A meeting held earlier this month of  more than 300 Australian Christian politicians and community leaders argued that Christianity has been under "consistent attack" and that Australian society must be re-Christianized in order to survive the corrosive effects of radical secularism.

Prime Minister John Howard, issued a statement read at the Forum which said, "Judeo-Christian ethics, the progressive spirit of the enlightenment and the institutions and values of British political culture have been central to the development of Australian values."

The forum, organised by several prominent Australians, was hosted by the Parliamentary Christian Fellowship, a non-partisan group of Christian Members of Parliament. The group's president, former Deputy Prime Minister and Nationals leader John Anderson, opened the forum at Parliament House and pointed to the Christian origins of the principles underlying democracy. Anderson said that Australians enjoy the "fruits" of a Christian value system but warned that "no fruit will survive without you tending the roots that provided the growth in the first place and without replanting."

The Parliamentary Hosts of the Forum were Sen Guy Barnett; Sen Helen Polley; Sen Grant Chapman; Sen Steve Fielding; Sen Barnaby Joyce; The Hon John Anderson MP; Mr Kevin Rudd MP; Mr John Murphy MP; The Hon Danna Vale MP; The Hon Bruce Baird MP; Mr Anthony Byrne MP; Mr Harry Quick MP; The Hon Alan Cadman MP. 

The National Forum was held over two days during which delegates attended a series of plenary sessions and seminar addresses on 'the Christian contribution to the development of Australia, its culture, professions, and institutions'.

In his opening address Stuart Piggin, Chairman of the Forum and Director of the Centre for the History of Christian Thought and Experience at Macquarie University asked "Has the impact of Jesus on the Australian psyche and values been chronically underestimated by our academics, social commentators and journalists who have so insisted on our secularity? And is this secularity starting to look old-fashioned and unlikely to serve our national interest best if it fails to identify and harness Christianity's capacity for building our social capital?"

The Forum represented a broad-based Christian coalition of representatives of many denominations. Denominationalism was not an issue. At the Forum, unity was more easily attained than delegates could have envisaged by the simple decision to focus on Jesus rather than the Church. Jesus is the one thing all Christians have in common, and as numerous stories about His role in Australian history reveals, Jesus has been constantly revered by most Australians even though they may have criticised the church.

The Forum was not about Church, theology and doctrine. It was about the world of work, the marketplace of ideas, the role of the human family, and the civic responsibilities of citizens. Delegates and speakers were drawn from a wide range of professions: parliamentarians, academics, lawyers, teachers, social researchers, business men and women, architects, and entertainers.

Speakers were chosen rather for their capacity to ask questions than to give answers and to report on research rather than propagate orthodoxy. So most were not those with reputations as spokespersons for the Christian Church in Australia. The presence of academics brought a measure of balance and rationality not always experienced in church gatherings. This seemed to be appreciated rather than a problem.

Indigenous leaders were well represented at the Forum. With the recent accounts of disastrous community experiences fresh in the minds of all, it was cause for hope to hear of Indigenous communities which are strongly led and prospering. Michael Connolly, from the Yarrabah community (near Cairns), declared: 'It would be a complete eye-opener for policy makers to understand the positive impact the gospel has on the lives of Indigenous peoples of Australia. This should be researched.'

The historians on the program, Geoffrey Bolton, Graeme Davison, Robert D Linder and Stuart Piggin and Powerhouse Museum curator, Brad Baker, analysed the impact of Christianity on Australian history. They illustrated the proposition that Australian values, culture, institutions and professions have been far more 'Christianised' than is recognised by 'secular' historians. Between them the historians told many stories of individuals who are ornaments of Australia's Christian heritage. To identify and propagate such stories was one of the principal purposes of the Forum.

Politicians who identified with the Forum's aims came from both sides of politics. In particular Kevin Rudd and Guy Barnett  were at pains to point out that no political party has a lien on Christian values. Tim Costello, CEO World Vision Australia, warned that our parliamentarians need to encounter Christians who are not only pastors to power, but also prophets to power.

Professional leaders included the Fair Pay Commissioner, Ian Harper and Woolworths CEO, Roger Corbett who fielded questions on business ethics from Shadow Treasurer, Wayne Swan. When Swan's involvement was questioned by Australian Financial Review journalist, Angus Grigg, Swan refused to bow the knee to the secularist Baal:  "Angus Grigg may struggle to understand the role Christian values can play in the business of retailing or the setting of wages and working conditions, but the participants at the Forum and the broader Christian community certainly do not," said Swan. "Angus Grigg may feel awkward when people have the confidence to draw on their religious beliefs to discuss their life and their times, but he should have the professional integrity to exclude that delicacy from his reporting," Swan said.

Helen McCabe, research fellow with the Plunkett Ethics Centre, attached to the Australian Catholic University, gave a paper on the family which made the striking observation that we now look to governments to do for us what family life used to provide.

Elizabeth Ward's paper on education suggested that parents are helped through the alignment of the aspirations of schools with those of parents, to give their children the values they espouse. In going with the flow on putting family first, the Forum was seeking to foster Christian family dynasties which has characterised our past and will strengthen our national future as one generation succeeds another.

Justice Keith Mason, head of the NSW Court of Appeal, addressed another major concern, the Law. He argued that the building of walls between Church and State and attempts to enact bills of rights were more likely to produce conflict within the culture of our times than they are the means of settling conflicts.

The strongest case for the impact of the Christian heritage on Australian life was made by Stephen Judd, CEO of Hammond Care. In a joint presentation with Anne Robinson, he showed that the great majority of social welfare and charitable organisations in Australia have Christian foundations. Judd and Robinson demonstrated that such bodies do better for the country if they remain true to their founding Christian ideals and not allow themselves to be emasculated by interference from government regulators.

By holding the Forum in the national Parliament, the organisers hoped to make Christians concentrate on what they have to think and do in order to make a greater contribution to the welfare of our nation. They need to be more engaged, not less, but they need to earn the right to be heard and not just assume that they have a divine right to be heard.

The identification and telling of stories which communicate the values of Jesus at work in our society seem well designed to achieve the Forum's aim of bringing the nation's values more into line with those of Jesus. Since the youngest generation in Australia is currently in danger of losing all knowledge of the Christian story, the need for more effective ways of communicating the Bible's message was also identified as a priority. 

The Forum's purpose was to endeavour to reverse the process of secularisation. Many Australian institutions have their roots in Christian values - the free press, public education, the role of women in society, the Labor Party, the welfare state, commercial successes such as the AMP.  The argument of the Forum is that reconnecting to these roots will bring refreshment and growth with our democracy and way of life strengthened through the identification and application of Christian values and examples.

At its core, Australia's heritage is Christian, and therefore Christians must look to how we can resist those who use the threat of religious terrorism as a front for propagating secularist and anti-Christian agendas. To diminish the role our Christian heritage has played in our nation will only diminish the social capital which Christianity has generated throughout our history.

Papers from the Forum are available at: www.australianchristianheritageforum.com.au