The Need for Christian Values in Public Life Has ‘Only Increased’: Retiring State MP

Reverend Fred Nile speaks in the Legislative Council of the New South Wales Parliament House on August 20, 2019 in Sydney, Australia. Brook Mitchell/Getty Images

Christian Democratic Party founder and staunch human rights advocate, Reverend Fred Nile, will be retiring from politics in November.

The 40-year veteran of the New South Wales (NSW) Parliament’s upper house has been a firm supporter of Christian and traditional family values over his tenure.

“It has been the privilege of my life to represent Christ’s values in the NSW Parliament on behalf of the citizens of this great state,” he said in a statement (pdf).

Nile noted the need for public discourse on Christian values has “only increased” in recent years.

“What has been called the silent majority is becoming more vocal,” he told The Epoch Times. “People are speaking up in favour of traditional marriage, supporting unborn babies and opposing abortion.”

“A lot more people are taking that decision publicly. So I’m very encouraged by this groundswell of support from people who are not just Christians, but moral people,” he added.

Reverend Fred Nile speaking in the New South Wales Legislative Assembly. Brook Mitchell/Getty Images

The sentiment is shared by NSW One Nation Parliamentarian Mark Latham, who re-entered the political arena to stem the influence of cultural Marxism in Australia.

“In the last 20 years, Australia has been subject to a cultural invasion. Cultural Marxism, identity politics, leftist ideas about censorship and outrage have run through our institutions at a rate of knots,” Latham told a National Civic Council dinner in 2018.

“If we don’t stand up and fight against these things, we will lose the very best not only of our national values and practices but also the best traditions of our culture and western civilisation.”

Lyle Shelton, former head of the Australian Christian Lobby, is likely to replace Nile.

“I am honoured that Rev. Nile and the Christian Democrat Party state board have recommended that I succeed him in the NSW Parliament and lead the party into the future,” Shelton said in a statement.

“There has never been a greater need for Christian ethics and principles in our parliaments.”

Nile has spoken out against egregious human rights violations overseas, including the Armenian Genocide, the crackdown on Christians in Turkey, and the persecution of Falun Gong.

Last year, Nile spoke at the 21-year anniversary of the beginning of the persecution of Falun Gong by the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).

“What’s happening to the citizens of China by their own government?” Nile asked online attendees of the rally.

“Putting the practitioners in prison, putting them into slave labour, and having organ transplants from living persons who obviously then die—murdering their own citizens to get human organs.”

Falun Gong, also known as Falun Dafa, is an ancient Chinese spiritual practice consisting of slow-moving exercises and moral teachings incorporating the principles of truthfulness, compassion, and tolerance.

It grew in popularity during the 1990s, with 70 million to 100 million adherents in China by the end of the decade, according to official estimates.

Feeling threatened by its popularity, the CCP launched a systematic persecution in July 1999 that has led to millions being incarcerated and facing physical and psychological torture.