Today White Australia says Sorry…

Today, the Australian government said sorry to the ‘stolen’ generation. I applaud Kevin Rudd for taking the initiative to make this historical apology.

I think it was the right thing to do. Yet too many people said 'I didn't do it. Why should I apologize?' I think this is a wrong argument.

Sometimes we have an ‘individualistic’ view of sin. We think that my sin is what matters, and all I am responsible for is my own actions.

But what we forget is that we live in a community. Humans are far more collective than we realize. When we elect a government that fights a war that we disagree with, we are responsible because we put them there. When one person sins, it affects people around us.

But sin also has consequences which flow over from one generation to the next. It affects people who come generations after us. When we don’t right the wrongs of previous generations, we are showing that we agree with their sin. The old saying is true: 'The fathers eat sour grapes, and the children's teeth are set on edge' (Ezekiel 18:2).

Our country prides itself upon its the achievements – we started off as a penal colony and look at the go we have made of the country. But we don’t take credit for the bad. And we need to.

And that’s why today I am proud to be an Australian. Because we said sorry. And it was long overdue.