(ABP) — With the United Kingdom’s May 6 elections ending 13 years of Labour Party rule and ushering in a government led by Prime Minister David Cameron and a coalition of his Conservative Party and the ideologically quite different Liberal Democrat Party, British politics is entering a period unprecedented in recent history. How are the United Kingdom’s Christian leaders encouraging citizens to pray?
The Baptist Times, the newspaper of the Baptist Union of Great Britain, asked several evangelical leaders to provide their takes on what the election results mean for the country at a time of global economic and security upheaval. Their responses are reprinted below, with the paper’s permission.
Jonathan Edwards
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Jonathan Edwards, general secretary of the Baptist Union of Great Britain:
I see the present political situation as one of great opportunity. The electorate has spoken and has decided not to give one of the parties a majority in the House of Commons. This means that the new government will be forced to listen carefully to voices beyond the interests of one party.
This country is facing some enormous challenges, and we will only get out of them by bringing together a wide range of voices. Long ago, churches were at the heart of the provision of education, social services and health care. Quite rightly, the state took over many of those responsibilities — but, quite wrongly, the churches withdrew.
In the next chapter of our history we need to find a new way of engaging with our society so that God’s Kingdom will come here on earth as it is in heaven.
Steve Chalke, founder of the missions group Oasis Global, the Christian civic group Faithworks and the Stop the Traffik anti-human-trafficking coalition:
Steve Chalke
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Let’s pray for politicians in their humanity, that they will be able to cope with a new situation and turn their back on their pride and work together clearly.
Secondly, let’s pray that our politicians will be able to subordinate their personal ambition to work in a cross-party way for the good of our whole nation.
Thirdly, let’s pray for the new House of Commons and all those new members of Parliament who have arrived. Pray that they will set a new tone and operate together with a new atmosphere of transparency, accountability and responsiveness to the electorate and the democracy that they are so pleased to be at the center of.
Fourthly, let’s pray for a measured and well-informed national debate as we think about what this new situation means for us in the future as we think about different ways of governing and our political parties working together.
Steve Clifford
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Steve Clifford, general director of the U.K. Evangelical Alliance:
During a period of political instability, our leaders require our prayerful support more than ever before. The absence of any party winning an overall majority presents fresh challenges and opportunities. It is a chance for politicians to show that service to the country comes ahead of their party political allegiance.
At all times we should pray for our leaders, but the election campaign and the inconclusive results concentrate our minds and remind us to pray for wisdom in all the decisions that they have to take. Please also pray that their dealings with one another can be conducted with grace and understanding.
Dealing with the fragile economic situation will be high on the list of priorities for the new government. I ask that Christians join together to pray as difficult choices are made, to pray that our leaders can show good stewardship of the nation’s resources.
I also pray that the government remembers what was asked of the apostle Paul, to remember the poor — and that they, like Paul, are eager to do so.
Loretta Minghella
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Loretta Minghella, director of the global-development charity Christian Aid:
Understandably, a U.K. general election tends to become a big argument about which policies would best help the British people. Hence there is not much room to talk about policies that would help the world’s poor. But on one specific issue, Christian Aid believes that a win-win is available to the political parties. That issue is climate change.
If the parties agreed to create a huge number of green jobs here in Britain, then they would take a significant step towards tackling unemployment. At the same time, they would be helping to protect vulnerable people in poor countries who are already struggling with the impacts of climate change — changing weather patterns leading to droughts, flooding, crop failures and so on.
By “going green,” we would be cutting our carbon emissions and simultaneously — at no extra cost — helping people in the developing world.
Simon Barrow, co-director of the British Christian think tank Ekklesia:
To eyes of faith, what gets called “political deadlock” can be a fresh opportunity.
Prayer is about seeking the longer, wider view shaped by God’s transforming love. In moments of uncertainty or crisis, the Christian task is not to ask God to fix our problems, but to ask to have our own hearts and lives repaired and changed.
People and politicians need to be able to look beyond self-interested security, market anxiety, and the creeds of the already prosperous. Jesus stood with the hungry and dispossessed.
A genuinely “new politics” — what we desperately need now — is about the moral case for re-enfranchising the millions whose votes are discounted by an unfair system. It means healing the planet, protecting those with the least as we tackle the economic crisis, safeguarding refugees and vulnerable migrants, and moving from just-more-war to “just peace” solutions. Pray and act for metanoia (Greek for “conversion’), a genuine turnaround.