"Firstly, why shouldn’t children have the right to learn about Jesus and, if they so want, become a follower or, ready for it, a Christian?"

I take it that you are comfortable with the current indoctrination-fest making way for an objective and factual comparative religion class?

"Secondly, we often hear about the need to understand and address the root causes of terrorism"

Religious fundamentalism can be addressed when discussing topics like the crusades, the inquisition and Osama Bin-Laden and Pat Robertson.

"Thirdly, I think Australians are largely fearful of religion."

That would be a result of thousands of years of religiously sanctioned murder, rape and slavery. It's great to be living in a world where the ability of organised religion to supress information of it's atrocities from the general population is limited to those who cloister themselves away behind the four walls of their churches, mosques and synagogues.

"Fourthly, are there not more pressing needs to protect our children from?"

Priority one, keep our kids away from these pedophiles who for too long have been shielded by the hierarchies or religious institutions.

"Fifthly, what about proselytising?"

Not in our public schools.

"Let kids learn about obnoxious bottoms, but don’t deprive them of the beauty, wisdom, poetry, and challenging literature we call the Bible."

....and the genocide, rape, torture, incest, slavery?

The discussion has been interesting. Something else to think about.

Whether chaplains are in schools or CRE or RE or RI is taught in a state school
or not, the Living God is (present tense) still there in the school. God is ALL knowing, All powerful and All seeing. (reflect on that for a moment...awesome).
Jesus is God's son and He points to (or is the bridge to God because he makes us clean from our sin) and a Holy God can then look upon us.
The triune God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit just like I am a mother, sister and a daughter.
No God, No Peace -- Know God, Know Peace. (Think about it....) with God. It is all about Peace with a Holy God who is both loving and just (Isaiah Ch1 -66) ...read the whole book of Isaiah.)
The dastardly acts mentioned in the Bible and referred to in this post are usually committed by people in the bible who are far away from God in their hearts.

The Good News is that when peoples hearts are submitted to Gods truths God can offer a New beginning to individuals. Hope for the future.
All of us fall short of the Glory of God (Romans)
And except for the Grace of God anyone of us can be lost forever.

Every time I read an article like this, my heart sinks.

I had a Catholic education. That was my parents' choice, and I'm glad they made that choice. Many of my friends had a secular education, and they turned out as good, as charitable and as 'Christian' (for want of a better word) as me. Until recently, the secular education they enjoyed remained untapped by evangelists and Christian fringe groups.

Shortly before I finished teaching in the state education system, though, that changed. Our school employed a fulltime chaplain. I'm not sure what church he was from, and I will admit that his intentions were good. However, his presence in the school irked me. When he led us in prayer on assembly, I was uncomfortable. It wasn't praying that was uncomfortable to me - I do enough of that. It was the imposition of an odd style of prayer that didn't sit well with me, and must certainly have alienated those who had no religion or who were not Christian. If their parents had wanted them to pray at school, they could have forked out a little bit of cash and sent them to one of the many Catholic or other Christian schools in town. I suspect that many didn't want this at all.

There is certainly nothing wrong with learning about Jesus, but there is something wrong with indoctrinating people whose parents don't want them indoctrinated. In my opinion, there's something wrong with flooding kids with beliefs and values that may contradict those they are receiving at home and in the wider community. Kids are impressionable and (though it sounds condescending) easy to 'mess up'. I also think there's also something wrong with taking those vulnerable kids from the fringes of our society and preying on that vulnerability to breed disciples.

If parents want religious instruction for their kids, they have that option in Christian schools. Many do: 40% of students in Catholic schools in my diocese are not baptised Catholics. Their parents support the schools' religious programs because they chose them. The choice should be there.

Oh Sandpiper. Typical Christian who doesn't know really what it says in the Bible. It isn't all milk and honey you know. It is typical of Christians to only take what they need from the Bible and ignore what doesn't fit in with their world view.

Lot is recognised by God as a righteous man. God even sends a couple of angels to save Lot and his family from Sodom. The people of Sodom see the angels with Lot and say they want a piece of that action. So Lot instead offers the people his daughters to be raped instead. Nice.
Later Lot gets drunk and has sex with his daughters. I kid you not.
Righteous eh.
Or how about Elisha calling on God to kill the boys who called him "baldy". God obliges and sends a couple of bears to make short work of the children. Good one God.
And we can't not mention the abhorrent Jephthah who promised God that if he wins the battle he will sacrifice whoever meets him at the doors of his house as a burnt offering. Who does he meet first? His daughter. Of course he kills her and burns her and God is apparently pleased because he didn't step in to stop it did he.
Thank you God. I never realised what a misogynist you are. When Jesus said "Suffer the little children" it never occurred to me how literally he meant this.

I think you'll find, Sandpiper, that most of the dastardly acts in the Bible are committed in God's name or by God himself.

Brendon Lloyd asks

'By the way, which particular "moral law of the universe" consigns innocent children to suffer molestation by clergy or other devout men in positions of trust and authority?'

In actual fact secular moral relativist would find it very difficult to argue that these molesters were not born that way. That is why some of your high priests like Singer condones bestiality.

Runner says
'In actual fact secular moral relativist would find it very difficult to argue that these molesters were not born that way. That is why some of your high priests like Singer condones bestiality.'

No. Singer stated that sex with animals that involves harm or cruelty to the animal should remain illegal.

Whatever. Singer is just one philosopher. He writes philosophical discussions that some people agree with, some people disagree, and almost everyone considers thought provoking. It is not dogma that is blindly followed like, oh I don't know, the Bible.