Neverending Nice Time: Aussie PM Kevin Rudd Smacks Down Bible Guy On Gay Marriage
Can we just say how totally in love we are with Australia's Prime Minister Kevin Rudd this morning? Faced with a question/provocation from pastor and radio talker Matt Prater, Rudd first explained how his thinking on marriage equality has evolved, and then Prater pulled out his Bible quotes. This is where the conversation went into territory no American politician would ever dare:
[Prater: ]"Jesus said a man shall leave his father and mother and be married ... Kevin, if you call yourself a Christian, why don't you believe the words of Jesus in the Bible?"
[Rudd: ]"Well, mate if I was going to have that view, the Bible also says that slavery is a natural condition ... Saint Paul said in the New Testament, 'slaves be obedient to your masters[.]'
"And therefore we should have fought for the Confederacy in the US Civil War. I mean for goodness sake, the human condition and social conditions change.
"What is the fundamental principle of the New Testament? It is one of universal love. Loving your fellow man.
"If we get obsessed of the definition of that through a form of sexuality, then I think we are missing the centrality of what the gospel -- whether you call it a personal gospel, a social gospel or a spiritual gospel -- is all about."
Yes, yes, we know some of you never watch the videos. WATCH THIS VIDEO. Here's a politician actually arguing about Christianity with a rightwing Bible-thumper and saying, dude, your politics and your theology are inconsistent with a decent society. It would never happen here in the United States of Biblestan. Barack Obama actually nodded toward similar theological territory when he talked about his own evolving views on marriage equality last year, but it was so much more careful:
"We are both practicing Christians, and obviously this position may be considered to put us at odds with the views of others, but, you know, when we think about our faith, the thing at root that we think about is, not only Christ sacrificing Himself on our behalf, but it’s also the golden rule, you know, treat others the way you would want to be treated."
We just can't see Barack Obama ever saying, right to the face of a Bryan Fischer, "Nah, man, Jesus wasn't a hater like you. Grow up." And Barack Obama is also prohibited by law from mentioning slavery, except maybe during Black History Month, just like Joe Biden isn't allowed to say "father" and/or "chains."
We might settle for either of them calling John Boehner "mate," though.
Amen, so to speak. Love that scene.
especially when they get up on the telly