Luke Walladge's article 'Embracing Good Friday Football' (17 March) invites 'the Church' to emulate the Anzac Day Match at the MCG and claims that the Anzac Day message is enhanced by the Match. It says 'the Church' could use such a match to project the Easter message.
There would be many RSL leaders and veterans who would doubt that the Anzac Day message has been successfully conveyed through into the Last Post being played to a packed stadium impatient for the centre bounce and the crunch of clashing bodies. Far, far more effective has been the Dawn Service with its long hushed silences and deep reflections.
The proposal that a match at the MCG could project an Easter message is ludicrous. The Easter message calls for time and prayerful reflection.
Good Friday is, with Christmas Day, the only day when Australia respects the tradition of a majority of its people that an event of epoch-making importance — critical in Western civilisation — is remembered in a special fashion.
As to the writer's reference to 'the church', the concern for Good Friday is wider than that of any one church. It extends to the millions (over 60 per cent) of Australians who still say they are Christians. Moreover, the leaders of other great faiths such as Islam and Judaism have repeatedly supported the special status of Good Friday.
The suggestion that Good Friday football could be good for religion is a specious one. Only the most naive — or PR agents — would fail to see that the regular attempts to sell Good Friday football are driven solely by money.
By able and sensitive leadership the AFL has made a great success of spreading Aussie Rules over Australia. I say sensitive because it has for example made a strong point of linking AFL to the success of Australia's multicultural communities and policies.
There are few better indicators of successful social cohesion than involvement in sport, especially Australian Rules, by new communities both as players and as supporters.
The well informed and the sensitive — and so far the AFL has been both — would know that culture and religion are inextricably entwined and that every new settler brings a religion with him or her. These religions are a precious part of their culture and a valuable aid in the settlement process.
Christians and adherents of other faiths would be appalled by a Mega Match at Australia's largest stadium and millions-plus TV coverage of a game on Good Friday. They would be even more appalled by the pathetic charade of a quick 'prayer' purporting to convey the enormous significance of what took place on Calvary nearly 2000 years ago.
Sir James Gobbo is Chairman of the Australian Multicultural Foundation. He is a former Governor of Victoria.