The Catholic church publishes a pamphlet which explains their position on marriage and distributes it to members and parents of children at Catholic schools in Tasmania. Apparently this is a terribly offensive thing to do and a form of discrimination.

Will it soon be dangerous for anyone to say, "We're Catholics and we believe that this is what the Bible says about?"

Surely the Catholic church's position on marriage should not come as a surprise to anyone. And what kind of beliefs and values do people expect to find when they send their children to Catholic schools? 

Meanwhile in Victoria, students are no longer allowed to read the Bible or any other religious texts in schools. One wonders if such a move could backfire quite spectacularly. 

Not that we would want to promote rebellion against authority of course, but just imagine students whispering furtively to each other in a dark corners, "Psst! Want to take a look at this? It's been banned from all schools in the state!" Teenagers right?

Former Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom Andrew Motion, once spoke about how withholding the scriptures to students is actually a disservice to education.

In his opinion, the good book is essential for understanding a tremendous range of western literature.

Without Bible knowledge, one will find it hard to engage with Milton, Keats, Tennyson, Browning, Arnold, even TS Eliot.

Is it possible to study Shakespeare in depth without bumping into the Bible? For Mr Motion, the stories in the Bible "speak to us about human nature and the recurring patterns of human behaviour''.

To those who objected to the Bible in schools, Mr Motion responded, "If people say this is about ramming religion down people's throats, they aren't thinking about it hard enough," he says.

"It's more about the power of these words to connect with deep, recurring human truths and also the story of the influence of that language and those stories."

Ah well, the early church was an underground movement (both literally and figuratively) so for the followers of Jesus, maybe it's just a matter of coming full circle.

Sources:

http://www.abc.net.au/am/content/2015/s4320710.htm

http://www.news.com.au/lifestyle/parenting/school-life/victorian-government-releases-new-guidelines-for-teaching-religion/news-story/4dabf5e176ad872e01f1c00908924d48

http://www.theguardian.com/education/2009/feb/17/bible-religion-andrew-motion

All brickbats, bouquets and banter welcome at simon.chen@narrominebaptist.org.au