Family First Party

The Family First Party is a political party in Australia. Although officially a secular party, it does have close links to the Pentecostal movement, and its social policies generally mirror conservative Christian values (which are not to be confused with politically conservative values). The party was founded in South Australia in time to contest the 2002 state elections, when Andrew Evans became its first MP, winning a seat in the South Australian Legislative Council. In the October 2004 federal election it contested seats all over Australia, and its preferences assisted the re-election of a number of Liberal candidates. The party's leader is Steve Fielding, a Victorian elected to the Australian Senate in 2004.

Christian connections

Whether Family First is a Christian party is the subject of dispute. Australia's political climate is predominantly secular and there is general disapproval of overt public manifestations of faith. In 2004, Then party leader Andrea Mason said that "we are not a Christian party",http://www.abc.net.au/worldtoday/content/2004/s1202986.htm - a sentiment echoed by others in the party at that time. Party founder Andrew Evans once said the party's vision was "to have a social conservative party. Jesus is our hero, he's our saviour, and we worship and love him, but in politics, it's no good me getting up and preaching about my faith, that's the church's role." http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/8.30/relrpt/stories/s1209308.htm. In the same interview, he also said "we're a family party based on Christian principles, but we're not church-based."

Related Topics:
Christian - Andrea Mason

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Despite its positioning as a secular party, it draws much of its support and many of its candidates from various Christian groups, predominantly Pentecostal ones, particularly the Assemblies of God.

Related Topics:
Pentecostal - Assemblies of God

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Andrew Evans was the General Superintendent of the Assemblies of God in Australia for twenty years http://www.aogaustralia.com.au/default.asp?ContentID=1000544. In a speech to the South Australian Legislative Council, he indicated belief in a religious basis for laws: "Out of his love for mankind has set boundaries and these boundaries have been accepted by the world as a foundation for the laws of every country."http://www.familyfirst.org.au/south_aus/ps_euthanasia_speech.html

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A large number of Family First's candidates are pastors or members of Assemblies of God churches. In New South Wales, 11 of their 23 candidates for the 2004 legislative election were from a single Assemblies of God church, the Hawkesbury Church in Windsor. During the election period, the Assemblies of God website was down for maintenance for a considerable period, making it difficult to verify the affiliations of many candidates.

Related Topics:
Pastor - New South Wales - 2004 legislative election - Windsor

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A pamphlet published by one of the party's Victorian Senate candidates, Danny Nalliah, stated that mosques and Buddhist and Hindu temples were Satan's strongholds and that people should pray for their destruction http://www.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,4057,10961079%255E36275,00.html. This, however, is clearly the opinion of one member, and is contrary to the stated policies of Family First.

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Family First's supporters typically characterise it as an essentially secular party open to all who share its values, Christian or otherwise; its detractors see it as an essentially religious party that has obfuscated its true nature and agenda in order to broaden its appeal. Regardless of which analysis is correct, Family First's declared policies and values are at the least highly compatible with those of socially-conservative Christianity.

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