Better dead than Fred?
Over the years, Christian politician Fred Nile has attracted more than his fair share of bile, invective and pure hatred from all quarters (who, for overseas readers, has an Australian public profile similar to that of morals campaigner Mary Whitehouse in the UK). In light of this, there is an absolutely extraordinary tribute to Mr Nile from a non-Christian journalist in Sydney's Daily Telegraph of July 14 2004. David Penberthy writes of Fred:
... he is arguably the most honest politician of his generation.
Knee-jerk lefties will argue that Hitler could also be commended for his honesty. Setting aside the fact that Uniting Church policy differs markedly from that of the Third Reich, the reality is that much of Nile's work has not related to moral issues, but the generally good government of the state.
His reflective comments in the chamber about his departure invited generous and genuine tributes from his colleagues across politics which showed the complexities of the man...
Where Nile differs from other religious politicians is that he is 100 per cent upfront about where he is coming from.
The Christian Liberals of the Lyons Forum; the blandly-titled, cross-party ‘Monday Night Group’; the Catholic conservatives in Labor ranks; and even Brian Harradine, who hates the accurate tag, “devoutly Catholic”—most of these MPs bristle at attempts to examine their faith and its link to policy.
Fred Nile is an open book.
Surely this is an example of the truth of the 1 Peter 2:12 principle at work:
Keep your conduct among the Gentiles honourable, so that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may see your good deeds and glorify God on the day of visitation.