It might be expected that all reformed evangelicals would give three cheers for The Australian Creed for Sexual Integrity, (ACSI) produced late last year with a growing number of signatories. The ACSI outlines an evangelical or conservative take on sexual behaviour: “God blesses sexual intimacy solely between a man and a woman within the holy covenant of marriage, a life-giving mystery that reflects Christ’s love for His church.”
But, Murray Campbell, a Baptist pastor from Melbourne and a member of the Gospel Coalition Australia’s national board, despite having the same view of marriage, has a different take.
“While there is good theology contained in the statements (for which I’m thankful), where is the Gospel?” Campbell, a well-read blogger who himself has been taken to task for his theologically conservative views, asks. “The final article mentions forgiveness, but for a document that is supposed to summarise the Christian view on sexuality and gender, there is little weight given to the Gospel of grace and no attention offered to the eschatological vision for human sexuality and gender. In these two ways, the statement is lacking.”
Bishop Glenn Davies described assisting in the drafting of ACSI in an interview with Mark Powell on the Presbyterian AP website.
“I became involved mainly because Warwick Marsh invited me to be involved. I came in a bit late in the piece. They’d already been looking at various draft forms and one of the gifts that God’s given me is in terms of being a wordsmith and helping draft words which are constant with good theology. And so that was an opportunity was I was able to bring into the final form of the creed. So it was an invitation from Warwick Marsh from the Canberra Declaration organisation, but I was very happy to be involved and readily gave over my time and skills to this enterprise because this is such a crucial thing, not only for Australia but actually for the world, particularly the western world, and for Christians who are being beguiled into the world’s way of thinking about sexuality and not recognising their anchor point, their compass is God’s word written.”
Warwick Marsh, an activist from Wollongong fairly described as a “family and faith advocate, and social reformer,” is Editor-in-Chief of The Canberra Declaration’s news site. He has a special interest in promoting fatherhood and the traditional family and is a tireless advocate for them.
The term “creed” is objected to by Campbell. He explains that church history has not produced many creeds, which are authoritative statements of faith. “In the history of the Church, the number of recognised Creeds is incredibly small. Throughout history, other types of important documents have been written. For example, there are Confessions of Faith, which are more numerous than Creeds and which hold weight for Christians within particular denominations or movements. Creeds, however, are considered more weighty. Even during the Reformation, which produced countless Confessions and Statements, they reformers didn’t propose further Creeds. In the waves of 20th Century liberalism, where almost every Christian doctrine has been attacked or undermined by progressivism, Churches have not written a new Creed.”
Unlike the historic creeds or denominational statements of faith, ACSI has not undergone a formal process. Instead, some 100 people – who are not named – are said to have been part of a consultation. However, “Some drafters attended every meeting, others joined just occasionally, and still others provided written feedback.”
As one commenter in an online discussion about ACSI pointed out, “A creed is a statement of faith/belief. The Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed spell out the very fundamentals of our faith. This statement focuses on one particular element and in doing so gives weight to the criticism that churches and Christians are only concerned about sex.” (This commenter gave The Other Cheek permission to use this quote.)
Campbell points to a whiff of Christian nationalism. “The website authors themselves highlight a conscious decision to incorporate the Australian flag colours in the logo and to launch the Creed on the same day as the Australian Lighthouse Charge at Beersheba. Why draw such parallels? When one realises some of the groups who are putting their names to the Creed, their reputation of signalling Christian nationalism and anti-everything kinda is telling, and unfortunate.”
The relevant paragraph on the ACSI website reads, “The creed was publicly released on the 31st of October 2024 to coincide with Reformation Day in the Protestant tradition and the eve of All Saints’ Day in the Catholic tradition, which is a Catholic holiday in some countries. This date has added significance for Australians, being the anniversary of the charge of the Australian Light Horse Brigade at Beersheba in 1917, which endures as a national symbol of faith, courage and divine providence.”
The writers of that statement (and The Other Cheek suspects that Bishop Davies did not draft it,) may see that interpretation of the Light Horse as a given. They are entitled to have that view of a historical event. However, it would be unfair to attribute it to all the signers of ACSI, and it simply reflects the political agenda of a few, but it is an influential view among the drafters of ACSI. In the same way, Campbell points out, “The website authors themselves highlight a conscious decision to incorporate the Australian flag colours in the logo.” Once more, a political stance (and an emerging election issue) that may or may not be commended by the signers to ACSI. Christians with a conservative view of marriage may be concerned that other agendas have (literally) coloured ACSI.
In an article published in The Spectator and The Canberra Declaration, Mark Powell writes, “In yet another sign of how much the tide has started to turn, a number of key leaders of Christian denominations throughout Australia have produced what they call The Australian Creed for Sexual Integrity.”
The Other Cheek has written critically about some left-leaning statements using the term “leaders” to bolster the credibility of a campaign. In this case, how many “key leaders” of denominations produced ACSI is unclear. Bishop Glenn Davies is undoubtedly a denominational leader, as Bishop of the Diocese of the Southern Cross and former Anglican Archbishop of Sydney. He can fairly be described as a “producer” of ACSI.
The term “Key Leader” is vague, so the ambiguity must be acknowledged. The list of “initial signatories” includes many with significant ministries, ranging from writer Bill Muehlenberg to Jodie MacNeil of Gafcon to Robyn Painter, who Pastors the Peterborough Community Christian Church in SA, to to David Robertson, the Presbyterian Minister of Hamilton in Newcastle.
However this writer has criticised left-leaning statements of using the term “leaders” to bolster the credibility of a campaign, for example, on climate change. So perhaps ACSI can be scrutinised, too. How many “key leaders” of denominations “produced” ACSI is unclear. Bishop Glenn Davies is undoubtedly a denominational leader, as Bishop of the Diocese of the Southern Cross and former Anglican Archbishop of Sydney. But were office holders such as the Moderator-General of the Presbyterian Church of Australia, or the current Archbishop of Sydney, or the President of the Australian Christian Churches among the “producers” of ACSI – as distinct from simply signing it? BTW, The Other Cheek could not find Moderator-General David Burke, Archbishop Kanishka Raffel or President Wayne Alcorn on the list of signatories. They could sign tomorrow of course.
However, the ACSI site’s description, “The Australian Creed for Sexual Integrity is the result of much prayer and consultation from archbishops, bishops, ministers, priests, pastors, theologians, academics and denominational heads,” suggests that several archbishops and denominational heads will be present. Archbishop Julian Porteous of Hobart is certainly there and possibly alongside his Tasmanian colleague, Anglican Bishop Richard Condie, who is also an “initial signatory.”. But heads of denominations such as Alcorn or Burke are sparse, at least publicly.
Image: The Australian Creed Logo
Correction: Murray Campbell is on the TGCA National Board but has stepped down from the Editorial board.