Religious freedoms and threats to the Christian faith are at the forefront of a new podcast, which assesses upcoming or already implemented laws and legislation. Source: The Catholic Weekly.
The Freedom Matters podcast, launched on November 18, bills itself as a “quarterly update on current and emerging threats to religious freedom,” with the first episode focusing on anti-discrimination laws in the states, territories, and federally.
Helmed by Sydney Archdiocese’s Sydney director of public affairs and engagement, Monica Doumit, and Anglican South Sydney Bishop Michael Stead, who are both on the board of Freedom for Faith, a think tank dedicated to fighting for religious freedom.
Ms Doumit said she was “very excited” about the new podcast with Bishop Stead, whom she has known for many years.
“Bishop Michael and I are great friends and have been closely collaborating on religious freedom matters for about eight years now, so the conversation about the latest goings on in religious freedom just came naturally,” she said.
“We are both lawyers by background, and so we can tend to nerd out a bit on the legal stuff, but the podcast is for everyone.”
Bishop Stead said the driving force behind Freedom Matters was that most people of faith do not fully comprehend the threats facing them today.
“We realised that most of the people in our churches – clergy and laity – take for granted our freedom to practice our religion, without realising that these core freedoms are slowing being eroded,” he said.
“We came up with the idea for a podcast as a way to get this message out broadly to people of faith, so that they are aware what is happening and what they can do about it.”
Ms Doumit said the intrafaith dialogue between her perspective as a Catholic and Bishop Stead’s as an Anglican was important in the current climate.
“Amidst the many challenges to religious freedom that have occurred in recent years, one of the great gifts has been that it has brought different Christian groups and even other faith communities close,” she said.
The podcast is available on the Freedom for Faith website and YouTube channel.
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“Freedom Matters” podcast discusses threat to religious liberty in Australia (By Tara Kennedy, The Catholic Weekly)
