#LetMyPeopleSing
It was Franz Kafka who famously wrote in his book The Trial, “It is often better to be in chains than to be free”. The ancient Israelites tragically agreed with that when they grumbled about wanting to go back to being slaves in Egypt (see Num. 14:2). But it seems like the Christian church has fallen into exactly the same temptation today in its eagerness to over-comply with the government’s COVID-19 health guidelines.on singing
Just take, for instance, the continued ban in New South Wales on singing. Every major denomination — Protestant and Catholic — has fallen over itself in expunging congregational praise from its worship. Even if one is wearing a mask. Meanwhile, over at the Sydney Cricket Ground, last weekend a packed stadium of Sydney Sixes fans chanted and sang, all while being completely unmasked. And no-one had a concern.
Rev. Dominic Steele, the Senior Minister at Village Church Annandale, has respectfully and concisely issued the following challenge on social media:
24 days is a long period of no community transmission.
There is now no remaining logic for the continued ban on singing in NSW churches.
Join me in praying that the NSW Government quickly sees sense on this issue.
However, I would go even further. It’s time for Christians everywhere to grow a backbone and stop being “evan-gelly-fish”. The NSW government has never officially ‘banned’ singing, but simply said that it is not recommended. Note, this is the same government which has also introduced some of the most extreme abortion laws in the world.
Let me be clear, this is technical legal jargon which has been carefully chosen to express the desire of the government without enforcing a legal penalty. However, from the response of most Christians though, you’d think that it had the authority of a papal encyclical.
No-one I know wants to put the health of their neighbour at risk, and neither do they deliberately want to go against government advice. But what has now become clear is that these recommendations discriminate against people of faith.
Steele is right. #LetMyPeopleSing
[Photo by Mariah Solomon on Unsplash]Recent Articles:
10 November 2025
2.8 MINS
After nearly nine years of anguish and unanswered questions, the Malaysian High Court has delivered a historic verdict in the case of Pastor Raymond Koh — a Christian leader who was abducted in broad daylight in 2017 and has never been seen since.
10 November 2025
2.5 MINS
In the shadow of global silence, the people of Darfur, Sudan—especially Christians—are enduring one of the most severe humanitarian and spiritual crises of our time.
10 November 2025
1.9 MINS
When Muslims kill Muslims in Sudan, it’s genocide. But when Muslims kill Christians in Nigeria — 7,000 this year at the rate of 35 murders a day — it’s apparently “complex”.
10 November 2025
3.1 MINS
We are excited to tell you that International Men’s Day is coming up on Wednesday, 19 November. The theme this year is "Celebrating Men and Boys". We are running an extraordinary global livestream on International Men’s Day with guests from all over the world.
7 November 2025
5.4 MINS
New York City has chosen its next mayor. But even as the Australian media heaps praise on Zohran Mamdani, the Muslim socialist’s victory speech betrayed his radical agenda for the world’s most influential city.
7 November 2025
5.4 MINS
Australia is experiencing a significant shift in its view of morality. The “gay conversion therapy” laws now Australia-wide are the exemplar of this. The prevailing narrative grounded in mechanistic thinking has abandoned God and the ethical code embodied in a Christian worldview.
7 November 2025
5.6 MINS
Income splitting is a type of family tax policy that treats the family, rather than the individual, as the basis of taxation. It allows couples to pool and then split their incomes for tax purposes, thus reducing the tax paid on the highest earning partner.
