Christians must engage with the political arena and make a difference

"It is not the critic who counts: not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself for a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat."
"Citizenship in a Republic,"
Theodore Roosevelt, Speech at the Sorbonne, Paris, April 23, 1910

The above quote by is nearly one hundred years old yet the point it makes is, I believe, highly pertinent. In this short article I hope I can suggest why.

On 6 April I registered the birth of my son Joshua, had a challenging chat about faith and politics and pondered the possibility of West Brom gaining promotion. Such is life. Finally, the Prime Minister confirmed that there would be a General Election on 6 May.

This election brings the prospect of a potential change in Government following a Parliament that will be remembered for financial scandal and the credit crunch. However else you remember it will perhaps reflect your politics, experience and personal priorities.

For Christians, the election offers a chance to demonstrate that we care about our world and nation and take responsibility in 'choosing' our earthly leaders.

I will be campaigning in London and the Midlands on behalf of Labour candidates. For, even greater than my passion to see West Brom promoted is an infinitely more meaningful passion to see positive Christian engagement in politics across a broad set of issues, rooted in biblical values and acting in a prayerful, thoughtful manner.

In short, I would like to see Christian activity in the ‘mission field’ of politics characterised by energetic kingdom-centred engagement in the ‘arena’, to coin Roosevelt’s phraseology.

How do we enter the arena and make a difference? Whatever you do, I ask you to pray, vote and engage in a positive manner. If you can, consider joining the party you normally vote for. Maybe spend a little time and think about the demands on MPs and consider that many of them really did go into the job for good reasons.

Who you vote for is your choice. However, not voting and not caring I think, is poor citizenship. Despite all the reasons we feel the political elite have given us for protesting this time in whatever way we so choose I submit to you that Christians have a responsibility and an opportunity to have a radically different approach.

I had the privilege recently of preaching in my church. Referring to a passage in Philippians 3 vv17-4v1, I made three simple points; that our primary identity is in Heaven, yet we are called to have compassion on this broken world and that we are to eagerly seek the kingdom of God. So, as the election approaches perhaps my wee sermon might help in suggesting some simple principles to apply to the questions posed by a General Election to UK Christians. We should stay rooted in a Christian worldview, demonstrate God’s compassion and get ‘stuck in’, seeking his Kingdom eagerly and reflecting on what this means for UK politics.

There is no perfect theological approach to politics but there are some amazing Christians and Christian initiatives to be found engaging with the UK political structures. Let us not, even inadvertently, accept the attitude of the critic and judge those in the arena from a ‘safe distance’.

We are citizens of Heaven, with responsibility for this broken world. We are called to a prophetic role, but not to be caustic critics and passive consumers.

Ian Geary is on the Executive of the Christian Socialist Movement. For more information go to http://www.thecsm.org.uk/