• About
  • Advertise
  • Contact
  • Login
NRI Affairs
Youtube Channel
  • News
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Culture
  • Visa
  • Other
No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Culture
  • Visa
  • Other
No Result
View All Result
NRI Affairs
No Result
View All Result
Home News

OPINION: Starting Victorian Parliament with prayer from one religion is discriminatory

Fiona Patten by Fiona Patten
October 24, 2021
in News, Views
Reading Time: 2 mins read
A A
0
OPINION: Starting Victorian Parliament with prayer from one religion is discriminatory
150
SHARES
1.4k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter
Advertisements

I write today about my campaign to make the Victorian Parliament the most inclusive place it can be for all Victorians – regardless of their faith.

At the start of each day in the Legislative Council of Victoria, we begin with a recitation of The Lord’s Prayer. I am not religious, so I choose, with a growing number of my colleagues, to wait outside the Chamber until the conclusion of the prayer. I then take my place for the Acknowledgement of Country to pay respect to our indigenous brothers and sisters.

In Victoria, census figures show that the majority of the population identifies either as having no faith at all, or of having a faith other than Christianity. And the make-up of our parliament reflects this. In the Legislative Council, when members are sworn into office, they do so by taking either an ‘oath’ of allegiance or ‘affirmation’ of allegiance.  An oath has religious significance while an affirmation does not. Over half of the MPs elected at the last election took the affirmation.

Painting Vishal Jood as hero was a work of fiction

Victorians quite rightly celebrate and cherish our state’s multiculturalism and we believe that Parliament should as well. Starting our day with a prayer from one single religion is discriminatory. It’s that simple.

So, how do we ensure that everyone is included?

Advertisements

Instead of reciting a prayer from just one religion, we are proposing a simple change.

When the President of the Legislative Council takes the Chair at the commencement of each sitting day, they will ask for:

“Members to stand in silence and pray or reflect on their responsibilities to the people of Victoria.”

Put simply, self-reflection is taking the time to think about, evaluate, meditate, pray or in some way give serious thought to our motivations, attitudes, behaviours and desires. It’s the process of taking a moment to consider what’s important to us and the communities we represent.

It means those of faith – all faiths – can pray if they wish and those who are not religious can take that time to reflect on the important duties charged to us by the people of our state.

It’s a win for everyone, and certainly is in line with the values that Victorians would want to see reflect in those they elect to represent them.

US hate crimes: FBI ranked ‘anti-Hindu’ incidents in 2020 at the low end of 35 faith groups
Share60Tweet38Send
Fiona Patten

Fiona Patten

Fiona Patten is a Member for Northern Metropolitan Region in the Victorian Parliament’s Legislative Council. Leader of the Reason Party, Fiona was first elected in 2014 and re-elected in 2018. Since being elected in 2014, Fiona has garnered respect from all sides of the political divide and has worked tirelessly to deliver legislative reforms that many thought impossible including Voluntary Assisted Dying and drug law reform. Fiona is now working towards improving Victoria even further, continuing to implement electoral reform, a greater separation between church and state, the decriminalisation of sex work, pushing to legalise and regulate cannabis for adult use, and further reform of the justice system.

Related Posts

Applications for US H-1B visas to open from March 1
News

Applications for US H-1B visas to open from March 1

January 31, 2023
Indian diaspora tensions increase during Federation Square's pro-Sikh vote
News

Indian diaspora tensions increase during Federation Square’s pro-Sikh vote

January 30, 2023
Sania Mirza ends her Grand Slam career in Melbourne
News

Sania Mirza ends her Grand Slam career in Melbourne

January 28, 2023
Next Post
‘Restore annual migration to 190,000’: industry group demands

'Restore annual migration to 190,000': industry group demands

AustralianCitizenship

𝗔𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗮 u𝗽𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗲s c𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘇𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 a𝗽𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 l𝗼𝗱𝗴𝗲𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 p𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗿𝗲

Anthony Albanese

'If there’s something we need in this time of uncertainty, it is the glow of your diyas': Anthony Albanese's Diwali wish

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Recommended

Air India’s London bound flight delayed after ants found in business class

NZ resident’s wife faces deportation for not disclosing traffic offence

1 year ago
Craig Foster, Amar Singh among New South Wales honours list for 2023

Craig Foster, Amar Singh among New South Wales honours list for 2023

3 months ago
कहानी को यहां से देखिएः प्रेम करो तो ऐसे

कहानी को यहां से देखिएः प्रेम करो तो ऐसे

1 year ago
Story

अनिल प्रभा कुमार की कहानीः इन्द्रधनुष का गुम रंग

1 year ago

Categories

  • Literature
  • Multimedia
  • News
  • nriaffairs
  • Other
  • People
  • Top Stories
  • Uncategorized
  • Views
  • Visa

Topics

Air India Australia california Canada caste CECA COVID COVID-19 cricket ECTA Europe free trade FTA Geeta Germany Hindu Human Rights immigration India india-australia Indian Indian-origin Indian Students Khalistan London Melbourne Migration Modi Muslim New Zealand NRI NSW oci quarantine Singapore Sydney travel UAE uk Ukraine US USA Victoria visa women
NRI Affairs

© 2021 NRI Affairs.

Navigate Site

  • About
  • Advertise
  • Contact

Follow Us

No Result
View All Result
  • News
  • Video
  • Opinion
  • Culture
  • Visa
  • Other

© 2021 NRI Affairs.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept All”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies. However, you may visit "Cookie Settings" to provide a controlled consent.
Cookie SettingsAccept All
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT