No. 2 - The Desire for 'My Place'

I'm not surprised that this is no. 2 in a book about Australian culture. What may be true for all humanity is especially true for a nation so largely comprised of immigrants.

Where do you come from? Where do you live? Where do you feel most at home?

These are key questions for Aussies.

Hugh is especially insightful in highlighting 'the shed' for guys. I think the aspect most important to 'the shed' is that it is the place where I can be myself. In a society where men are becoming confused about their roles then a 'safe place' will become increasingly important to them.

And while Hugh is right in his description of the car as 'my place' I'm not sure he fully understands why we have so many 'deep' conversations in it. I suspect it is because we have no where else to go. I've had some of my best conversations with people in a car because of the combination of the following factors: 1. No direct eye-contact ... so we can talk for a long time without it feeling too confrontational and awkward. 2. No where else to go - the conversation has to continue for the alternative is just silence ... or the radio!

Space & Morality - it is so true that we behave differently in cyberspace as in real space. The aggressive on-line debates or inappropriate use of FaceBook are just two of many examples. Our geographical locatedness (is that a word?) helps to earth our identity. If it is a very human temptation to wear masks then the internet actively encourages us in our play-acting. Integrity needs real space.

As MacKay recognises there are two sides to our desire for cultural identity. Like many Australians my identity has much to do with where I grew up and what countries my Father and Mother came from. However, this cultural identification can quickly lead to territorialism. It is fascinating talking to Michael Prodigalidad and Ross Ciano about growing up in Sydney as an Australian-Filipino and Australian-Italian. If 'my place' has boundaries (which it must to be 'my' space) then it will tend to exclude others. Passages like Ephesians 2 and Revelation 7 have profound implications for a truly Christian understanding of identity. Somehow heaven is depicted as being a place of diversity and unity, where we maintain our cultural identity but all barriers between us are removed in Christ.

Home Ownership is a big one. And it is an issue we must grapple with at PBC. As house prices escalate in the inner-west it is easy to spot the trend - Flo to house-share, possibly to married unit rent, to family and wanting to buy ... to having to move where we can afford. MacKay challenges the Aussie dream though. The Castle has weak foundations. Who says we have to own? All the research says that a community needs stable housing (i.e. you can stay for as long as you like) but this does not necessarily mean home ownership. Along with Tim Keller I'm happy to promote renting and bringing up a family in the city. As a deliberate choice. A good thing.

Of course the one thing that Hugh MacKay is not able to factor in is that 'my place' is not (ultimately) located in the here and now. From Abraham onwards God's people have been temporary stewards of the land because we know our home is in the new heaven and the new earth. This is not some kind of Greek Gnosticism that says that the physical earth is bad - Christ's kingdom will be physical too - but it does drastically alter out perspective. Like Aboriginals have always thought, we view ourselves more as custodians of the land than owners of it. My place will be where God's people are, where Christ is building his kingdom.