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Destiny's political ambition

Mar 25, 2005 10:34 PM

The popularity of the Destiny Church is about to be tested in the most public forum of all - the ballot box.

Branding itself Destiny New Zealand, the Church's political offshoot says it wants to bring strong political values back into parliament.

With an election looming and many smaller parties are fighting to survive, Destiny New Zealand believes a higher power will help them pass over to parliament.

"It is time to take political control of our destiny. Our government must become a place where our families are protected and respected," says Destiny Party leader Richard Lewis.

The party says it wants to run candidates in all 69 electorates this year - it has earmarked forty seats already.

"Bishop Tamaki has told me he will be campaigning on behalf of the party strongly this election year," says Lewis.

"Destiny New Zealand the political party is an entirely separate institution as that of the church... But you can't separate religion from politics," he says.

The policies of the party and the church are identical.

Destiny New Zealand would introduce the definition of marriage act to exclude all but a man and a woman from marriage.

They want to repeal the prostitution act, raise the legal drinking age to 20, fight abortion by establishing legal rights for children from conception and strive for a uniform flat tax rate for everyone.

"I think there's a voting population out there right now that's looking for a destiny kind of level of conviction," says Lewis.

United Future's leader Peter Dunne says he does not fear Destiny, but the rest of the country should.

"Bishop Tamaki's cult is an extreme sect," says Dunne.

"I wouldn't want to see the traditional position of the mainstream Churches compromised by a brash newcomer simply trying to install a particular doctrine over everyone else. The same thing as what the Taliban tried to do in Afghanistan of course," he says.

"What Mr Lewis seems to be incapable of understanding is that politics is the art of the achievable."

Under MMP, the closest a religious party has come to winning a seat was the Christian Coalition in 1996.

Political scientist Nigel Roberts is not backing Destiny to improve on that.

But he says Destiny's policy of targeting the Pacific Island vote could win them 100,000  votes - enough to break the five percent threshold and put them in parliament.

"If Destiny New Zealand were to clear the threshold, it would probably clear it very, very narrowly. A bit like the Greens did in 1999. But as I say, I think that's still a very long shot."

Despite the odds, Lewis says he is driven to try - driven by a tragedy five years ago when he was a police sergeant in South Auckland.

"The children had arrived at school to find a 17-year-old boy hanging from a tree in their playfield," says Lewis.

"I'd dealt with several suicides in my time with the police, but that was defining moment. I come back to that picture for motivation sometimes," he says.

Lewis has been motivating others in small community gatherings at garages and halls around the country.

The head of the Baptist Church in New Zealand, Brian Winslade, says Christians who want to vote should seek guidance from the Bible.

"I don't see there Christians marching, protesting shaking their fists as those that govern the land. What I see there are Christians that actually change the fabric of society by their good deeds, their love and their care for people," says Winslade.

"I won't be voting for Destiny," he says