‘Where Is Humanity?’: Stabbed Christian Bishop Speaks Out Against Online Censorship

‘For us to say that free speech is dangerous, that free speech cannot be possible in a democratic country—I’m yet to fathom this.’

An undated supplied image obtained on April 16, 2024 of Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel. Police were called to the Christ the Good Shepherd Church at Wakeley, in Sydney's west, about 7pm on Monday after Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel was stabbed during a live-streamed sermon. AAP Image/Supplied by Christ of Good Shepherd Church

An Orthodox Christian bishop attacked during a live-streamed sermon has delivered a message to the Australian government after returning from hospital.

Assyrian Bishop Mar Mari Emmanuel, who suffered eye injuries following the attack, said that censorship went against the principle of integrity, morality, and democracy—the values which the “Western world, more-so, have been fighting for,” he argued.

His comments come as eSafety Commissioner Julie Inman Grant engages in a legal battle with social media platform X after her office handed down an order demanding the platform block 65 posts containing videos of the attack.

In response, Australian political leaders have continued chastising X and pushed for harsher sanctions to combat “misinformation” online.

Standing on the altar of the Christ The Good Shepherd Church on April 28—where the attack took place two weeks ago—with a bandage on his left eye, the bishop began the speech by addressing the Australian government and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Mr. Emmanuel noted he was “yet to fathom” the fact that free speech is being called “dangerous” in a democratic country.

“I believe in one thing, and that is the integrity and the identity of the human being,” Mr. Emmanuel said.

“Every human being has the right to express their belief.

“The Hindus have the right to express their beliefs. The Muslims have the right to express their beliefs. The atheists have the right to express their beliefs. Also the Christians have the right to express their beliefs.

“And for us to say that free speech is dangerous that free speech cannot be possible in a democratic country—I’m yet to fathom this.”

The bishop argued the “civilised and intellectual way” to deal with the incident is to be “able to criticise, to speak and maybe at some certain times we may sound or we may come across as offensive to some degree.”

“But for us to say that because of this freedom of speech, it is causing dramas and dilemmas, therefore, everything should be censored,” he added.

“Then where is democracy? Then where is humanity? Where is integrity? Where is where are the morals? Where are the ethics? What are the principles? What are the values which the Western world more-so have been fighting for?”

Everyone Needs to Find Their Purpose: Bishop

While the West has often prided itself on protecting human rights, as well as succeeded in “giving value to everything,” it has “failed miserably in giving purpose to everything,” the bishop noted.

“But until we find the purpose of the thing, we can never give it value.”

Mr. Emmanuel said in order to find out the purpose of being human, society needs to go back and find its origin, noting that spirituality is at the core of human purpose and values.

“Until we come back to this true divine God, we will continue abusing the human race. Because we got glued onto the value of the human and totally denied the purpose of the human.”