Festival of Light Australia
| Founded | 1973 as the Australian Festival of Light |
|---|---|
| Focus | family values |
|
Area served
|
Australia |
|
Key people
|
David Phillips |
| Mission | Promotion of Christian family values |
| Website | www.fava.org.au |
|
Formerly called
|
Australian Festival of Light and Community Standards Organisation |
FamilyVoice Australia is an Australian organisation promoting Christian family values. It was known as Festival of Light Australia from 1973 to 2008. Its stated mission was to be "a Christian ministry to the nation, promoting true family values in the light of the wisdom of God". The name was changed to FamilyVoice Australia on 1 July 2008 in order to eliminate confusion with the many other festivals or groups around the world called "Festival of Light" or "Festival of Lights". Key activities of FamilyVoice Australia are providing information to supporters, churches and community leaders and lobbying on issues of concern.
It was founded in Adelaide in 1972 as the Australian Festival of Light and Community Standards Organisation, with the name and inspiration from United Kingdom's Nationwide Festival of Light founded in 1971.
It came out of work by the Australian Community Standards Organisation (CSO), which had recently merged with the South Australian Moral Action Committee. Moral Action Committee members included Reverend Lance Shilton, Rector of Holy Trinity Anglican Church in Adelaide and later Anglican Dean of Sydney; Dr John H. Court, then senior lecturer in psychology at Flinders University, and Peter Daniels. South Australian delegates at a CSO meeting in Melbourne in 1972 led the move to hold "a nationwide act of Christian witness, similar to that conducted in Britain last year (Festival of Light)".
Rev. Lance Shilton then initiated an interdenominational steering committee to establish the Australian Festival of Light at a meeting in Toorak Gardens, Adelaide, in November 1972. The committee appointed Dr Court as chairman; Rev Shilton and Mrs Roslyn Phillips as deputy chairmen, and Peter Daniels as publicity officer.
The Festival of Light was formally launched in Adelaide in June 1973 with a media conference and the release of a new book by Dr Court and SA journalist Helen Caterer, Stand Up and Be Counted, which aimed to motivate readers to defend publicly their Christian faith and values.
Lance Shilton’s network of contacts through the Australian Evangelical Alliance and the Community Standards Organisation led to the formation of independent branches of Festival of Light (which later included the Community Standards Organisation) in all Australian states. Reverend Fred Nile accepted leadership of the NSW branch in July 1973, becoming the full-time director in January 1974. Mr Nile greatly increased the organisation’s activity and public profile.
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