Fired For Reposting The Babylon Bee - Interview With Jereth Kok

In a world where free speech and religious liberties are constantly under fire, an Australian doctor named Jereth Kok reveals how he was fired for sharing standard Christian beliefs on life and human sexuality online, including reposting a Babylon Bee article. 

We had the pleasure of interviewing him to hear more about his story, and the state of the nation and the church in the Western world. 

Hi Jereth, can you walk us through your decision to pursue medicine, and how your faith played a role in that journey?”

I actually went into medicine because it's what my parents wanted me to do. At uni, I joined a campus Christian group and ended up far more enthusiastic about learning the Bible than learning medicine! It was during those years that I developed an adult faith in Jesus, and came to understand that confessing Jesus as Lord meant bringing my entire life under his rule -- time, finances, career, pursuits, relationships, etc.

For those who don’t know your story, what happened to you regarding your medical license and your social media posts? 

In 2015, I wrote an article for an Australian Christian newspaper about the transgender issue. I also regularly shared my opinions about various topics on Facebook. In 2018 and 2019, two anonymous complaints were made to the Australian Medical Board about the transgender article and my Facebook posts. The Medical Board subsequently hired forensic IT specialists to search Facebook and the internet for things I've written. They took issue with a number of Facebook posts and blog comments, particularly where I had stated my political and Christian views about abortion, homosexuality, transgenderism, and gender transitioning (sex-change) "therapies".

In 2019, on the basis of the article and social media posts, the Medical Board exercised its emergency powers to suspend me from practice. This left me unable to continue providing care to my patients (I worked in family practice), unable to earn an income, unable to practice medicine anywhere in Australia. I then had to wait until 2024 before the matter was finally brought to a professional misconduct trial, which is now in progress. In the meantime, because I have a family to support, I had to re-train myself and jump into an alternative industry to earn a living.

After 2020-21, the medical board re-searched my Facebook page and added to my list of (alleged) "crimes" a number of posts I had made (many of them humourous!) that were critical of the very harsh Covid lockdowns and vaccine mandates that we endured in Australia. This even included Babylon Bee articles and a Twitter post by Allie Beth Stuckey that I had shared.

Were you aware when you posted these things that you were likely to get blowback professionally? Was this an intentional stand, or an inadvertent one?

It was definitely not intentional! I did not think that the Medical Board would have much interest in what I wrote on the internet, outside of office hours, in a personal capacity, so long as I did my job properly during the day. I thought they were only concerned with how I conducted my practice and looked after my patients. Apart from the article in the Christian newspaper, I did not have a large audience -- only my own friends would have seen what I wrote. I understood that Christian beliefs about LGBT topics are unpopular and seen by many as outdated, but I did not state my views in a vulgar manner.

What was going through your mind as this happened? Was it hard to stand firm? 

I was shocked and dismayed to be suddenly suspended from practice. It was distressing to be suddenly cut off from my patients and co-workers at my practice. I did not believe I was being treated fairly; it felt like a witch hunt. However, I hold my beliefs with conviction and was not going to back down from them.

What was your family’s reaction like?

My wife has been very supportive. She believes all the same things I do. The reactions of extended family members has been a little mixed, as you might expect, depending on whether they are Christians or non-Christians.

What do you think your case signifies for the broader issues of freedom of speech and religious liberty in Australia?

Freedom of speech has been steadily eroded in Australia over the last 10 or 20 years, and so has religious freedom. I think my experience -- being indefinitely suspended from my profession and effectively thrown out of a career -- is a particularly nasty manifestation of this erosion of rights. Several Australian states have now passed laws which prevent people from saying anything critical about "sexual minorities", and these laws have already resulted in several individuals being dragged into lawsuits for vocally criticising drag queen performances to children, and so forth.

Have you had some support from within the medical community? If so, what has that looked like?

I've had many individuals reach out privately to offer support and solidarity. Particularly other Christian doctors. Some have kindly contributed to my legal costs.

What about the Australian church? Has anyone significant there spoken up on your behalf?

I've had several Christian cultural commentators, family organisations, and lobby groups advocate on my behalf. Members of the clergy and church denominations generally do not comment publicly on political issues, or only do so very rarely. They also generally do not comment on individual cases, except perhaps where it is a very high profile individual concerned.

What is the state of the Australian church like on these issues?

Many of the large denominations here are theologically liberal and some have fully embraced LGBT politics. However even the denominations which haven't gone liberal tend to struggle with the LGBT topic. They may take a biblical position internally in their teaching and pastoral care, but avoid saying too much in the public square about it. My home state of Victoria has made it illegal for anybody (including a church) to counsel a person away from a homosexual or transgender lifestyle. I think that this sort of thing causes a great deal of fear in the church, and people don't want to paint a target on their backs.

How has God taken care of you in the midst of all this?

He graciously enabled us to survive through several years without any income from a job, and then he provided me with a job in a new industry which I enjoy. God has provided a good legal team who are defending me in the tribunal, against the Medical Board's charges. He has given us a supportive church family. He has shown himself faithful.

Where are things at now?

(As of September 2024)

There was a five-day hearing in July, at which evidence was given by myself and several expert witnesses. I was subjected to hostile cross-examination for an entire day. I accepted that some of my language had the potential to be inflammatory -- for example, where I described abortion as "murder" and a "massacre" of the unborn, and sex-change surgery as "butchery"; but I also stood my ground regarding what I believe, and my right to express my beliefs. Currently, the two sides are preparing legal arguments which they will submit to the tribunal in October.

What does the immediate future look like for you?

Overall, I just carry on with life, work and family. I hope the tribunal will eventually make a sensible and fair ruling which acknowledges my Christian beliefs and preserves my ability to state them publicly.

How can people support you?

I still need to raise a fairly large amount of money to cover the legal costs of defending myself. Because our family went without an income for a few years, and then I have had to start all over again in a new career, we don't have very much money to spare, certainly not enough to pay for expensive legal fees. So I am relying on crowd-funding. I would appreciate it very much if people could donate to my fundraising campaign, as they are able, and share it with others as well. This is the link: https://www.givesendgo.com/GT59