‘Civilisational anxiety.’ Two words
that capture how many people are feeling right now.I know that many of us are worried about the direction of Australia.
That our sense of country and culture is fading away.
But the concern goes deeper than that.
Many of us are concerned about the future of the English-speaking democracies—which are under pressure from radical anti-Western ideologies and unprecedented waves of immigration.
People have legitimate concerns about our tradition of ordered liberty, the rule of law, open markets, and parliamentary democracy.
I share those concerns, too.
Look at the firebombing of the synagogue in Melbourne last week, and the rise of anti-semitism in Australia.
This is about as acceptable as the hundreds of fire-bombings and attacks on Christian churches across the West in recent years.
We should all be appalled and concerned by these developments.
Now the political class say that we can’t talk about culture. We can’t engage in culture wars.
I disagree. That’s exactly what the left has been doing for decades.
What can we do about it?
In between parliamentary sittings and my work in the electorate, I’ve spent the past month reading two excellent books, that work together quite nicely.
British historian Tom Holland’s Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind and Glen Scrivener’s The Air We Breathe: How We All Came to Believe in Freedom, Kindness, Progress, and Equality.
Tom Holland’s work is a magisterial history of Christianity’s influence on Western culture, while Glen Scrivener writes a more accessible and practical book on how we are all shaped by Christian thought, especially in our politics, even on the left—funnily enough.
Both are warts-and-all histories: the story of Christianity is not without its injustices and grave wrongs, including mistreatment of Jewish and Muslim people.
But the ideas of Christianity—the innate dignity of every person, equality, the concept of the sacred and secular, compassion and consent—have been the source of much prosperity and freedom in the West.
That's our unique and paradoxical source of cultural strength. It's not in the libertarian economics of Friedrich Hayek or the muscular individualism of Ayn Rand—it's the shadow of the Cross which hangs over our culture.
As Tom Holland quotes from Scripture in his last paragraph of Dominion, "God chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong." (1 Corinthians 1:27)
The good news is: you don’t have to be a Christian to appreciate either of these works.
But for those of us who are concerned by the direction of our culture, we must do the work to understand our history. That means reading our history, understanding it, and teaching it to our kids.
As George Orwell wrote, “Who controls the past controls the future. Who controls the present controls the past.”
That’s my call to action this week.
Order these books and read them.
Understand our history and empower yourself, your family and friends to preserve our Judeo-Christian cultural heritage—which has been the well-spring of our freedom, prosperity and security.
Regards
Andrew Hastie
www.andrewhastie.com.auFurther Thoughts...
Here's why I think you should order these two books now.
Together Under One Flag
Our national flag reminds me why I serve in Parliament—to work together to preserve and defend the things we love.
To get your free Together Under One Flag bumper sticker, sign up by clicking on the image below.
Or send an email with your name and address to [email protected].
Bumper Sticker: Our Coast, Our Voice
Australians across the country are fighting against Labor's offshore wind farms.
And it's critical that you and I do everything we can to send a message to Labor that they've got this wrong.Click the image above to get your FREE bumper sticker, and let everyone know where you stand!
Petition: Stop Labor's Offshore Wind Farm
Our community loves our coastal lifestyle.
And we don't want to see thousands of ugly wind farms when we look out to the ocean.
Labor doesn't care that the wind turbines fuelling their green dreams are built in countries like China.
And they don't care that you're paying higher power bills because of their pursuit of renewables.
Please sign and share my petition, calling on Anthony Albanese to abandon his government's reckless offshore wind farm project.Bumper Sticker: NO To Labor's Big Car Tax
From next year Labor plans to hit families and businesses with a massive tax on utes, SUVs and 4WDs.
Send a message that you're standing against this new cost-of-living hit.
Click the image above to get your FREE bumper sticker to help stop Labor's Big Car Tax.
Petition: Labor's New Big Car Tax
Labor's carbon tax on new petrol, diesel and hybrid vehicles will add thousands of dollars to your new SUVs, 4WDs and utes.
Labor's cost-of-living crisis is hitting Aussie families hard. Interest rates, rents, groceries and bills are through the roof.
You don't need another punch in the guts when the time comes to buy a new car.
Please sign and share my petition to tell Anthony Albanese to keep his hands off our cars!
Your Federal Member for Canning
Office Address
2/61 Sutton St, Mandurah WA 6210
Mail Address
PO Box 968, Mandurah WA 6210Phone
(08) 9534 8044
[email protected]Authorised by Andrew Hastie MP
Liberal Party of Australia
Mandurah WA
