Chris McDonnell, UK
christymac733@gmail.com

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July 24, 2019

The politics of power, The faith of the people

It is a perennial question, how far should religious belief influence our political choice? And to what extent has the political State the right to interfere with religious practice? It is a question that has been around a long time with its influence evident in our present age.

The Civil Rights movement, the demand of those Americans of colour for political opportunity, was strongly supported by the Christian Baptists in the southern States. Many of the activists whose names became famous were preachers and their delivery of a political message was strongly influenced by this background.

In August '63, after the People's March on Washington DC, Martin Luther King addressed the huge crowd, reading from a prepared script. It was not going well till King was seen to put aside his notes in order to speak directly to the people. One of his aides was heard to say "Now we are going to church". The memorable brilliance of 'I have a dream' followed and became an inspirational theme of the whole Movement.

In recent years the voice of a Benedictine nun, Sr. Teresa Forcades has been prominent in Catalonian politics. Born in Barcelona, she attended university there, reading medicine. She moved to the US in '92 to complete a medical residency. Later she gained a master of divinity degree from the Harvard school of divinity. Further qualifications followed back home in Catalonia, where entering the Benedictine order in 1997, she finally received a doctorate in Theology in 2009.

Her voice has been strong in the defence of the rights of the individual and the need for the State to respect those rights. Through her frequent presence in all aspects of the media she has demonstrated the interdependence of personal faith and political commitment. 

In a different manner in Central America Oscar Romero gave voice to the poor and disadvantaged, an action that resulted in his assassination by the state of El Salvador in March 1980, the cost of belief his ultimate statement of faith.

The Liberation Theology movement in South America is well documented through the writings of Leonardo Boff and Gustavo Gutiérrez. The real presence of Christ demands a positive response.

Then there are the difficult questions where moral perspective is a significant factor, no-one more so than the matter of state legislation over Abortion. How far should the sincere views of an elected representative govern their vote within a political party in the legislature? It is an issue that faces Catholic politicians in many countries. Honest debate has to recognise that a democracy only functions effectively when many points of view are considered.

The separation of Church and State recognises that not everyone holds the same position; informed tolerance of positions is likely to involve compromise. We all have to live in some degree of accommodation with our neighbour. That was the story of the Irish Peace Agreement in marked by Seamus Heaney's words, quoted by Bill Clinton- "Once in a lifetime the longed for tidal wave of justice can rise up, and hope and history rhyme."

Our opinions are infused with personal belief. The ultimate price of conscience can be high. Just as we expect others to respect our position so should we understand their point of view. When clerical advice is offered from the pulpit at the time of elections, it must always be referenced to the informed conscience of the listener. The action that follows stems from such principle.

The minefield that we walk through when we venture into education is all too apparent. It was a source of contention in Northern Ireland and has been in the news here in England with the dispute over LGBT issues in the classrooms of a Birmingham school. It is a dispute that will not be resolved through street protest but only by honest and open discussion with respect on all sides.

Politics represents an amalgam of interests, reflecting the many influences in our social lives. It is inevitable that religious belief should be part of that pattern. It is worthwhile asking the question - was the turmoil of the European Reformation a political question with religious overtones or the converse?

On many occasions in recent years, places of worship have been targeted with no one spared. Synagogues have been attacked in US, Mosques subject to fire arm assault in New Zealand and Christian churches in various parts of the world bombed and burnt, recently with great loss of life in Sri Lanka.

We must always ask questions of others, matching the answers against our faith recognising that one size doesn't fit all. Membership of a political party, casting a vote in an election demands an informed background that our life experience has shaped.

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