Victorian Parliament Considering Dumping the Lord’s Prayer

The upper house of the Victorian state parliament in Melbourne, Australia, is seen on April 23, 2020. Darrian Traynor/Getty Images

For the past 106 years, the Parliament of Victoria has begun each sitting day with the Lord’s Prayer, followed by Welcome to Country. But that looks set to change after Premier Jacinta Allan confirmed there have been cross-party discussions on the issue.

“It’s important that as a parliament we reflect the community that we represent,” she said. “Our multicultural community is one of Victoria’s greatest strengths and I’m proud to be part of a parliament that is 50/50 men and women and has a greater cultural diversity.”

“It’s important to reflect that in parliamentary practices.”

The change was foreshadowed by her predecessor Daniel Andrews, who committed during the election to develop a replacement for the Lord’s Prayer at the start of this term, in response to a 2021 motion by crossbencher Fiona Patten to replace it in the upper house with a moment of silent reflection.

That was backed by some religious figures, though the Catholic Archbishop of Melbourne, Peter Comensoli, and Anglican Archbishop Philip Freier said the prayer was a longstanding tradition that reminds politicians they are accountable to the people and a higher authority.

Petition Promoted

Ms. Patten, an atheist, subsequently lost her upper house seat but initiated a petition to encourage people to write to then-Premier Daniel Andrews and Attorney-General Jaclyn Symes to ask that they honour their promise.

“A moment of silence in the chambers before they turn into the bear pits ... would actually be quite helpful in setting the scene,” said Ms. Patten, who noted there are more than 148 religions across Victoria.

Mixed Reception From Voters

When the change was first suggested in 2019, it provoked considerable debate among Victorians on social media.

One commented, “To be reminded every day of the ideals by which we live I think is important. We should all strive to live these ideals all day. The Lord’s prayer reminds us of how we should live our life both at work and in our private life.”

“[Jesus] refused to participate in any form of politics in his day—this is well recorded in history,” another person pointed out.

“In that context, using the Lord’s Prayer by politicians in a political setting is ironic to say the least.”

The ACT lower house made a similar move almost 30 years ago, replacing the Christian prayer with an invitation to pray or reflect.

Australia is becoming more religiously diverse. The 2021 Census found 10 percent of Australians follow a faith other than Christianity, up from 8.2 percent in 2016.

While Christians are still narrowly in the majority at 43.9 percent, their numbers are now almost matched by those who claim no religious affiliation at 38.9 percent—with the proportion even higher in Victoria at 39.3 percent.