What role did Christian faith play in Scott Morrison’s prime ministership?

During his office, Australia’s first Pentecostal prime minister dismissed questions about whether he separated his private faith and public duties.

But Morrison’s memoir Plans for Your Good – A Prime Minister’s Testimony of God’s Faithfulness, whose publication date was announced on Thursday, might clear things up.

Former leaders usually sell books with the promise of dishing dirt on their former colleagues.

Christian imprint

But Thomas Nelson, Morrison’s publisher, is spruiking an insider’s account of a different kind, from “a Christian who was open about his faith and operated at the top level of politics for more than a decade”.

A Christian imprint owned by News Corp’s HarperCollins is an unusual choice for a prime ministerial memoir, and its history has not been entirely free of controversy.

In 2012, Thomas Nelson had to pull a biography of former President Thomas Jefferson from shelves after it was dubbed the “least credible history book in print”.

The book claimed that Jefferson and other founding fathers did not believe in separating church and state.

Morrison’s book is available for pre-order. Photo: TND

“Less political memoir and more pastoral encouragement,” the publisher says, claiming Morrison’s book will answer the questions to which we all want answers.

Those include: “Who am I? Discovering your purpose.”

Over the weekend, Morrison appeared underneath a banner containing another question, one that has been figuratively hanging over him for a year since revelations emerged about him secretly assuming cabinet portfolios.

“Where to from here? Scott Morrison,” read the projection on stage at Perth’s Encounter City Church where the former prime minister delivered a sermon to mark its 50th anniversary.

Sent from God?

In his introduction to the sermon, Encounter City’s pastor, Phil McCourt, was more appreciative and relayed an observation from his wife that compared Morrison to Jesus. 

“The 30th Prime Minister of Australia [… that …] means to take authority, to be dedicated … and [a] sacrificial breakthrough,” he said.

“Jesus entered into ministry at 30; it’s a coming of age time.

“And you … were not an accident to be the 30th Prime Minister of Australia. We needed that.”

Morrison has previously rejected as a mischaracterisation a report of a speech he gave in office describing having been called to do God’s work as prime minister.

On Sunday he acknowledged McCourt’s generous introduction.

“I didn’t know that about 30. But now when you say it, and particularly in terms of when Jesus’ ministry started … I … I… Yes, that’s true,” he said.

“God has a way of saying things into your life about some of these events.”

After leaving office, Morrison registered a company called Triginta (Latin for ‘thirty’).

He has acknowledged the importance of symbolism and, last year, at another evangelical Perth church, counselled the congregation against trusting in governments.

“My daughter was born on the seventh of the seventh 2007 after 14 years of what was [quite] another journey,” he said on Sunday.

“God always has a way of reminding us, doesn’t he, of who’s in charge? And it’s not us. And thank God for that. Thank God for that.”