#ITC11: Patrick McInerney on the Catch the Fire Ministries Case

In 2002, a Christian group called ‘Catch the Fire Ministries’ conducted a seminar on Islam. Members of the Islamic Council of Victoria attended, and in response to what was presented: Islam equated with violent jihad, brought an action under Victoria’s Racial and Religious Tolerance Act. VCAT found in the Islamic Council’s favour, but Catch the Fire Ministries appealed, successfully, to the Court of Appeal. Father Patrick McInerney, a Columban priest and an expert on Islam, was a witness for the Islamic Council. He did not know what he would face, in the course of the hearing.