Peter Garrett: From the Old Library Lawns to the Australian Stage

The reality is that a casual acceptance of Christianity allows for the preservation of institutional and social norms that are no longer reflective of a multicultural and diverse Australia. In gripping onto using the Lord’s prayer every day in parliament or swearing on the Bible in court, we inherently protect a set of values brought here with the colonisation of this country. This sort of cultural inertia isn’t just a harmless bit of fun, it continues to justify an image of Australia that is predominantly Christian and more significantly, white.

In a country that is now made up of so many faiths, cultures and backgrounds whilst beginning to come to terms with the violence of its colonial past, there is no place for the institutional importance of Christianity. The absent-minded continuation of these practices and moral attitudes without actually believing in it gives credibility and legitimacy to institutions that lost such characteristics long ago.

Let’s ignore their respective abuse and sexual assault allegations for a second. Former high profile coalition MPs Alan Tudge and Christian Porter both expressed their disdain for the legalisation of same-sex marriage on the basis that it would destroy the Christian family unit. A viewpoint that despite its obvious bigotry is essentially a religious freedom trump card, not to mention that their entitlement to use it is hotly debated and controversial. Nevertheless, I struggle to believe the authenticity of their concern for such family values given their undeniable marital infidelity, a somewhat obvious assault on the sanctity of the traditional family. It seems that as we move away from strict adherence to the Bible and living a God-fearing life, there has been ample opportunity to use a pick-and-choose approach to biblical interpretation that frankly, is manipulated to justify being awful under the guise of some higher morality.

In pretending that Australia is still a country of strongly practicing Christians we allow room for unsavoury ideas to take hold, thrown like stones from people who are definitely in glass houses (cough cough George Pell). Almost as though hypocrisy is now more acceptable because our adherence to biblical principles isn’t expected to be as strong.

It shouldn’t be seen as an act of nonconformity to not be baptized, married in a church, or God forbid (pun intended) not married at all. If you don’t actually believe in God, what is the point in pretending you do? Casual Christianity only serves to keep alive something many people are moving away from and continue to justify its centrality in often rigid institutions. Rituals, rites of passage and celebration are not just fun, they are key to our humanity. They guide culture, foster connection with others and bring us so much joy. It seems to me that it is time that we made a conscious effort for these customs to reflect a modern Australia.

Peter Garrett called in from his hotel in Cairns. Midnight Oil (or ‘The Oils’, as Peter endearingly calls them) had a show the next night. It was one stop on the band’s farewell tour showcasing their latest album, Resist. A few days earlier, he attended Burgmann College’s 50th Anniversary weekend as an alumnus of the college and the ANU. I got to speak to him about his journey from ANU lawns to the Australian (and beyond) stage, his thoughts on the post-COVID live music scene, and the significance of the Oil’s penultimate show on October 1st taking place on our very own Fellows Oval.

Born and raised in Sydney, Peter decided to venture to the Bush Capital in 1971. Like many others reading this, he considered himself an “occasional [law] student”, as self-described in his memoir, Big Blue Sky. He would become the first bar manager of Le Chat Noir, an institution that runs in the Burgmann common room to this day. It was this era of his life where his musical journey took off and so did his love of a city where he would eventually spend a decade in Parliament.

“I began my music career in Canberra as a student, right where you are,” He told me, “Playing pretty whacked out not altogether inspiring sort of rock and blues with synthesiser overlays – which was something we were fiddling around with at the time and trying to make work.”

Known for his passion and intensity on everything from his iconic moves on stage to activism on the environment and First Nations rights, Peter spoke fondly about the music scene of those early years at the ANU.

“One of the first shows I saw was on the old library lawns of the ANU when they opened it up for a bunch of bands who travelled from other places to come and play. Their names won’t mean anything to people now, but for me, as a young student, it was eye-opening and ear-opening to hear people play music in the Australian landscape with the Brindabella’s on one side and parliament house on the other… Ngunnawal and Ngambri land…”