AUSTRALIA’S LEGAL STSTEM NOW OPERATES ON A WORLDVIEW HOSTILE TO CHRISTIANITY

Posted on by

Recall Andrew Thorburn. He lost his job not because he did anything wrong, but because a new worldview has quietly captured Australia’s public square. The Australian Christian Freedom Index shows just how far that capture has gone.

Last month, the Canberra Declaration led the launch of the Australian Christian Freedom Index, a landmark report documenting the perilous state of Christian freedom in our country.

Among the many stories told in its pages was that of Andrew Thorburn, the one-time CEO of Essendon Football Club whose tenure there lasted a grand total of two days.

The Andrew Thorburn affair is one Australians cannot afford to forget, not least because it illustrates the subtle but powerful effect of worldview on our legal system.

Thorburn had done nothing wrong. There were no complaints about his conduct from staff members, players or fans. He was irresistibly pressured to resign because journalists discovered that he was also on the board of an Anglican church that — shock horror — actually believed what the Bible says about homosexuality and abortion.

Thorburn’s church didn’t even have a reputation for being particularly fiery or outspoken. Journalists had decided to dig through old website archives and had found a few sermons from a decade earlier. Thorburn hadn’t preached those sermons and probably didn’t even know about them. But the media had a story to sell and they didn’t let up until their target was out of a job.

Everyone Has a Worldview

It wasn’t just the media. At a press conference, then-Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews was asked about the views of Thorburn’s church. He said:

Those views are absolutely appalling. I don’t support those views; that kind of intolerance, that kind of hatred. Bigotry is just wrong. All of you know my views on these things. Those sort of attitudes are simply wrong, and to dress that up as anything other than bigotry is just obviously false.

These words from the Premier were reported widely and hung heavy over the Thorburn affair. There’s little doubt Daniel Andrews contributed to Thorburn’s decision to quit.

But notice what Daniel Andrews didn’t say. He didn’t engage with anything the church actually believed — he simply used a bunch of mean words to caricature them.

He didn’t mention that millions of Victorians — the very people he was elected to represent — still believe what Thorburn’s church believes. He didn’t acknowledge that he was calling a significant portion of his own constituents “bigots”.

He didn’t even consider that someone reasonable might see it differently.

More importantly, Daniel Andrews didn’t seem to be aware that he was himself making a moral judgment, nor explain where his standards came from informing that judgment.

In fact — and here’s the key point — Daniel Andrews didn’t seem to realise he had a worldview at all. The Premier was the proverbial fish that was so accustomed to the water that he didn’t realise he was wet.

The Public Square Is Not Neutral

The reality is that every evaluation or choice that we make manifests a worldview. The church Daniel Andrews criticised had a worldview, but so did Daniel Andrews! The problem is that he was so invested in his own view of the world that he didn’t realise he had one. To him, this wasn’t about competing worldviews or competing visions of the good — it was simply a matter of basic decency.

In Daniel Andrews’ mind, his values weren’t values — they were just common sense, and what everyone should obviously believe. And in his mind, Thorburn’s values weren’t values either — they were hatred and bias and bigotry.

The Andrew Thorburn affair illustrated something profoundly important that remains relevant all these years later: There’s no such thing as neutral beliefs or a neutral public square. Everyone has values. Everyone operates from a particular moral framework.

The moral framework Daniel Andrews was operating from — let’s call it the post-Christian creed — it has its own account of what it means to be human, its own beliefs about where authority comes from, its own unforgivable sins, and its own saints and heretics.

In fact, the post-Christian creed is the governing consensus of our entire culture. Universities, the media, the entertainment industry — all of it runs on the assumption that the post-Christian creed is true, neutral and self-evident. And it assumes that the worldview it replaced — namely, Christianity and Christian ethics — is sectarian, biased and ideological.

The Bias in Australia’s Legal System

Neither are Australia’s laws neutral. Our courts and tribunals are not neutral. Our judges and juries aren’t either. Every statute encodes a certain set of values and beliefs.

Moreover, every person operating within the legal system has a certain set of values and beliefs — beliefs like what personhood means, how marriage is defined, what makes a family and whether speech that hurts people’s feelings should be illegal. Beliefs like where and how someone is allowed to practise their faith, where tolerance should start and end, whether a person’s conscience is sacred or if it can be overridden by the state.

These aren’t merely legal questions — they’re philosophical ones. In fact, they’re theological ones, and they always have been.

The people tasked with writing, interpreting and enforcing Australia’s statues are not doing so from a neutral standpoint. They’re taking their own worldviews and beliefs and applying them in the legal arena.

The myth of legal neutrality might be the most powerful myth in modern public life. It’s also very useful — because it allows one worldview to write the rules, enforce them, and punish those who dissent, all the while insisting they’re acting from a position of pure reason and impartiality and self-evident truth.

If you want to see the myth of legal neutrality exposed — and the bias of Australia’s current legal system up in neon lights, I encourage you to go and read the Australian Christian Freedom Index.

And please make sure you share it — especially with the Christian leaders and pastors you know.

Article by Kurt Mahlburg in Daily Declaration 16th June 2026

Fortunately, God has told us in advance that this hostility to a Christian worldview would precede Jesus coming again to restore righteousness. The spiritual warfare that has been raging since Adam and Eve rebelled against God is intensifying as Satan knows His time as king of this rebellious world is coming to an end.

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved.” Matthew 24:9-13

LAUNCH OF AUSTRALIAN CHRISTIAN FREEDOM INDEX

Posted on by

Australia’s Christian freedoms are under quiet but measurable threat — and a landmark new index is sounding the alarm with evidence, urgency, and a 42-point blueprint for action.

The Australian Christian Freedom Index is the first systematic audit of its kind — measuring the legislative, institutional, social and cultural pressures on Christian belief and expression across Australia. Drawing on documented cases, a review of the statute books across nine jurisdictions, and the responses of more than 10,000 Australians, the inaugural 2025 report maps where freedom is being eroded, which institutions are most at risk, and what can be done about it.

Helping with the inaugural launch, Australian Christian Lobby CEO Michelle Pierce described its findings as both “sobering and concerning.” “Workplaces emerged as one of the most hostile environments, particularly in education and healthcare.” For example, “only 8% of Christians working in healthcare felt safe to openly share their Christian beliefs.” In other words, Peirce said, “92% of Christians working in healthcare don’t feel safe to do so.” “This is not about Christians claiming victimhood. This is about defending the freedoms that allow our society to flourish.” Such as, the ACL boss said, “Freedom of belief, freedom of speech, freedom of conscience and freedom of association.” “We constantly hear that tolerance and inclusivity are the highest of Australian values, but increasingly, inclusivity seems to stop at the point of including Christians.” In effect, Pierce argued, there is something really wrong if Christians cannot speak freely, in a free society, without fear of “intimidation, lawfare or professional punishment.” Noting the 42 recommendations, Pierce explained that this is why the Australian Christian Freedom Index’s report exists. As such, she continued, the ACFI is asking for “conscience protections for medical professionals, and the restoration of religious hiring protections for faith-based institutions.” Pierce added that the coalition is asking for “reforms to anti-discrimination and conversion therapy laws, and positive protections of fundamental freedoms in Australian law.” This could be through a referendum to attach a bill of rights to the constitution, or through a “freedoms act.” “Freedom,” Peirce concluded, “is not a threat to social cohesion. It is the foundation of it.”

Response of Christian Leaders to Australian Christian Freedom Index

“The importance of the free exercise of religion to Australia’s social fabric has historically been uncontroversial. People of all faiths and none once recognised the contribution of Christianity to Australia’s laws and customs, and of religious believers to Australian society more generally, and were content to let people of faith practice their beliefs without interference from state or society. I congratulate the authors of the Australian Christian Freedom Index for bringing to light recent attempts to minimise the role of faith in everyday life and exclude it altogether from the public square.” Most Rev. Anthony Fisher OP Catholic Archbishop of Sydney

“The inaugural Australian Christian Freedom Index deserves a wide readership, especially among parliamentarians and religious leaders. Despite its title, it is not sectarian, but carefully analyses the erosion of freedoms in our country over forty years or more. Like the frog in the pot, most Australians are not aware of the diminution of religious freedom, but this careful and comprehensive analysis provides ample evidence that we must speak up against this demise in our country, “humbly relying on the blessing of Almighty God”, which our Constitution implores us to do.” The Rt. Rev. Dr Glenn N Davies Former Archbishop of Sydney, Anglican Church

“This study complements a growing body of research examining discrimination and vilification directed at Jewish, Muslim, and other religious minority communities in Australia. By documenting the experiences of Christians in a systematic and evidence-based manner, this report ensures that their experiences are neither overlooked nor treated as exceptional, but are situated appropriately within a shared framework of equal dignity, freedom of conscience, and mutual respect that underpins Australia’s constitutional order.” Professor Nicholas Aroney Professor of Constitutional Law, University of Queensland

“Australia is a country blessed with many freedoms and opportunities. However, we are now experiencing a winding back of many of the freedoms that we have enjoyed. I commend those involved in assembling the Australian Christian Freedom Index as an articulation of the threats to freedom we now face. It is a well-researched and superbly crafted document. While recommending it to Christian leaders and everyday believers, I particularly commend the Index to those in political leadership, that they may work to ensure that religious freedom is protected in our nation.” Most Rev. Julian Porteous, Catholic Archbishop Emeritus of Hobart

Read what Jesus said the world will be like prior to His return to restore righteousness. We are living in the prophesied last days before Jesus returns. Next on God’s agenda for planet Earth is Jesus Millennial Kingdom. If you want to prepare for that age go to http://www.millennialkingdom.net

“Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death, and you will be hated by all nations for my name’s sake. And then many will fall away and betray one another and hate one another. And many false prophets will arise and lead many astray. And because lawlessness will be increased, the love of many will grow cold. But the one who endures to the end will be saved. And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.” Matthew 24:9-14