Letter from Peter at the Vicarage

My Dear Friends,

I'm writing this on the day after the General Election when the final results still haven't been declared so I don't know who, if anyone, has won! But the events of the past weeks have made me wonder what kind of society do we want?

We've heard a lot about something politicians call the "common good" or the "Big Society", but what do these terms actually mean? We need to think carefully about what constitutes true well-being. When we sign our letters to fellow Franciscans we usually end with "Pax et Bonum", loosely translated as "Peace and well being be yours". So I'm looking for a clearer vision of what life for the next few years will be.

According to an article written by our Archbishops recently, society needs a renewal of civic values and virtues so we're looking for people of considerable gifts and integrity to take up the responsibilities of public office. I suspect that, if you or I were offered a ministry of state to lead, we'd decline without any hesitation, knowing some of the associated difficulties and problems.

We shouldn't forget that, in spite of everything, many of us are much better off financially than we've ever been. The deepest challenge is how the wealth we possess collectively can become a real "common wealth", serving the entire population, not just the powerful and privileged.

The challenge is central to a Christian understanding of what a just and sustainable society looks like. It must be one in which active care and compassion and the protection of the most vulnerable are essential elements of our common life.There are, of course, too many to enumerate in one letter so Set's consider one or two now.

First of all, our conviction that we're all created in God's image obliges Christians to value everyone equally. Societies with increasing economic inequality are ones where serious social and psychological problems exist to the detriment of everyone. How successfully we address the gap between the richest and poorest and lift people out of deprivation is a mark of a good society.

Then we need the stability of home and family life. Patterns of overworking which disrupt family life and upset the healthy development of children are a serious problem. The prospect of higher unemployment threatens the very foundations for our personal lives and emotional development. How can we strengthen family life whilst avoiding actions which undermine it? There must be better options than the alternatives of unemployment and poorly paid, insecure jobs?

There's also the global dimension in which all our interests are ultimately interlinked. The Church stands in solidarity with every government working for the global common good, according to the Millennium Development Goals. If the security of the poorest on the planet is inseparable from our own security, what should be our priorities in the UK as part of Europe, honouring its foundations in Christianity and other faiths?

We need to be alert to the threat posed by racism and prejudice of every kind to the vision of a society in which there is justice for all. We need to separate fears about immigration from the urgent questions of how we secure fair and compassionate treatment for refugees and asylum seekers.

We're also beginning to think about environmental issues in terms of justice regarding the natural world and what we leave for future generations. How can we make striving for justice the driving force for all our values and aspirations?

Jesus teaches us, importantly, how children inherit the Kingdom and vet our education system seems blinkered to the development of the whole child and, apparently, weighed down with countless initiatives and an unhealthy obsession with testing. We should be aiming for a much more patient and wholesome approach to education and the needs of our children.

Finally, what about the elderly? With God's grace we might all arrive there some day! How can we ensure that our older citizens are not allowed to fee! superfluous or a burden on the state; that they continue to have access to a share in our commonwealth and our society?

Whoever is in charge when you read this letter they'll certainly have a huge task on their hands.Whatever our political views, we should still pray for those entrusted with authority to run our country, always remembering ourselves that we've put them there and reminding them that they can just as easily be removed."Here, for a season, then above