THE Australian Senate has rejected an attempt to remove the
Lord's Prayer from the start of each sitting.
Senator Dr Richard Di Natale, who represents the Australian
Greens, moved that the Senate's procedure committee should consider
replacing the Lord's Prayer with an invitation to senators silently
to "pray or reflect upon our responsibilities to the people of
Australia, to the states and territories which we represent, and to
all future generations". His motion was defeated.
The Coalition Government Senate leader, Eric Abetz, had
criticised the move as part of the Greens' "ongoing attempt to
rewrite our history and deny our heritage".