Established 1970

11 June 06

The article, 'State-school chaplains push, is yet another fanatical religious attack on our secular system. This backdoor infiltration is designed to capture future adherents or worse, is under the false expectation, society will benefit. The role of state schools is to educate children with known facts not to preach about mythology containing none. Indoctrination of students, using adult authority figures, backed by government is an unfair impost on the minds of maturing young people who do not posses finely tuned critical assessment abilities.

Some of the facts we do know about religion are:
• There have been 20,000 over the last six thousand years. None is evidenced.
• All ‘believe’ they are following the ‘true faith’.
• Buddhist, Islamic, Christian, Jewish or Callithumpian indoctrination begets respective adherents.
• Religion is a predominant cause of division and hostility.
• The more religious a country, the more oppression of selected groups and individuals result.
• Recent studies (And by common sense evaluation) show societies with a greater secular influence have the least number of dysfunctional indices, such as abortion, suicide, teen pregnancy, murder etc.
• As far as it is known, we live on a natural planet in a Universe obeying only natural laws with no supernormal element ever recorded.

Australia has a multi-faith and no faith make up. Those professing an increased role of Christian influence should not possess power within the education system or government.

It is of some note, that those pushing for ‘faith’ based initiatives, are those who resist the introduction of teaching students universally accepted ethics based on consequences of actions and decisions.

If parents insist their children be religiously shaped, have them attend their local Synagogue, Mosque or Church. State Schools exist to educate, not indoctrinate.

Yours Sincerely,
David Nicholls
President
Atheist Foundation of Australia Inc