Politicians are ‘doing God’ today. David Cameron appears on the BBC’s Songs of Praise and John Denham upsets the National Secular Society
It seems to be a day of politicians ‘doing God’.
Firstly we have John Denham, the communities secretary, recognising religious values contributing positively to society, which has deeply upset the secularists (which is remarkable as he is an avowed secular humanist), and frankly is too little too late from Labour:-
Faith groups to be key policy advisers – Faith groups are to be given a central role in shaping government policies, a senior minister has vowed.
John Denham, the communities secretary, said the values of Christians, Muslims and other religions were essential in building a “progressive society”.
He attacked secularists who have called for religion to be kept out of public life.
Mr Denham revealed that a new panel of religious experts has been set up to advise the Government on making public policy decisions.
The move has been criticised by secularists who warned that it represented a worrying development.
However, Mr Denham argued that Christians and Muslims can contribute significant insights on key issues, such as the economy, parenting and tackling climate change.
In an interview with The Sunday Telegraph, he admitted that the Government had failed to listen to these voices in the past, but is now determined to include them in the decision-making process.
“Anyone wanting to build a more progressive society would ignore the powerful role of faith at their peril,” he said.
“We should continually seek ways of encouraging and enhancing the contribution faith communities make on the central issues of our time.
“Faith is a strong and powerful source of honesty, solidarity, generosity – the very values which are essential to politics, to our economy and our society.”
The minister said that the Government needed to be educated by faith groups on “how to inform the rest of society about these issues”.
And then we have David Cameron, appearing on Songs of Praise:-
David Cameron has said he is a Christian who believes in God and goes to church, although “not as regularly as I should”.
The Conservative leader said Sunday School was one of his earliest memories, but said he did not “drop to my knees” and ask for help in a crisis.
However Mr Cameron added his Christian faith was a “part of who I am”.
His comments on the BBC’s Songs of Praise diverge from other party leaders who have not discussed their beliefs.
Mr Cameron was brought up in an old rectory and told BBC One’s Songs of Praise, which was filmed in his Oxfordshire constituency of Witney, that his family were “relatively regular churchgoers”.
He said: “I believe in God and I’m a Christian and I worship – not as regularly as I should – but I go to church.
“Do I drop to my knees and ask for guidance whenever an issue comes up? No, I don’t. But it’s part of who I am.
“For me, and I suspect for lots of other people too, bad things actually sometimes make you think more about faith and the fact that you’re not facing these things on your own.”
This is the second time that David Cameron has ‘done God’:-
Cameron: I’m a questioning Christian – Teachings of Jesus are a ‘good guide’ to life, says Cameron
And he has also used Biblical allusions in a speech before:-
Cameron’s speech draws on biblical allusions
Being as I have a rather cynical nature, I’m undecided as to if this is all good news or not, however, Cranmer does offer a rather upbeat analysis of David Cameron ‘doing God’:-
David Cameron does Songs of Praise
Tags: Christianity, Politics