WHAT IS HAPPENING IN CANBERRA?

For those readers of this blog who live outside of Australia, you may or may not know that Canberra is the nation's capital, the seat of the Federal government, situated in an area of New South Wales known as the Australian Capital Territory. Canberra is southwest of Sydney, Australia's largest city (hmm! Or is it Melbourne now?) some 247 km. or 153 miles - as the crow flies. Driving distance is around 289.5 km. or 188 miles.

Each of Australia's six states and two territories are governed by democratically elected governments, with the state leaders being called Premiers and the two territories, Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory being led by Chief Ministers. 

As of this year, all six states except Tasmania are governed by the Australian Labor Party, as well as both territories. Tasmania is currently governed by the other major political party in Australia, the Liberal Party.

As a democracy, until now, generally, governments in Australia have respected private ownership laws, and have welcomed private ownership of lands and institutions by individuals and religious and other community organizations - in relation to health facilities, schools, clubs, sporting facilities etc.

Many of these organizations have received some government funding, but by and large, without strings attached, respecting the institution's autonomy.

In recent weeks, a most disturbing development has occurred in the nation's capital, with the revelation that the six-term Labor/Greens government of the A.C.T. have rushed through legislation in the parliament to forceably acquire one of the two major public hospitals in Canberra, the Catholic-owned and operated Calvary Hospital in the northern suburb of Bruce in Canberra. This is taking place without proper consultation with the Catholic Church and the hospital's management. 

Last week, the Catholic Church sought an injunction in the Supreme Court in Canberra to halt the proceedings of the government to continue with the planned takeover of this major hospital in what has been described as a "Communist-style" government intervention, akin to actions that may have been taken by Communist governments in the past in the USSR and China, for example. Sadly, the Supreme Court sided with the territory government, and dismissed the hospital's submission to the court.

This action is totally alien and abhorrent to probably the vast majority of Australian citizens, whether Christian or not. 

There seems to be a consensus amongst those who have serious concerns for this action that, this is an attack against Christian values and beliefs. The government has, in fact, stated that they have seen the hospital's religious framework as problematic. It seems to be generally conceded that this "problematic" concern is in relation to the Christian ethos that forbids the deliberate destruction of human life through abortion - even up to birth, and euthanasia, the planned killing of people because of terminal illness, or other reasons.

Residents of Canberra who have personally experienced treatment and care at both hospitals have overwhelmingly stated that Calvary Hospital outshines its government counterpart, The Canberra Hospital. There are obvious concerns, well-founded that a government takeover of Calvary Hospital will see its standards of care and administration be reduced in quality.

This unprecedented draconian action of the Labor/Greens government in the Australian Capital Territory is, as stated before, most disturbing, not only for the future of Calvary Hospital, but as a precedent that may well see further forced acquisiton of private properties by this government, as well as emboldening other state governments, and local governments, and even the Federal Labor government - of faith-based institutions and other lands and facilities - by acts of parliament or council rubber-stamping.

Jesus said in John 10:10 "The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly." 

Many, even in secular media, are seeing this action by the government as an act of stealing of faith-based private property.

Increasingly, not only in Australia, but around the world, there is a clear sense that evil is increasing - the darkness is getting darker, governments are enacting legislation that is diabolical in its ramifications, promoting a culture of death, and debauchery. It is not unreasonable or unrealistic to extrapolate what is happening in Canberra to similar actions that will take place in other jurisdictions across the nation.

Back in 2008, the then Victorian Health Minister, Daniel Andrews introduced legislation to the state parliament to radically open the way for abortion on demand to be legally available in that state. Emboldened by this evil action, most other states followed, with the result that, today something in the order of 80,000-100,000 precious Australian babies, otherwise healthy are murdered through abortion, some up to birth, and a number even delivered full-term and left on cold metal trays to die- an action that no veterinary surgeon would allow for a baby animal to suffer.

Over 40.000 people have signed a petition against the ACT government's reprehensible forced takeover of Calvary Hospital, without consultation.

Sadly, the major opposition political parties in Australia, the Liberal Party and the National Party, in recent years, have lurched somewhat to the left of politics, away from their conservative roots, which generally upheld Biblical Christian values. Today, they are very much like their Labor opponents in politics in denying the very values upon which the nation of Australia was built. 

The Bible says in Isaiah 59:19 When the enemy comes in like a flood, the Spirit of the LORD will lift up a standard against him. Not only in Canberra, but across the nation, legislation attacking the right to life, upholding the sanctity of marriage between a man and woman, gender-bending deviant ideology being presented to young impressionable children, and medical intervention, once never even imagined, to seek to transition children of one sex to the other, through such devilish devices as puberty blocking drugs, and radical surgical procedures on genitals and female breasts - surgery which can only be described as butchery - is passing, with seemingly not a twinge of conscience from the members of parliament responsible for such abominable legislation.

As a committed Christian, who is unashamedly determined to stand up uncompromisingly for Biblical truth and values, I am convinced more than ever that the answers we need for the future prosperity in our nation do not lie in putting our trust in government. JESUS IS THE ANSWER! He is the way, the truth and the life.

While it may not be popular today to be a Bible-believing Christian, I truly believe, as the Children's ministry leader in a church we attended for some years stated continually to the children under his care: God's way is the best way!

It is time like never before for the Church of Jesus Christ to: ARISE AND SHINE, FOR YOUR LIGHT HAS COME, AND THE GLORY OF THE LORD HAS RISEN UPON YOU. Isaiah 60:1

JESUS IS LORD!!