Observing Christian prayers in parliament allows non-religious and non-Christian people to “understand the Christian language” embedded in Australian laws and institutions, the Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) has told a committee inquiry.

In a submission to a West Australian parliament’s inquiry considering a proposal to remove prayers, the ACL argued that removing the daily Christian prayers would risk “turning neutrality between religions” into a preference for “official non-religion”.

It also argued that the practice of observing prayers at the opening of each day did not negatively impact MPs, claiming that it did not involve compulsion, legal disadvantage or denial of equal participation for MPs.

The lobby group’s submission (access it here) also focused on countering the arguments put to the committee by the Rationalist Society of Australia (RSA) earlier this year, making several references to the RSA and dedicating a one-and-a-half-page section to ‘Our Response to the RSA’. 

The ACL argued that the RSA’s submission showed disagreement with the Lord’s Prayer but failed to establish that the practice was legally wrong, or prevented representation or impaired parliamentary work. 

The Legislative Assembly’s procedures committee is considering removing from the Standing Orders two Christian prayers, including the Lord’s Prayer, which are recited aloud in the chamber at the opening of every parliamentary day.

While the committee is yet to publish its recommendations, Premier Roger Cook has already signalled that he wants the prayers to remain.

As reported by the RSA last week, Pentecostal pastor Margaret Court is among the other Christian groups and leaders demanding that the state Labor government continue the practice of observing daily prayers.

Labor backbencher Dave Kelly is leading the push for reform of the Standing Orders, telling the committee he believes there is widespread support among his colleagues for replacing prayers with a secular and more welcoming practice, such as a moment of silence for personal reflection or prayer.

In its submission, the ACL made several dubious claims, including that the Lord’s Prayer “gives seriousness and a shared moral focus”, encourages MPs “towards service and the common good”, provides a “basic constitutional virtue of humility”, provides MPs of other religions with “equal standing”, and can support “religious literacy and social cohesion”.

“Retaining a recognisable prayer provides an occasion to understand the Christian language which is embedded in Australian law, literature and institutions,” it said.

“Social cohesion is strengthened when differences are handled by freedom and courtesy rather than through exclusion enforced cultural amnesia.”

In its section responding to the RSA’s arguments, the ACL argued that the RSA’s submission “raises legitimate questions about inclusion and freedom of conscience” but its conclusions rested on “several errors”.

Among its claims, the ACL said the RSA’s submission equated religious content with imposed worship, treated separation of church and state as exclusion of religion, and asserted discrimination without identifying unequal treatment.

The ACL also argued that the proportion of people selecting ‘No religion’ in the Census did not establish a public mandate for removal of Christian references, adding that “no constitutional liberty should depend on majority headcounts”.

Previously, when Christian affiliation sat above 50 per cent prior to the 2021 Census, the ACL, in urging public institutions such as local councils to continue observing prayers in meetings, used to argue that “majority of Australians chose to identify as Christian in the most recent census”.

In a separate submission, Reverend Peter Abetz, a former spokesperson for the ACL, told the committee that the principle objections to retaining prayers in parliament had historically been made by “activist atheists such as Dave Kelly and the Rationalist Society”. 

“Importantly, people of faith are not seeking to compel atheists to pray. Rather, they seek only the continuation of a long-established practice while fully respecting the right of others to remain silent or simply observe,” he wrote.

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The Rationalist Society of Australia is actively advocating for prayer rituals to be replaced with more appropriate practices in councils and parliaments. See the latest updates here.

Si Gladman is Executive Director of the Rationalist Society of Australia. He also hosts ‘The Secular Agenda’ podcast.