For God and Country: Religious Dynamics in Australian Federal Politics

By Marion Maddox, Department of the Parliamentary Library: 2001, , 299 pages, paperback, $20.00. Reviewed by Frank Rees in the June 2002 issue.

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In light of current political debate about 'ethical' matters, such as embryonic stem cell research and the attempt to define some issues as matters of 'conscience', it is fascinating to see how religious motivations and perceptions guide, if not drive, some members of the federal parliament.

Marion Maddox spent 1999 as Parliamentary Research Fellow and For God and Country is the latest in a series produced by such appointees. Both a political philosopher and theologian, she interviewed sixty present and past members and senators and a number of church and community leaders. She focuses on the thirty-eighth and thirty-ninth parliaments (the first two Howard governments) and the influence of the conservative Lyons Forum, which had a significant power base in Tasmania. The Forum's policies have significantly shaped the government's approach to indigenous land claims and the marginalisation of Aboriginal religions.

The opening chapter argues the case for a more nuanced understanding of the relationship between religion and politics in Australia. While Australia has long been seen as a 'secular' society, indeed 'the most Godless place under heaven', Maddox shows the need for a much thicker description. We may not have a state church, but the churches and many other religious forces have significant influence in federal politics.

Her chapter regarding the Constitutional Convention of 1998 is fascinating. Maddox compares this convention and the debate about a new preamble with analogous debates in the 1890s. Maddox detects 'a significant shift in the role of public religion in Australia' (42). The shift becomes rather unclear, however, for not only did God have a good convention in 1998 (as Barry Jones put it) but it seems that the very idea of God is much less a matter of debate and division now than it was a hundred years ago. The thicker description reveals a shift in the meanings attached to the term 'God'. Whereas in 1898 the constitutional discussion invoked a God 'above' the nation, providing an imprimatur to its constitution and laws, in 1998 the term was used to refer in more 'horizontal' ways to a kind of 'generic God' as Maddox puts it. There has clearly been a shift from the God of formally organized religion to the diverse spirituality of a multicultural society. Interestingly, in 1998 atheists and agnostics welcomed the recognition in the constitution of a loosely-defined concept of 'God' as a dimension of the values and ethos of our nation, while for their part high-profile church people (Peter Hollingworth and Tim Costello in particular) welcomed and indeed articulated this very 'generic' concept.

Maddox suggests that the constitutional convention might reflect a 'liminal' period, a creative transition from one set of communal values or mores to a new set of relationships. Here I would have welcomed a much deeper analysis, to consider on a broader canvas just what the shift in the role of public religion actually signifies. On the one hand, beyond the parliament itself, we have seen many of our leaders engaged in quite overt religious ceremonies, often associated with occasions of grief. There seems to be a new acceptance of religion here. Similarly, Anzac Day ceremonies have developed a genuinely symbolic power, precisely as the literal Anzacs have all gone. The role of Governor-General Sir William Deane, as national pastor and, indeed, prophet should not be overlooked here. (How ironic that these roles have both been lost when a churchman holds that office!) On the other hand, in the knowledge of how Australian politics have changed in the last year, Maddox's analysis now presents a deeply disturbing prospect. The 'generic God' and the values of a multicultural society seem to have been powerless in the face of increasing xenophobia and defensiveness.

In subsequent chapters, Maddox considers the ambiguities of religious observances in parliamentary proceedings and the participation of members of the parliament in the various religious groups, most notably the Parliamentary Christian Fellowship. Maddox notes the much reduced representation of the Jewish faith in the parliament and the lack of inclusion of other faiths in a number of these religious groups.

Two other topics considered are of special note. First, Maddox reports on the various ways in which parliamentarians identify a 'religious' matter or a question of conscience. Some insist that there are 'ethical' matters as distinct from political considerations, while Tony Abbott, for example, says that he has 'never made a political decision on religious grounds. And I wouldn't' (133). These questions flow into the question of the distinct responsibilities of politicians 'to God or Caesar'. The 'liberal' separation of religion and state has been supplanted by a 'democratic' or representative focus in which members are more responsive to the diverse but sometimes definite demands of those they represent. At the same time, the role of the churches has also changed, with the churches now contracting to take on activities the state has 'devolved' to them.

Marion Maddox has provided much needed information and analysis of the role of religion in aspects of our public life. I would have welcomed a more extensive analysis of the content of the religious convictions of those interviewed, especially about human rights and tolerance for those of other convictions. This information might have helped us to understand how this same group of people has perpetrated the demonisation of the different and welcomed the imprisonment of asylum seekers. 'God the Wholly Other' has been replaced by a generic God who makes possible a profound fear and abuse of the human Other.

Citation

• Frank Rees. 'Review: For God and Country: Religious Dynamics in Australian Federal Politics by Marion Maddox' [online]. Network Review of Books (Perth, Australian Public Intellectual Network), June 2002. Availability: <please cite the web address here> ISSN 1833-0932. [accessed 20 June 2013].

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