN PARLIAMENT
(3) HAVE YOU EVER ASKED THOSE MEMBERS OF YOUR ELECTORATE WHO
CONSIDER THEMSELVES TO BE EITHER AGNOSTIC, NON- RELIGIOUS OR
AETHEISTS
IF THEY ARE HAPPY FOR ONLY CHRISTIAN PRAYERS BE READ IN
PARLIAMENT OR
WOULD THEY PREFER SECULAR OBSERVANCES ALSO BE READ IN
PARLIAMENT.
(4) HAVE YOU EVER ASKED THE MEMBERS OF YOUR ELECTORATE IF THEY WOULD
PREFER THE SITUATION THAT NO PRAYERS NOR SECULAR OBSERVANCES BE
READ IN PARLIAMENT.
(5) AS A MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES -
WHAT DOES `REPRESENTATION ` MEAN TO YOU; AND
WHAT DOES `INCLUSIVENESS` MEAN TO YOU.
Clearly, how the Members of the House of Representatives deal with the answers is how they deal with Representation and Inclusiveness. The choices are obvious.
Background
A prayer was read at the opening of Parliament in 1901, later adapted in the same year, and that adaptation `was adopted by the House (of Representatives) as a standing order under pressure from church leaders within Australia` 1
At present there are two prayers read in the House of Representatives, both read by the Speaker; the first, a variation of the 1901 prayer-
Almighty God , we humbly beseech Thee to vouchsafe Thy blessing upon this Parliament. Direct and prosper our deliberations to the advancement of Thy glory, and the true welfare of the people of Australia.
The second prayer is the Lords Prayer. 2
The Judeo-Christian nature of these prayers has been questioned claiming that the Lords Prayer is `not generally Christian`, though citing former Prime Minister John Howard: `that to get rid of parliamentary prayers would be to ``abandon our Judeo-Christian heritage``. 3 Elsewhere, the prayers have been indicated as being Christian. 6 For this argument, the prayers are considered to be Christian.
The Lords Prayer - an interpretation
The Lords Prayer has been described as `the most important of all the Christian documents...a compact formula for the development of the soul...(from Our Father) all men are indeed brethren, the children of one Father...(with) the implied command that we are to pray not only for ourselves but for all mankind...(from Thy kingdom come) we must never for a moment try to live for ourselves, or make plans or arrangements without reference to God... (from Give us this day our daily bread) In its inner and most important meaning our daily bread signifies the realization of the Presence of God ...He will supply all that we need to have; teach us all that we need to know, and guide our steps so that we shall not make mistakes...(and from forgive our trespasses, as we forgive their trespasses against us) The forgiveness of others is the vestibule of Heaven...if your prayers are not being answered, search your consciousness and see if you are not really holding a grudge ... against some individual...(against) a social class ... (against) a political party, or whatnot.` 5
References
1 G.S.Reid & Martyn Forrest, Australia`s Commonwealth Parliament 1901- 1988 Ten Perspectives, Melbourne University Press, Carlton, Victoria,1989,pp 153-154.
2 Anne Twomey & Helen Irving, Prayers in Parliament and the Constitution- Constitutional Critique, University of Sydney,2012.
3 ...
4 Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney, Give Us This Day Our Daily Prayer, Catholic C
ommunications, Sydney Archdiocese, 15-1-2014.
5 Emmet Fox, The Sermon on the Mount, the key to success in life and The Lords Prayer- an interpretation, Harper- Collins, New York, pp 181- 224.
6 Catholic Archdiocese of Sydney.
