It is clear most churches and/or their leaders are on the side of the Voice or lean towards it. To be clear I found a couple of neutrals. The Other Cheek has found the church statements, so you don’t have to! And here they are.
Anglicans: A motion passed at the 2017 General Synod (national church parliament) : “The General Synod:
Supports the recommendation of the Referendum Council for a constitutionally-entrenched First
Nations’ Voice to the Commonwealth Parliament;
1. Encourages the governments in Australia to seek to negotiate in good faith with First
Nations’ Peoples towards treaties or other similar forms of agreement;
2. Requests the General Secretary to convey this resolution to the Prime Minister, State
Premiers, and Leaders of the Opposition;
3. Requests the Public Affairs Commission in consultation with NATSIAC to prepare
resources, including summaries and theological reflections for use by Anglican parishes,
schools and organisations, on the Referendum Council Report on any subsequent
referendum questions and on the progress of treaty or similar negotiations.
Sydney Anglicans: A Synod motion called for Anglicans “to give generous consideration to the case to vote ‘Yes’ to the referendum question.” At a meeting last month Michael Stead the Bishop of South Sydney explained that this motion means that we should give the “yes” case the benefit of any doubt.
Chris McLeod, National Aboriginal Bishop of the Anglican Church of Australia: “The ability to hear the small voice is something that was at the heart of the ministry of Jesus. The ignored and marginalised found someone who listened to them. There are numerous occasions when Jesus stopped to listen. Jesus’ acts of recognition are often set in contrast to those who could neither hear what was being said or see the people who were speaking (E.g., John 4: 27, Mark 10; 56, Luke 7: 44, Luke 18: 41, Mark 9: 4). It is a reminder that ‘poor little talkative Christianity’ as E.M Forster described it, needs to stop, and listen from time to time, as well. What is good for us, I suspect is good for the nation. The wisdom of listening is a forgotten art, lost in the competing sound of many voices.
It is within this context that I support ‘Constitutional Recognition of First Nations Voice to Federal Parliament’. It is an act of putting things right and developing a context where the most ancient voice of the nation can have influence in the decisions that impact First Nations peoples. It constitutionally recognises the place of the ‘small voice’. For too long federal and State parliaments, despite some very good intentions, have not been able to adequately address First Nations issues. Largely, in my view, because as a nation we have not been very good at listening to the small and often silenced voices. A ‘Constitutionally Recognised First Nations Voice to Federal Parliament’ is a good start in what will, no doubt, be an ongoing conversation. It needs to be recognised that what is being proposed is very conservative. Parliament still has the final say in any decision and, as I read, it can still ignore what the ‘Voice’ has to say. However, I pray that successive governments will listen to the ‘Voice’ because it will ultimately be good for the nation, help address the issues confronting First Nations peoples, and give further hope to the conversation around reconciliation.”
(Update) Australian Christian Churches: (via email) The ACC believes our Indigenous First Nation people should be acknowledged, respected and encouraged to be represented in all levels of our society. The ACC will not be instructing people how to vote in this referendum as it is a personal conscience vote for every Australian.
Baptists The National Council of Australian Baptist Ministries (also known as the Baptist Union of Australia) accepts the invitation of our First Nations sisters and brothers in the Uluru Statement from the Heart to “walk with us in a movement of the Australian people for a better future”. We declare our support for the Statement’s calls for a “First Nations Voice to Parliament enshrined in the Constitution” and “a Makarrata Commission to supervise a process of agreement-making between governments and First Nations and truth-telling about our history”.
They add: “In the Baptist way of being church, it is the responsibility of every local church to seek the mind of Christ for its life and mission. Consequently, we speak as leaders of State Baptist Associations and Baptist National Ministries, meeting together as the National Council of Australian Baptist Ministries, not on behalf of our churches but to our churches.”
Catholics: A statement from the Australian Catholic Bishops Conference:
Pope Francis wrote recently of the Indigenous people of the Amazon, and how best to engage with them on issues particular to them: “They are our principal dialogue partners, those from whom we have the most to learn… Their words, their hopes and their fears should be the most authoritative voice at the table… Otherwise, the result would be, once again, ‘a plan drawn up by the few for the few’.” The same could be said of the Indigenous peoples of Australia.
In 1986 at Alice Springs, Pope St John Paul II said to the Aboriginal people: “You are part of Australia and Australia is part of you. And the Church herself in Australia will not be fully the Church that Jesus wants her to be until you have made your contribution to her life and until that contribution has been joyfully received.”
Pope Francis and Pope John Paul ask us to listen to the Indigenous peoples and to receive joyfully what they have to offer the whole nation and the world.
Churches of Christ – Global Missions partners statement “We acknowledge the strength, wisdom and resilience of Australia’s First Nations people and believe that Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people know and understand the best way to deliver real and practical change in their communities.
“A Voice to Parliament will ensure that local communities at the grassroots level can give advice to Parliament and Government about the issues that directly affect their families and communities.
“As the Uluru Statement affirms, “when we have power over our destiny our children will flourish. They will walk in two worlds and their culture will be a gift to their country”.
“The Churches of Christ in Australia have a strong legacy of Aboriginal Christian leaders, advocating for justice and bringing about social change, including Sir Doug Nicholls in the 1967 referendum.
“We draw courage and hope from this legacy and ask the church community to once again walk with us in ‘a movement of the Australian people for a better future’.”
CRC Churches: Bill Vasilakis, National Chairman Pentecostal CRC network, does not endorse a Yes or No vote but wants Australia to learn to listen to First Nations’ peoples. “To tell you the truth, I don’t know whether changing our Constitution, or simply legislating to introduce the Voice like the old ATSIC model is the way to go. I have read the constitutional experts on both sides, and they are quite contradictory in their opinions. Some of them are quite nasty about those espousing an opposite view and are even predicting catastrophic consequences for our social cohesion and how our federal government will be able to function if the referendum gets up, or fails. Unfortunately, in reading the official Electoral Commission document, sent to every home, it simply reinforces the political, divisive partisanship that now exists.
“I actually believe our government must really listen to the voices of our small outback communities and larger rural groupings of our Aboriginal peoples throughout this vast land. The huge gap in education, health, domestic violence, child abuse, drug and alcohol addictions, incarceration rates, housing, employment etc, is a national shame. Everyone agrees this unconscionable gap needs to be closed for Indigenous Aussies. I believe the Voice’s intention is to do this quicker, even if one disagrees with some of its strategies.
“A clincher for me was around twelve months ago when our two central Australian Aboriginal women senators from both political parties (Labor & Liberal), appealed to both the Northern Territory and Federal governments not to undo the alcohol restrictions in Alice Springs that were working reasonably well. They and the vast majority of the local women in central Australia were not listened to by both governments and terrible violence soon broke out when the booze bans were lifted. This stopped when the public outcry forced the governments to reverse their foolish decision, but no apologies were made to the two brave Indigenous senators, or the courageous local women in Alice Springs.
“I see this as prideful racism by our political leaders and both my wife Cathy, and I have seen racial prejudice up close and personal towards our Indigenous brothers and sisters when in Darwin and Alice Springs to minister in our CFC churches. It is disgraceful to see and it reminds us how serious a sin racism is in our world.
“Politicians and bureaucrats based in our capital cities do not know what’s best for our remote Indigenous peoples. For example, the vast majority of Indigenous people unlike most Aussie’s do not drink alcohol, and they know what’s best for their individual communities on this issue and so many other matters.
“I never publicly state my voting intentions in elections and neither will I about this referendum. Nor do I ever use the pulpit to encourage my congregation to vote a particular way, or support a political party. I encourage you to do the same. Hopefully my thoughts are helpful as you read, reflect and pray about this important civic duty we must embrace as Christians.
“Finally lets not get diverted as churches and Christ followers by political, social and racial divisions which easily get inflamed. Don’t get pulled to the left or right of our world’s politics, just go deeper in Jesus and His cause.”
Faith-based Charities: (From a press release) Leaders from the six leading faith-based social services charities are urging support of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice to Parliament to be embedded in the Constitution, as originally proposed in the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
In a co-signed open letter to Federal Parliament, The Salvation Army, Anglicare Australia, Baptist CareAustralia, Catholic Social Services Australia, St Vincent de Paul Society and UnitingCare Australia urge the implementation of a Voice to Parliament in our Constitution which will give Indigenous communities a means to inform policy and legal decisions that impact their lives. It will also recognise and value the place of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in Australia’s history.
Lutherans: A discussion guide produced by the College of Bishops does not suggest how to vote but contains powerful statements from pro-voice Indigenous leaders connected to the Lutheran church. The Hope Vale Lutheran Church writes “We at the Hope Vale Lutheran Church Congregation pledge our full and unwavering support for the Uluru Statement from the Heart and its invitation to all Australians to create a better nation through constitutional recognition through voice, treaty-making and truth-telling.
“The Lutheran Church originally established the community in 1886 as the Cape Bedford Mission at Elim Beach … Our Christian values remain and we vividly know and see the need for Recognition through Voice that will enable our people to play an active role in determining their destiny. A Voice at a local level will provide our people an opportunity to influence development solutions, and the programs and policies necessary for individual, family and community healing…
“So now, we write with a great sense of urgency, to all LCA congregations, just weeks out from a Referendum, that will provide for all Australians the great opportunity to better our democracy by finally recognising Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples in the most important rule book in the land. After 235 years our people will finally be accepted as first peoples belonging to this nation.
For Indigenous Australians, this is a tipping point, and for the psyche of our country to shift towards kindness towards us by supporting us to change our future. We urge LCA congregations to come together with your families, friends, networks, for this important discussion.”
Mission Australia: From the Mission Australia submission to the inquiry into the referendum: “Mission Australia believes that a Voice to Parliament enshrined in and protected by the Constitution is a vital first step to ensuring Reconciliation between Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and non- Indigenous Australians. We also acknowledge that sovereignty has never been ceded and that holistic conversations and action around treaty and truth need to complement proposed changes regarding a Voice to Parliament.
“The Voice to Parliament will empower Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to have a say on the laws and policies that impact them. It will be a permanent institution that will provide advice to the Parliament and Government on important issues.
“The upcoming referendum is a historic opportunity to reimagine our nation. It is our chance to come together to deliver real change for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people so they can take their rightful place in our nation.”
Presbyterians: The Presbyterian Church of Australi has taken the position of having no official position.
A paper by the Church and Nation Committee of the Presbyterian Church of Victoria, which has been widely circulated around Presbyterian churches has been described as offering a balanced account of the “Yes” and “No” cases. It says “While the Bible contains principles that are relevant in general terms to the proposed Voice, given that it is concerned for love for neighbour, justice and reconciliation, it does not prescribe one particular manner of implementing love or justice. God has not spoken clearly and authoritatively as to the appropriateness or otherwise of the Voice.”
Salvation Army: “In line with our commitment to reconciliation and in response to the Uluru Statement from the Heart, The Salvation Army supports the call for the establishment of an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Voice as a social justice response.
“The Salvation Army sees first-hand the social injustices experienced by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. Throughout our network of more than 2000 services across the country, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples are over-represented in almost all of the services we operate.
“For instance, in 2022:
- Nearly one in five people (18.6 per cent) accessing The Salvation Army’s homelessness services identified as First Nations — this is nearly six times higher than the total proportion of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ population in Australia (3.2 per cent)
- Nearly one in four people (23.5 per cent) accessing The Salvation Army’s Doorways emergency relief services identified as First Nations — this is seven times higher than the total proportion of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples’ population in Australia (3.2 per cent)”
Uniting Church: Testimony by Sharon Hollis President, Uniting Church in Australia Assembly:
“The Holy Spirit has burnt the truth into my heart and mind and life as I have read and listened to the Uluṟu Statement from the Heart.
“I try to make time most days to either read or listen to the Statement. I listen to it in English and I listen to it in First Nations languages.
“As I read and listen, the Holy Spirit burns the truth into my heart, into my mind and into my gut.
“It burns the truth that sovereignty has never been ceded and can’t be wiped out by colonisation.
“It witnesses to the truth that their children are removed in too great
a number and their people are disproportionally incarcerated. Not because they don’t love their children or are innately criminal, but because the system is unjust and cruel.
“A First Nations Voice enshrined in our Constitution offers the chance to put a spoke in the wheel of this system and help us all build a more just and compassionate way of being with each other in ways led by First Peoples.
“As I knelt before Rev Mark Kickett, Interim Chair of the Uniting Aboriginal and Islander Christian Congress at the reconvened Assembly, I led the confession of sin on behalf of the Assembly.
“We acknowledged our actions have not matched our commitment in the Covenant or the vision of the Preamble.
“The truth of this is burnt into my life. I know that just as Australia must learn to listen to its First Peoples, the Church must also learn to listen to Congress
as they struggle for self-determination to lead and guide ministry with First Peoples.
“So I will go to the ballot box when the day for the Referendum comes, and I will vote Yes.”
Wesleyan Methodist This small church has the only indigenous head of a denomination, Rex Rigby their Superintendent. At a National Council of Churches in Australia meeting he said “‘A vote in favour might see only a slight improvement in the situation for Indigenous Australians, but a vote against has the potential to be a step backwards and cause further struggles for Indigenous Australians.”
National Council of Churches in Australia (NCCA): Statement on the Uluru Statement and Voice to Parliament
NCCA … agrees with Indigenous leaders and other experts that this proposal will effectively respect parliamentary supremacy and uphold the Constitution while empowering Indigenous communities with a Voice in their affairs.
Should the constitutional amendment be successful, it will be the Parliament that codifies the representation of the Voice and the nature and extent of the consultation of the Voice with Parliament and executive government. It is the Parliamentarians that can ensure that the First Nations Voice is consultative and its advice is non-binding. It is the Parliamentarians that can ensure that the Voice would have no veto power.
NCCA will continue to walk with our Indigenous brothers and sisters on the journey from Voice through to Treaty and Truth (Makarrata) requested in the Uluru Statement from the Heart.
WADR Project list of responses: A broad collection of Christian responses to the Voice compiled by the With All Due Respect podcast team.
Image: St Paul’s Anglican Cathedral Melbourne with a Yes banner Image Credit: St Pauls Cathedral