TamTalks- Slaughtering Sacred Cows: Why Challenging the Past is Necessary

Thomas Fudge’s recently published book Darkness: The Conversion of Anglican Armidale, 1960-2019 is an example of a destabilising history inviting new approaches to understanding the past. This presentation explores how a dominant discourse might be reimagined.

The fundamental question remains: Whose history is being told? New evidence, new methods and new understanding emerge as time passes and this is conducive for examining old evidence, old ideas, old truths. Stanford University Emeritus Professor of Law, Robert W. Gordon noted: ‘Lawyers have persistently been accused of abusing history, distorting the past, and making demands upon it to carry burdens of current relevance that it cannot possibly sustain.’

The observation can be applied across society and culture. The story of the conversion of Anglican Armidale has broad relevance and Darkness aims to slaughter sacred cows congregated in the church.