Australia has recently unveiled its tallest statue in the country, a 49-foot tall depiction of Swaminarayan, a manifestation of “God,” according to Hinduism.
The golden Hindu idol is located in Sydney and is part of the $41 million BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha cultural precinct, which spans 25 acres—about the size of 14 football fields. Swaminarayan, who lived from 1781 to 1830, is revered by his followers as a divine incarnation and the founder of a reformist Hindu movement.
The unveiling ceremony was attended by federal ministers Chris Bowen and Michelle Rowland, who welcomed Mahant Swami Maharaj, the 93-year-old spiritual head of the Swaminarayan Order.
While the statue has garnered praise from some quarters, including politicians and parts of the mainstream media, it’s not without its critics. Australians have been voicing their concerns on social media, arguing that Australia is fundamentally a Christian nation, not a Hindu nation. The recent revelation that the most common surname in Victoria is now of Indian origin has intensified these frustrations.
One commentator lamented, “Immigrants should be integrating, not colonizing Australia,” while another declared it “an insult to Australians and our Christian ancestors.” Academic Stephen Chavura labelled the statue an “abomination,” contending that it signifies a loss of Australian identity and a betrayal of the nation’s Anglo-Celtic Christian heritage.
This is an abomination. Australia is losing any sense of identity as our governments approve the construction of massive pagan idols that have absolutely nothing to do with our Anglo-Celtic Christian heritage. This is a scar on our landscape. An act of cultural betrayal. https://t.co/1vgJ4DBvAm
— Stephen Chavura (@ChavuraStephen) March 11, 2025
The British Australian Community has echoed a similar sentiment, pointing out the government’s neglect of existing statues that honour ANZAC heroes and Captain Cook—over 40 of which have been vandalized or defaced. Meanwhile, historic churches are being sold off, unable to meet rising insurance and maintenance costs.
Our heritage is under siege. Over 40 statues and memorials, from ANZAC heroes to Captain Cook, have been vandalised, toppled, or defaced. These aren’t random acts of destruction—this is a coordinated campaign to erase our Anglo-Celtic foundations and demoralise our people.
— British Australian Community (@Brit_Aus_Com) February 7, 2025
When… pic.twitter.com/AdqMECdtve
Supporters of the statue argue that this represents a step towards “religious neutrality.” However, this claim is absurd. True religious neutrality is a myth; every society has a predominant faith that shapes its moral landscape. Every society has a dominant religion to which all other religious expressions must conform. In every predominantly Christian nation, every alternative religion is restrained, to some extent, by Christianity.
How we determine which alternative religious practices ought to be prohibited should be based on our recognised primary religious, and therefore, common moral foundation. In Australia, that is and always has been Christianity. As such, the question that needs to be answered is, will the public promotion of a religion contrary to Christianity help or harm our predominantly Christian society?
Determining the harm any contrary religion could potentially inflict on society will vary depending on what that religion deems morally acceptable. That is essentially what we’re talking about here. Religions differ in practice, but at the heart, those practices are dictated by differing moral standards. That is why, in the Christian West, there are alternative religious practices that are outlawed, despite other religions deeming them “morally good.” According to Christianity, these practices are not only harmful to the individual but detrimental to the broader society. The law agrees.
For example, in the Christian West, practices such as polygamy, female genital mutilation, slave labour, public nudity, animal sacrifice, incest, and child marriage are outright banned despite the fact that these are accepted cultural and religious practices elsewhere.
Ultimately, every religion should be evaluated based on its truth claims and the impact those beliefs have on society. One effective way to assess these effects is to examine societies where these beliefs have been deeply rooted over time. For example, we can consider a nation with a Hindu majority, such as India, where nearly 80% of the population identifies as Hindu.
So, the question we ought to be asking is, does India represent the kind of nation that Australia ought to model itself on? Without proper integration, increased immigration could reshape Australia in ways that challenge its foundational values at present, and lead to a very different Australia in the future. What we sow today, our children will reap tomorrow.
