Church of England bishops were instrumental in torpedoing Government plans for a £26,000 limit on welfare handouts – an amount which is apparently higher than the average national salary. They voiced concern over the impact such a cap might have on children.
As a British citizen who has spent most of his life living and working in some of the most impoverished parts of Africa, I observe with interest the beliefs of the Church and perhaps the bulk of the British population about the welfare state. Its institution as far back as 1948 means that most of today’s generation have no experience of any other lifestyle except state provided security from the cradle to the grave – a benefit that can only be envied by the populations of almost every other country in the world.
As a consequence, the question which rarely seems to be addressed either in public forums or in the Church is the extent to which these benefits are a right or a privilege. For the hard-nosed taxpayer it’s probably a no-brainer – “I pay my taxes, therefore I have a right to the benefits”. But there are, of course, many of our citizens who do not pay taxes, and for whom many of these benefits are designed to assist. But the danger sets in when such privileges begin to be viewed as rights.
From a Christian perspective, the biblical message seems to me to point the Church in the direction of serving and assisting the poor and vulnerable ourselves rather than accusing the State of not shouldering that responsibility. In Luke 14, Jesus said, “When you give a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind, and you will be blessed. Although they cannot repay you, you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous”.
Similarly, Jesus told the rich young ruler to “Go, sell your possessions and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me” (Matthew 19:21). Clearly, throughout the whole of Scripture, God is the champion of the poor. The Christian Gospel is emasculated when the social dimension is ignored, but the Bible always seems to place the onus for this on the followers of Christ themselves.
There’s no question, therefore, that Church of England bishops should be concerned about the welfare of the poor and vulnerable in society. And certainly, the fact that 76% of voters may be in favour of the Government’s proposals does not in itself make the proposals right. Being overwhelmingly popular does not establish the rightness or wrongness of the cause.
