There's been a bit of a buzz about this around the media but in our post-Christendom era, should we expect anything other than the church to be pushed to the fringe, even at a religious holiday?
From the ABC:
No room for Jesus at Easter Show
The New South Wales Bible Society says its application to have a Jesus: All About Life stall at Sydney's Royal Easter Show has been knocked back for dubious reasons.
The society's chief executive, Daniel Willis, says his staff were told in February there would be space available for the stall, and negotiations were under way about its size and location.
But Mr Willis says the Royal Agricultural Society has now told him there is an unwritten policy to refuse exhibitions by religious or political groups at the show, which officially opens today.
Mr Willis says he is disappointed that a stall focusing on the reason for Easter has been knocked back.
"It's run at a time when Christians across this country are reflecting on and remembering the death and resurrection of Jesus," he said.
"Here's one great event that's billed as a family event and something as significant as Christian input is excluded from that whole activity."
But the chief executive of the Royal Agriculture Society says there was not enough space for the stall.
"Regarding the exhibition space, they've never had any other communication other than that it was purely space-availability related," he said.
"The only unwritten policy is that for advertising in the Main Arena, we don't accept political or religious advertising in the Main Arena, but exhibition space is available to anybody."
More than 900,000 people are expected to pass through the gates of the Royal Easter Show at Homebush Bay over the next 14 days.
It just makes you shake your head and wonder!
ReplyDeleteThere was an outcry when the Easter Show first wanted to open on Good Friday about 20 years ago, but it's since lost all pretence at having anything to do with Easter.
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