Philo,

I'm well and truly intrigued by this:- "When Australia was founded the Fathers were Christian.." Who exactly is it that you consider those founding Fathers to be? The King of England? The convicts? MacArthur? The illustrious members of the Rum Corps? The rebels of Eureka stockade? The Bushrangers? Everyone who ignored the fact that the country did not belong to them and that they weren't the original inhabitants?

I'm seriously puzzled.

Behind all the feel-good rhetoric, I can imagine a drift toward a fundamentalist state with our own version of the Taliban - empowered to instruct people on how to behave and what they can and cannot do or say.

Political, social and medical decisions would be made with consideration given to ideology rather than the common good - as advised by some sort of non-elected spiritual spokespersons.

Education and the media would need to be strictly controlled.

Currently the predominant values of the average Australian person is based in greed - make as much as you can without honest work, slothfulness - rip off the welfare system - and personal feel good pleasure - take no responsibility for bad behaviour. This has increased an fractured family and social unity. There is no sense of good conscience and moral responsibility.

The founders of Australia were Church men and not strictly followers of the teachings of Christ.

Christ demonstrated a life and attitude to be followed and admired. Those that live by those principles are Christian.

1. He did not discriminate on the basis if nationality, religion or gender. In Luke 4 he praises Naaman the Syrian, and the poor widow of Zarepath. In Luke 7 he praises a Roman centurion - the Romans were military occupiers of the Land.
2. He cared for those with personality disorders and destructive addictions.
3. He attended to and healed the sick and social outcasts - the lepers.
4. He fed the poor and hungry and employed workers to attend to them in a disciplined way.
5. He supplied sight to the blind.
5. He spoke out against injustice and greed, and identified the root causes of social dysfunction.
6. In John 8 he identifies the problems of the death penalty applied by Jews to adultrous women - as all men have committed social sins.
7. He deals with attitudes and motives - study Him.

For a true treatment of Jesus life and attitudes read the Gospels. Until you do you cann't comment on what is the basis of a true Christian Society.

davidf:"I think it best that religion be no business of government"

Hear hear!!

Ideally, it'd be no business of anyone, but there's so much money to be made...

philo:"I think it best that religion be no business of government"

What gives you the idea that the four collections of writibgs called the gospels are either accurate in their original forms or have been unaltered by later generations to suit the agenda of the time?

I have no doubt that Jesus was a well-meaning man, but those who've come after have very often been anything but.

What would a truly Christian Australia be like?

Lots of sinning, lots of moralising, lots of counselling and lots of repenting.

Ad nauseum.

A hell on earth (except for the sinning part).

Antiseptic,
Pardon but you ignorance is showing. The point is not how accurate is text of the message but is the message of Christ relavent to offer a better society?

You can be cynical, agnostic, and critical; but what sort of society do you offer and envisage as ideal. Obviously palimpsest, feels offencive behaviour that violates the ideals of good society would be best for him. His society values are based in anarchy, and offencive self seeking behaviour.

As Sin is behaviour that offends social decency, the respect of the individual, and attitudes that seek to destroy the personal reputation and developing potential of others.