The question raised in the leftie and elite classes is whether even the term 'Australia Day' should be declared – to illustrate, indigenous groups call it Invasion Day, some Muslim hardliners only recognise their religious-politic days.
What is it that the mainstream of the nation is somehow to yield and subject themselves to such claims? This seems to be the question. But is it a valid question? What is it exactly that these claptrap sing-songers are about to even consider it as a valid question. To begin to fathom all this, perhaps we should look at this issue from another angle, that is Christendom's Easter celebration.
First, there has never been an Australian conflict with Christendom's Easter recognition and in turn that of Australia Day. The two things are not only very separate but celebrate different things.
Trying to combine defaming allegiances of 'day celebrations' of these two mammoth ideas needs a traipse artist on the high wire falling into the net of deliverance. Easter is a Christian celebration of the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Australia Day is a celebration of a modern nation's birth and moreover a recognition of who we are today as Australians.
What's the problem
For the lefties and the elitists there is a huge problem, that although they happily get into their flashy cars and drive to their leafy suburbs or lovely high rise, enjoying the pleasurable benefits of modern Australia, in their view the day should be one of mourning and disgrace that our ancestors took this land by force.
That all sounds very simple – the logic of it is that the Middle East should be handed back to the Medes and the Persians, Syria to the Annonities, the Lebanon to the Cannanites, Germany to the Barbarians, Mexico to the ..... and so on. By the way the Zulu's had not reached South Africa in their migration when it was originally colonised by the Dutch. Who do the Zulu's hand back the nation people's they invaded?
Hello ! There is a certain astonishment with such idealism. History is replete with invasions and take-overs and whatever's. Had it not been for the Battle of Britain in 1940 and the 1942 Battle of Stalingrad, the Europe as we know it today would not be as it is today. The great Australian fear for generations is Indonesia with its 168m population and our 22m. Reality bites.
The mainstream has good reason to celebrate Australia Day.
Islam
We hear very little from the Hindu's, the Buddhists, the Jews and others on such matters but the fundamentalist Muslims want to destroy this Australia as we know it and return to their version of living under a Sharia law which would bring the nation back to a new dark age.
Many Australian Muslims themselves are horrified by such a possibility but their voices are either truncated, not heard / publicised or silent for fear.
Destructive voices and law
Destructive voices will always be in our midst, that is part of the democratic politic, and so too should the mainstream be heard.
Much has been said of 18c and how that has been utilised in such a way to create a silencing of the mainstream. 18c itself is discriminatory. It is not applicable to those who want to destroy this Australia the mainstream love and cherish. The sentiment is clear - no wonder people voted for Brexit and Trump. Fed up!
Another example are those like me who stutter, have a speech impediment. There are horrible times when even those with a mild stutter get caught up, such as lining up buying a railway or bus ticket, lining up at the cinema, the shopping cue, where all the symptoms are at their worst. It's excruciating, let me tell you.
Being laughed at - sniggles, rude comments, jeering, thought an idiot are all part and parcel of being a stutterer. Only an indigenous person or someone in a minority could effect 18c, me a white Anglo-Saxon stutterer, Protestant male, not a chance in hell.
Australia Day
I for one will be celebrating Australia Day. My father was born on a dairy in Tewantin (Noosa), Qld. He himself became a pioneer dairyman on Crediton (Eungella) 60 miles west of Mackay on the range. In the 1930's the land was untouched, virgin bush with rich grass soils – he and his brother cleared the land almost exclusively by hand with an axe. When my father married he continued clearing by hand. He ended up with a highly successful milking herd. Raised three kids and nine grand children.
My mother came to relatives in Australia in 1933 from England working as a nanny on country estates and then in Sydney in a pottery business. When war came she and her friends joined the Land Army and served for 5 years in the Batlow Tumut area where after the war, met my father who was on a working holiday.
Yes, I'll be celebrating Australia Day. It's wonderful to be an Australian and also wonderful to be a follower of Jesus.
Dr Mark Tronson is a Baptist minister (retired) who served as the Australian cricket team chaplain for 17 years (2000 ret) and established Life After Cricket in 2001. He was recognised by the Olympic Ministry Medal in 2009 presented by Carl Lewis Olympian of the Century. He mentors young writers and has written 24 books, and enjoys writing. He is married to Delma, with four adult children and grand-children. Dr Tronson writes a daily article for Christian Today Australia (since 2008) and in November 2016 established Christian Today New Zealand.
Mark Tronson's archive of articles can be viewed at http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/mark-tronson.html