Loving thy neighbour, not coal

I admire Richard Ackland as a journalist who tackles with aplomb the social and environmental issues in Australia and raises the ethics of some of our leaders whose private faith and public stances are often in conflict. However, he should be careful not to tar all people of faith with a love of coal or incarceration of innocent refugees. Unfortunately, and erroneously, Richard as Gadfly (“Burning the fossil record”, June 1723) tars all Christians with the same brush. He says, “It’s almost a given that those who believe in God also believe in coal.” As a lawyer, he has a responsibility to state the facts. As a journalist, he should just write, “Some Christians can be guilty of misinterpreting the teachings of the Bible.” Jesus commands His followers to “love our neighbours as ourselves” and our neighbour is anyone in need. It is God’s responsibility to bring the judgement, and that judgement is, “Have you done the will of Jesus Christ?”