Something I decided to help solve after the failures of the 2016 federal election is the level of misinformation that keeps too many Christians on the sidelines of the culture war, benign and impotent against the Marxists’ Long March through the institutions.

In 2016 ‘moderate’ Malcolm Turnbull had his leadership and policies tested at the only poll that matters. He lost 14 seats, winning government by the slimmest of margins possible. He was sold by ‘moderates’ as the great hope of Liberal electability, yet the conservative Tony Abbott, whom he deposed, repeatedly flourished in the same uniquely important national poll.

In 2010, Abbott led the Liberal/National coalition to gain 7 seats, equalling Labor’s result but failing to get the cross-bench support needed to form government. Three years later he gained a whopping 18 more seats and brought the Liberals back from the wilderness.

But ‘moderates’ sold the Party a bill of goods, and insisted only their limp policies and listing values could win seats. They haemorrhaged nearly all the ground conservatives had gained over 6 years, and on election night 2016 no one knew what the outcome would be.

The next day in my church, hundreds of Christians who’d stayed away from actually participating in politics suddenly cared enough to pray about the election outcome in the Sunday morning service. It left me wondering where they’d all been the day before, knowing full well it hadn’t been beside me in the trenches at polling places or volunteering themselves in any way to influence the election outcome they now claimed to care about.

The thing is, Australia is an inclusive democracy. Voting itself is compulsory because our system and traditions of democracy don’t just permit participation, it’s required at a basic level and invited at every level. Our constitution removes all barriers for the full participation of people with deep religious faith.

Separation of Church and State is an important foundation for democracy, yet commonly turned upside down by well-meaning Christians as well as cynical ‘moderates’ and ‘progressives’.

If the plain meaning of Sec. 116 is yet still ambiguous to radical secularists, even ordained ministers of religion are able to and do serve Australia as Members of Parliament. It is preposterous and irrational to suggest they should or could amputate their morality and spirituality before they walk the halls of power.

So then, how is it the ‘moderate’ factions of the various branches of the Liberal Party at times presume to object to the full and enthusiastic participation of conservative Christians in the life of the allegedly democratic Liberal Party?

Is a religious test okay in the Liberal Party’s rules, though clearly prohibited in Commonwealth legislation? When John Howard spoke of a ‘broad church’, was that naturally excluding Church-goers? Is the circus tent now meant to be large enough to include the clowns left of centre, but leave consistent conservatives outside?

Sadly, the exile of authentic Christians from the public square in an inclusive democracy like ours is all too often self-imposed for a myriad of reasons, none of which are coherent.

Sometimes it’s fear of debate, which is absurd given the various doctrinal debates which give rise to denominationalism.

Sometimes it’s fear of partisan divisions, which ignores the fact that the Bible speaks unambiguously about most of the important public discussions constantly in the headlines.

Sometimes it’s fear of discomforting parishioners and losing their offerings with their attendance, which neglects the 5-10 people looking for unapologetic Truth who will take the place of every person who leaves. Many fearless preachers against illiberal lockdowns and medical mandates saw their congregations swell even while they rebuked violation of conscience, bodily autonomy, and other God-given freedoms; and perhaps, because…

But worst of all is the gullible belief of the vitriol from the Lying Harlot Media whenever Christians try to democratically recruit more Christians to the Liberal Party, as if Christians are the only cultural group validly vilified when they try to coordinate their constituents or increase their influence.

The phrase ‘Separation of Church and State’ is only rightly understood as a synonym for religious liberty, not Christian political suppression. As Rev Martin Luther King Jr. preached – bringing all of his Christian conviction to politics, ‘The Church must be reminded that it is not the master or the servant of the State, but rather the conscience of the State. It must be the guide and the critic of the State, and never its tool.’

Christian Senator Alex Antic’s ethical efforts to recruit members to the Liberal Party has attracted pejorative headlines like, ‘Christian soldiers fight back in Liberals’ holy war’, and ‘The Divine Right: Pentecostal recruitment drive divides SA Libs’.

These headlines and the loaded language in other articles is unapologetically used by former newspapers to stoke fear of a group of people primarily based on their religious identity in such a way that would be unacceptable if it was any other group of people.

There is nothing the Left’s Long March through the institutions fears more than the conservatives and Christians they have vanquished through patience, persistence, and participation, imitating their success, and the silent majority’s march back.

They call it ‘Christian nationalism’ or ‘dominionism’, but it’s nothing more than what they’ve been doing themselves for the last 50+ years: quietly and politely turning up and speaking up until they win the numbers game. Even though leftists, progressives, and ‘moderates’ are nothing more than a fringe minority, they’ve finally prevailed in the war for our culture and been credited more than their due, simply because so many Christians haven’t bothered to even turn up at party preselections or volunteered on polling day.

That’s why on Sunday morning after the 2016 federal election, so many Christians looked like stunned mullets, suddenly wide-eyed in wonder that we might get Bill Shorten as Prime Minister, ‘God forbid!’

In less than a month, Sen Alex Antic, James Macpherson, and a variety of Christian political experts including myself will speak at the Church And State Conference in Adelaide. We’ll teach hundreds more Christians how to get out of the pews, why everyone should love their neighbours enough to participate in politics, and what the Bible actually says about it all.

The real test will be from whom the criticisms of such enthusiastic participation in our allegedly inclusive, liberal democracy, ultimately come. Such radical departures from Liberal values shouldn’t ever be called ‘moderate’, but Marxist.

Dave Pellowe is a Christian conservative writer and commentator, editor of The Good Sauce, and convener of the annual Church And State Summit. This article was first published here.