David Smith (born 17 February 1962), sometimes referred to as "Fighting Father Dave", is an Australian

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

priest. Smith is known for his work with at-risk youths, especially in his use of

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

for those with substance abuse problems and

anger management Anger management is a psycho-therapeutic program for anger prevention and control. It has been described as deploying anger successfully.Schwarts, Gil. July 2006. Anger Management', July 2006 The Office Politic. Men's Health magazine. Emmaus, PA: ...

issues. He is also a 6th degree black belt and a professional

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: *Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing * Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

. His progression into

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

and boxing happened while he was attempting to raise funds for the community in

Dulwich Hill Dulwich Hill is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. It is 7.5 kilometres south-west of the Sydney central business district, in the local government area of Inner West Council. Dulwich Hill stretche ...

, where he was the

parish priest A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...

. Smith is also a published author and has taken a very public stance on various human-rights issues, most especially the Israel-Palestine conflict and the Syrian civil war, where he opposes all forms of Western military intervention. Smith has twice been awarded the

Marrickville Marrickville is a suburb in the Inner West of Sydney, in the state of New South Wales, Australia. Marrickville is located south-west of the Sydney central business district and is the largest suburb in the Inner West Council local government ...

Citizen of the Year award and was nominated for

Australian of the Year The Australian of the Year is a national award conferred on an Australian citizen by the National Australia Day Council, a not-for-profit Australian Government-owned social enterprise. Similar awards are also conferred at the state and territor ...

in 2004 and 2009. In 2012, he broke the world record for the most continuous rounds of boxing. In 2020, Smith was required to resign from his parish by his diocese after his second marriage breakdown. Smith ran as a candidate for the

United Australia Party The United Australia Party (UAP) was an Australian political party that was founded in 1931 and dissolved in 1945. The party won four Elections in Australia, federal elections in that time, usually governing Coalition (Australia), in coalition ...

in the

Division of Grayndler The Division of Grayndler is an Electorates of the Australian House of Representatives, Australian electoral division in the States and territories of Australia, state of New South Wales. It is currently represented by Prime Minister of Austra ...

in the

2022 Australian federal election The 2022 Australian federal election was held on Saturday, 21 May 2022, to elect members of the 47th Parliament of Australia. The incumbent Morrison government, Liberal–National Coalition government, led by Prime Minister Scott Morrison, soug ...

Early life

Smith was born in Newtown, Sydney, in 1962 to Bruce and Joan Smith – the oldest of three boys. His father was a well-known Evangelical Anglican priest,

public speaker Public speaking, is the practice of delivering speeches to a live audience. Throughout history, public speaking has held significant cultural, religious, and political importance, emphasizing the necessity of effective rhetorical skills. It all ...

and theological lecturer. Smith completed an arts degree with honours in

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

in 1984 before beginning studying

theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

Moore College Moore Theological College, otherwise known simply as Moore College, is the theological training seminary of the Diocese of Sydney in the Anglican Church of Australia. The Anglican Archbishop of Sydney holds ''ex officio'' the presidency of t ...

in 1985. He completed two degrees in theology in 1988 and was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

a priest in the

Anglican Church of Australia The Anglican Church of Australia, originally known as the Church of England in Australia and Tasmania, is a Christian church in Australia and an autonomous church of the worldwide Anglican Communion. In 2016, responding to a peer-reviewed study ...

in 1989.

Career

After ordination, Smith spent two years in the parish of Miranda (in Sydney's south) before being appointed to

(in Sydney's inner-west) in December 1990. When Smith became the parish priest in Dulwich Hill it was known as an area that was rife with drugs. In 1991, he began to focus on working with young people with drug problems in the area and opened up the

church hall A church hall or parish hall is a room or building associated with a church, generally for community and charitable use. In smaller and village communities, it is often a separate building near the church, while on more restricted urban sites ...

as an area where local youth could do fitness and martial arts training. In 1993, he founded the Order of the Fighting Fathers as a way of encouraging other priests and religious people to use the fighting arts to help young people overcome their

addiction Addiction is a neuropsychological disorder characterized by a persistent and intense urge to use a drug or engage in a behavior that produces natural reward, despite substantial harm and other negative consequences. Repetitive drug use can ...

s and lead fuller lives. Holy Trinity's youth centre went full-time in 1994, with the primary aim of being a safe place for local young people where they were provided with a safe place to be in with

counseling Counseling is the professional guidance of the individual by utilizing psychological methods especially in collecting case history data, using various techniques of the personal interview, and testing interests and aptitudes. This is a list of c ...

and spiritual input. In 2013, a young client burnt down the centre and this received widespread media coverage. Smith moved the centre to premises provided by the Dulwich Hill

Salvation Army The Salvation Army (TSA) is a Protestantism, Protestant Christian church and an international charitable organisation headquartered in London, England. It is aligned with the Wesleyan-Holiness movement. The organisation reports a worldwide m ...

. Smith's work in the community led him to twice be awarded the

Citizen of the Year award, in 1997 and 2009. In 2005 and 2009 he was also nominated for

, particularly for his work with young people battling substance abuse. In 2001, a short film was made about Smith, which is titled ''The Good Fight''. Smith has helped to organise numerous peaceful demonstrations, including a protest against the deportation of

Sheikh Mansour Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan (; born 20 November 1970), often referred to as Sheikh Mansour, is an Emirati royal and politician who is the current vice president and deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, as well a ...

Leghaei in 2009. He also marched and spoke at numerous rallies calling for justice for

Gaza Gaza may refer to: Places Palestine * Gaza Strip, a Palestinian territory on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean Sea ** Gaza City, a city in the Gaza Strip ** Gaza Governorate, a governorate in the Gaza Strip Mandatory Palestine * Gaza Sub ...

and

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

. In 2011, he and Sheikh Mansour planned to launch an Internet radio station on the theme of peaceful inter-faith relations. In 2011, Smith began training in an attempt to break the world record for the longest period of continuous boxing. On 1 April 2012, he boxed continuously for eight hours against 66 opponents over 120 three-minute rounds. He succeeded in breaking the world record and received extensive media coverage, including from

Fox Sports Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world. The name originates from Fox Broadcasting Company in the United States, which in turn derives its name from Fox Fi ...

. The previous world record before this attempt was 26 rounds. On 19 February 2016, Smith returned to professional boxing to raise money for youth programs and became Australia's oldest ever professional boxer.

Author

Smith is a self-published author and in 2020 published ''Christians and Muslims can be Friends''. Previously he wrote the book ''Sex, the Ring and the Eucharist''. The book is a series of snapshots from Smith's life and is known for its straight talking and honesty, as well as Smith being critical of the established church and the legal system. Despite the criticism, it has been said that there is a pervading sense of faith and hope running through the book.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Dave Living people 1962 births 20th-century Australian Anglican priests 21st-century Australian Anglican priests Australian male martial artists Australian male boxers Place of birth missing (living people) 20th-century Australian sportsmen Activists for Palestinian solidarity