Tomorrow (18 January 2026), I will have a letter at church regarding the Religious Freedom and the Combatting Antisemitism Hate and Extremism Bill 2026. You might like to sign it if you agree. There is no pressure at all to sign! You might like to take your own action, or none at all. But here is the text of the letter for your consideration before tomorrow. I will send it on Sunday night.
18 January 2026
Hon Barnaby Joyce MP
Member for New England
PO Box 963
Tamworth NSW 2340
Dear Mr Joyce
We write to encourage you to urge the Government to delay the introduction of the Religious Freedom and the Combatting Antisemitism Hate and Extremism Bill 2026.
Thank you for serving our community in the Federal Parliament. We regularly pray for you at our church gatherings, Growth Groups, prayer meetings and in our personal prayers. We know you are committed to the common good.
As a church, we grieve the tragic terror attacks in Bondi on Sunday 14 December 2025. We pray for God’s comfort and mercy on all the victims. We oppose antisemitism and all forms of religious and racial hatred. Our concerns regarding the Bill are because we desire a nation that addresses hatred and violence effectively while preserving the religious freedoms that make Australia the great nation it is.
We are thankful for the democracy, multiculturalism and religious freedom we enjoy in Australia. We want people of all faiths to have freedom and feel they genuinely belong in Australia.
An important foundation to democracy, multiculturalism and religious freedom is freedom of speech. We are concerned that the Bill as it stands will undermine this freedom.
We support the letter written by The Rt Rev Dr Michael Stead (Bishop of South Sydney) on behalf of many Australian religious leaders to the Prime Minister, Minister for Home Affairs, and Attorney-General (16 January 2026). We are thankful for their letter raising concerns over the definition of hate and what is included under ‘hate crimes’ and asking that section 80.2BF be removed because of the ambiguity it would create.
We believe it is important that people can express their opinions, beliefs and vision for what the world ought to be like. This freedom is essential for individuals and faith communities to be able to contribute to public life in Australia. Faith communities have a long history in Australia of supporting education, social services, humanitarian response and interfaith dialogue. Religious freedom is needed for this to continue.
Religious freedom includes the right of individuals and communities to teach and preach, express beliefs openly and publicly, whether it be through public sermons, religious education in schools, pastoral guidance and prayer, or commentary on morality in Australia. Freedom requires that this be the case even when those opinions, beliefs and vision for what the world ought to be like are contested, unpopular, or misunderstood. As long as such religious expression does not incite physical harm or violence, it must be protected under Australian law.
In light of these concerns, we respectfully ask that you:
• hold the Prime Minister to his pre-election promise that ‘legal protections for people of faith will not go backwards under Labor,’ and to his promise to work in a bipartisan manner on religious freedom.
• urge the Government to delay introduction of the Bill until faith communities, legal experts and civil society organisations have been given the time to study the legislation, consider the implications and prepare submissions. At this time, we need cohesion, good listening and genuine consultation as a nation.
• advocate for any Bill introduced to include clear and adequate protections for lawful religious teaching, sermons, theological instruction, pastoral guidance, and good-faith religious expression.
We appreciate how fundamental and critical religious freedom is to Australia, and so will pray for you and the Government as you consult, debate and seek to protect these freedoms in our laws.
Yours sincerely,
Kootingal Moonbi Anglican Church
PO Box 145
Kootingal NSW 2352
(02) 6760 3361
