{"id":12788,"date":"2023-01-10T16:25:53","date_gmt":"2023-01-10T05:25:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rationalemagazine.com\/?p=12788"},"modified":"2023-01-18T01:43:59","modified_gmt":"2023-01-17T14:43:59","slug":"george-brandis-and-the-christian-persecution-complex","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rationalemagazine.com\/index.php\/2023\/01\/10\/george-brandis-and-the-christian-persecution-complex\/","title":{"rendered":"George Brandis and the Christian persecution complex"},"content":{"rendered":"

Attending the <\/span>Religious Freedom roundtable<\/span><\/a> in November 2015 on behalf of the Rationalist Society of Australia, I was bemused by the welcome speech given by the event\u2019s sponsor, the Honorable Attorney-General George Brandis.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Entering in his dark suit, with his grave countenance, Brandis reminded me of the archetypical Cold War CIA director \u2013 the sort you might see in the <\/span>Bourne<\/span><\/i> series of films.<\/span><\/p>\n

He began by noting how Catholics were now \u201croutinely the subject of mockery and insult by prominent writers and commentators\u201d, quoting Dyson Heydon who described it as \u201cthe racism of the intellectuals\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cOr perhaps he should have said the pseudo-intellectuals,\u201d<\/span> said <\/span>Brandis through gritted teeth.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Some religious Australians \u201cfelt increasingly unable to express their opinions or faith in the public square\u201d. Public figures such as Tony Abbott were subject to \u201cincessant, smearing ridicule\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to Brandis, the roundtable was about finding ways to ensure respect for those of faith. As a non-religious attendee, I found the speech remarkable in illustrating the stark difference in our perceptions of current events, and the very meaning of religious freedom.<\/span><\/p>\n

We can hear these echoes in a <\/span>piece Brandis contributed for the <\/span>Sydney Morning Herald<\/span><\/i> on Christmas Day<\/span><\/a>, urging us to \u201cspare a thought today for persecuted Christians\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n

Brandis prefaces his remarks with a similar jeremiad against the alleged sneering of secularists towards his own faith.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cCatholicism \u2013 professed by one in five Australians \u2013 has been a particular target. Shamefully, much of that anti-Christian \u2013 and in particular anti-Catholic \u2013 bigotry has been encouraged by the national broadcaster in both its satirical programming and \u2018investigative\u2019 journalism.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

He moves on to quote Pew Research showing \u201cChristians have been harassed in more countries than any other religious group\u201d, mostly in the Middle East and North Africa, especially Coptic Christians in Egypt.<\/span><\/p>\n

Clearly, Brandis seeks to connect criticism of Catholicism with real-world persecution of Christians.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cReligious intolerance begets religious persecution, identified by the UN as one of the world\u2019s principal human rights challenges.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The clear implication is that secular criticism of faith causes Christian persecution.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But alas, the high levels of Christian persecution worldwide are largely driven by religious intolerance in Muslim-governed countries \u2013 and dictatorship in North Korea. Thus, the problem is linked directly with totalitarianism, theocracy, and the absence of secularism \u2013 the persecutors are not sneering secularists; they are mostly faith-based governments.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Clearly, Brandis seeks to connect criticism of Catholicism with real-world persecution of Christians.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Brandis infers that criticism of faith amounts to persecution. It seems that Brandis identifies as a victim of Christian persecution by secularists. This is an obscene false equivalency, juxtaposing Christians who are imprisoned, tortured and executed for practising their beliefs, against well-heeled leaders and journalists forced to endure some mean comments about their faith.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

It\u2019s a refrain we\u2019ve heard often from <\/span>The Australian<\/span><\/i><\/a>, Sky News, the Australian Christian Lobby, and many others, targeting <\/span>Fairfax (now Nine) and the ABC<\/span><\/a>, doing so repeatedly despite the apparent absence of unfair or egregious ridicule.<\/span><\/p>\n

According to journalists Jonathan Homes and David Marr, criticism of the Catholic Church has been generally in relation to the Papal visit of 2008, the child sexual abuse scandal, and the various controversies surrounding George Pell.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

But there is a backstory to their paranoia. The Christian persecution complex is a well-studied phenomenon, and another thing we appear to have imported from the US.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

According to the academic Elizabeth Castelli, author of <\/span>Persecution Complexes: Identity Politics and the \u2018War on Christians<\/span><\/i>\u2019<\/span><\/a>, <\/span>the Christian persecution complex, <\/span>as she explained in 2008<\/span><\/a>:<\/span><\/p>\n

“\u2026mobilizes the language of\u00a0religious persecution\u00a0to shut down political debate and critique by characterizing any position not in alignment [with] this politicized version of Christianity as an example of antireligious bigotry and persecution. Moreover, it routinely deploys the archetypal figure of the martyr as a source of unquestioned religious and political authority.”\u00a0<\/span><\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

The narrative of persecution is common in <\/span>US debates where traditional values clash with public policy<\/span><\/a>. The Fox News \u2018War on Christmas\u2019 bemoans the secularisation of Christmas by retailers. Since the 1990s, the persecution narrative has been illustrated in numerous ways, including through the \u2018Jesus Freak\u2019 movement, the novel <\/span>Left Behind<\/span><\/i>, the <\/span>God\u2019s Not Dead<\/span><\/i> movie franchise, the movie <\/span>Persecution<\/span><\/i>, the book <\/span>God Less America<\/span><\/i>, not to mention conservative punditry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

In <\/span>The Myth of Persecution: How Early Christians Invented a Story of Martyrdom <\/span><\/i><\/a>(2013), English academic and historian of Christianity, Candida Moss, describes the concept of \u2018persecution\u2019 as central to Christianity. Tracing stories of martyrdom from antiquity to the present, she explains how some modern Christians identify as victims \u2013 even whilst holding the majority or wielding significant power.<\/span><\/p>\n

There\u2019s certainly a sense of the martyr in Brandis\u2019 rhetoric. It seems that the Christian persecution complex is both an indelible part of the Christian psyche, as well as a useful political tool.<\/span><\/p>\n

The victim of the Christian persecution complex suffers for Christ. He is figuratively nailed to a cross, heroically enduring the slings and arrows of secular reason at the hands of Satan, sneering secularists, the ABC, and possibly even Human Rights Commissioners.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/p>\n

From a secular perspective, we can only highlight how the criticism of ideas and practices is in no way the same thing as actual persecution, but rather, a crucial requisite for open debate. Criticism and even ridicule are the necessary filters keeping democracies like ours strong, challenging the status quo, and encouraging new ideas. It\u2019s something sadly lacking in those parts of the world where minorities are persecuted.<\/span><\/p>\n

As we usher in a New Year, we should indeed spare a thought for persecuted Christians. We should spare a thought for all people who are persecuted \u2013 for women arrested in Iran for not wearing headscarves, for victims of slave labour, for those imprisoned for their political or religious views, for those punished because of their sexuality, and for the myriad others.<\/span><\/p>\n

There are plenty of martyrs in the world. We should do more than spare a thought. We should think hard about the actual causes of persecution, as opposed to grinding a particular axe.<\/span><\/p>\n

If you wish to republish this original article, please attribute to\u00a0<\/i><\/b>Rationale<\/b><\/a>.\u00a0<\/i><\/b>Click here<\/i><\/b><\/a>\u00a0to find out more about republishing under Creative Commons.<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Photo by CEBIT Australia<\/a> (Flickr CC)<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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