Christians will be familiar with how different parts of Scripture tell the same story from different angles. (One of the most famous is the accounts of Judas’ sad death. Matthew 27:5 and Acts 1:18 give two separate pieces of his end.) It is not difficult to make both parts of the Judas narrative fit. Please don’t take the example of this stry as a reflection on anyone!)
We should do our best to put tother the two accounts we now have of Martin Iles leaving the Australian Christian Lobby.
“After five incredible years as managing director of the Australian Christian Lobby, my employment has been terminated by the Board,” Martin Iles wrote on Facebook. However, he added that he leaves with no bitterness.
“While we cannot go into specifics, we thought we were in a discussion which would have led to a resolution, “ ACL Chair Jim Wallace emailed to ACL followers. “However, this did not proceed as we expected.”
Iles gives some details of that discussion. “The Board has reviewed ACL’s strategic direction and decided I am not the right person to lead the revised strategy, which focuses more primarily on political tactics, less on the gospel. Having heard this articulated, I absolutely agree with them that I am not the right person for that vision. I have always been a preacher first, a politician second (or third……).”
From Wallace, here is an insight into what seems to have been discussed.
“Allow me to reiterate that the objectives of ACL have not changed. As the Australian Christian Lobby, it is the Truth of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that drives every aspect of the work that we do – from phone canvassing to our Board decisions. It is the Gospel that compels us as Christians to participate in the political discourse and to petition governments, so that Christian principles find expression in legislation and public policy. Our focus will always be on following and obeying Jesus, which requires that the Gospel message underpins our political engagement.
“We believe that engagement must be on two levels, the relational and campaigning. In our view, political engagement, and relationship-building in the parliaments should be reflective of the same humble relational style modelled by Jesus Christ.”
Putting these two accounts together, Iles was told by the board that they wanted him to do more work on the political side of ACL’s work, most likely in building up relationships with politicians.
Iles saw preaching as his primary way to build up ACL, putting his effort into growing a supporter base, which was energised by seeing the gospel proclaimed.
Perhaps the board said, “Here’s how we see ACL’s strategy. First, let’s talk about more emphasis on politics.”
It is pretty likely that after some discussion, Iles said something like, “If that’s what you want, I am possibly not the right person for the job.”
Or maybe a board member said, “I am sensing you are not keen about what we are suggesting.”
It is clear that neither the ACL board nor Iles thought they were going into a meeting that would lead to Iles leaving ACL.
They ambushed each other. That’s how the stories fit.
It isn’t easy to see how the Iles and the board strategies (at least as I can surmise them) can fit.
Two possible conflicts must be managed, requiring much skill and energy.
To build up a robust energised base, as Iles has done skilfully, has been accompanied by a strongly conservative message. It has been necessary for the anti-vax group to be comfortable in that space, and anti-voice campaigners as well.
But what is suitable for building up an activist base does not serve either building up relationships with MPs – except for a few of them – or for speaking for a wide range of Christians, from Catholics to Pentecostals, Coptic Orthodox to Presbyterian.
While the same-sex marriage debate was now where all or most of the groups germane to ACL lined up, the same is not true for the post covid debates or this year’s big issue, the Voice.
Martin Iles is very talented, but managing those tensions would be hard for anyone to do, and it may be that he was wise to see the Board’s strategy as one he is unsuited to.