Australasian Political Studies Association Conference 2003
Hosted by the School of Government
University of Tasmania

Political Theory Stream

The Separation of Church and State: Confusions and Delusions

John W. Tate
University of Newcastle

Abstract:

The separation of church and state is a fundamental liberal principle which emerged in Europe in the seventeenth century and was championed by Enlightenment thinkers in the eighteenth. Despite the fact that there is no such separation in the United Kingdom, the principle found its way into our Commonwealth Constitution in 1901. Yet there appears to be widespread confusion as to what the principle actually means in Australia. This was demonstrated most recently by the widespread claims surrounding the appointment and resignation of the former Archbishop of Brisbane, Dr. Peter Hollingworth, as Australia’s 23rd Governor-General – in particular, the claim that the appointment of a cleric to the vice-regal position violated the separation of church and state. This paper looks at the history of this principle in Australia, and suggests that there is a widespread misunderstanding of its legal and political meaning, particularly when it comes to state appointments.