Paul Coventry, the pastor of Greenock Baptist Church, has warned the Scottish Parliament against silencing or suppressing the views of people of faith and called upon Christians to be the “salt and light” of the world.
Pastor Paul, speaking at a recent Time For Reflection in the Scottish Parliament, said, “Often, when a politician or a citizen reveals that their position on a subject has, to some extent, been informed or shaped by their religious convictions, those views are dismissed as illegitimate or inadmissible.”
He suggested that the idea that faith is just a personal matter that has no place in the public sphere was unbiblical and bad for the country, noting Jesus command to set an example to the world.
“Where would our nation be had it not been for men and women of strong Christian conviction advocating for social change?” he said.
It was Christians inspired by their faith, he said, who had worked towards ending slavery and bringing reform to prisons and hospices.
“Dignity, fairness, equality, compassion are not natural and common sense enlightenment values; they are rooted in our Judeo-Christian ethic, which holds human beings to be made in the image of a loving and a gracious God. May they continue to be unashamedly heard," he said.
The relationship between faith and politics has been questioned frequently both in Scotland and in the wider United Kingdom.
The current Deputy First Minister of Scotland, Kate Forbes, lost out in a leadership election to Humza Yousaf after she was criticised for her membership of the Free Church of Scotland, which is officially opposed to homosexual marriage and abortion. Yusuf, a Muslim, has said he has no objection to homosexuality and was subsequently denounced by figures in the Muslim community.
South of the border, former Liberal Democrat leader Tim Farron, eventually quit as leader of his party in 2017, after saying that it had become impossible for him to reconcile his faith with his political position.
