Though the majority of religious figureheads tend to stay surprisingly quiet about compassion when it comes to issues surrounding asylum seekers or gay marriage, Father Rod Bower from the Gosford Anglican Church says no more.
He has chosen to harness the power of social media to spread messages about love and humanity (and all the good stuff Jesus stood for), to over 500,000 people worldwide.
Some of his most popular signs include, “Dear Christians, some people are gay, get over it, Love God” and more recently, “Joining our Hearts to the Disappeared”.
Not everyone’s too pleased though. Other religious figures have said his signs should be more biblical in nature.
So, Father Bower did something awesome in response.
Reflecting on the current fate of asylum seekers trying to arrive in Australia, he put up a poignant message: ‘‘John 15:35: ‘Jesus Wept’.’’
Amen to that.
Click through our full gallery of Father Bower’s awesome messages:
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Top Comments
"Progressive priest" seems like such an oxymoron. I assume he still promotes 2000-year-old metaphysical stories or creation and miracles as if they had some basis in reality.
Uh uh. No, you can't have it both ways Mr Priest. You either represent the Christian religion, with the Bible as your guide, or you reject those beliefs to form a new spiritual organisation altogether. You can't just put up catchy slogans and expect that all the other injustices and prejudices within your belief set don't exist. Not buying it at all, we should be suspicious of religious leaders trying to buy our respect this way. Respect comes with total rejection of now irrelevant beliefs and acknowledgement of how those beliefs have repressed and tormented people throughout history. This guy reminds me of all those fair-weather Catholics out there. You either are, or aren't, there's no in between.
Who are you to decide that there is no in between?
Um, Christianity does not have to be literal interpretation of the Bible and closed-minded. I am Christian and I have many gay friends and I disagree with many decisions of the Government and I don't have an issue with divorce and I abhor the lack of humanity in the world at times. I don't agree with the stance of my particular stream of religion on all issues - and have read many divided opinions over issues such as homosexuality - issues debated among ministers. This minister is not denying the challenges in church bureaucracy he seems to be trying to open his individual churches doors to broader society based upon the core premise of Christianity to love and respect others. Life is not black or white there are many shades of grey and this minister sits in the grey.
If Christianity is whatever you choose it to be, then what's the point of it? You could just as easily say "I'm a Buddhist, but I don't follow all the same rules as other Buddhists", or you could claim to be a Jew, but different to other Jews.
Is this a bit like John Howard's "Core Promises" or Tony Abbott's "One Overriding Promise" where there is some tiny, tiny subset of rules to follow, that make one a Christian, with all the rest being fluff and bluster?
So God's word is rubbery and open to interpretation?