I thought it might be helpful to share with you the email that I wrote to my Member of Parliament during the UK government's 'consultation' about their 'equal marriage' proposals. For those who don't know, Maria Miller, is coincidentally not only the MP representing the constituency in which I live, but she is also Culture Secretary in David Cameron's government. It is her department that is responsible for the consultation and the resulting legislation.
On re-reading I recognise I may have been a tad aggressive. I tend to be overly blunt when up against opposition and feeling the need to be both clear and forceful. Not everyone, even those who agree with my reasoning, will agree with my conclusions. Let me know - particularly fellow believers - what you think. Should this change the way we vote? I am open to correction and guidance from those wiser than myself, especially on such an important issue.
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Dear Mrs Miller,
I write as a registered voter in the Basingstoke constituency which you represent. I have lived here 20 years, and live in Rooksdown with my wife and four children.
I have normally voted Conservative since I turned 18. Fundamentally, however, I am a Christian, and my political views are shaped by and subject to God's revelation in the Bible, including the foundations of justice and morality. The Conservative party always seemed to me to align best with Christian foundations.
Unfortunately, having been uneasy for years over the state of British politics from a Christian point of view, I now find myself at a turning point. The government seems hellbent on redefining marriage to include same sex marriage. The consultation is a sham, with the conclusion having been decided in advance. I hope that you have seen the open letter addressed to you by the Christian blogger 'Archbishop Cranmer'. If not, the link is below. It sums up much of what I think about the issue, and aligns with the views of many Christians in Basingstoke, certainly at least at the church I belong to (St Mary's, Eastrop). I have signed the Coalition for Marriage petition, along with hundreds of thousands of others, and sent my views into the consultation.
For David Cameron, yourself and others this seems more than just the normal boring political wrangling over who is best at running health and education. This is about fundamental philosophical beliefs. I heard that David Cameron once said that the church would have to change like the Conservative party, and realise that equality is the absolute bottom line. This is the thing that really perturbs me. Politicians seem to see the church and religious groups as exactly the same as political parties, and seem to think that everyone buys into the same pluralistic philosophical presuppositions. We don't! For Christians the bottom line is not equality. The bottom line is the worship of the real God. And that is something unchangeable, non-negotiable and utterly fundamental. All Christian views on equality and justice and morality stem from the view that God sets the rules, not us, and true freedom comes from following those rules.
Christianity, it has to be said, is a religion of grace and good news. That's because none of us is capable of keeping God's rules, and the world is in the bad state it's in because of the sin of rejecting God's commands. Jesus Christ came to offer eternal life to those who will repent of that sin and trust in His death and resurrection. And Christian love, forgiveness and 'acts of mercy' are fundamentally based on the belief that no human being is beyond forgiveness, no matter what their sin, because God accepts all who come to Him through faith in Jesus Christ.
However, in democratic political terms, I don't believe that any Christian could in good conscience use their electoral vote for someone who directly defies God. And that is what you, Mr Cameron, Mr Clegg and others are doing. You believe that you know better than the real God, the one who created everything - including you - and made things to function in particular ways. In fact, you probably don't even believe there is a god. And therefore all you are left with is your own intellectual authority. Who says equality is the philosophical bottom line? You do!
Anyway, I could go on. I have never written to an MP before. But at this point in my life I have finally reached the point where I can no longer justify voting Conservative. After his stand against Christian morality, and after making it clear that he will push ahead with these changes no matter who objects, I do not want Mr Cameron to remain Prime Minister, and I do not want any equal marriage supporter to be in parliament. Therefore, you have lost my vote.
Of course, that wouldn't bother you… because who else can I vote for? Not any of the main parties, who are all infected by the same anti-Christian philosophical bias. Hence I will vote for any sensible looking independent candidate. This, I know, is unlikely to have any tangible effect on the political landscape, even if lots of Christians decided to do the same. But I have to go with my conscience.
The thing, however, that I hoped may bother the political powers, like yourself and the Prime Minister, is that being a matter of conscience and deeply held belief means that Christians will refuse to obey any new laws based on the redefinition of marriage. What our God tells us is more important than what you and Mr Cameron tell us, and God's laws are more important that the laws of the UK. It is true that one of our most peaceable principles as Christians is that we must obey the law of the land, because God has set the government in place for our good. However, when the law of the land tells us we must disobey God, then we can't do that.
Why is this such a watershed? For Christians this is a step too far. We have tolerated homosexuality as practiced by individuals. We believe it is sinful, and we call for repentance, but we tolerate the presence of such sin, because we live in a sinful world. We have tolerated civil partnership arrangements, which endorse immorality, because we do not have to recognise them as anything more than two individuals committing to an immoral relationship. They should still repent, but we tolerate the presence of civil partnerships because we live in a sinful world. However, when the legal definition of marriage is changed that will mean that churches (which are legally obliged to offer marriage to everyone in England) will be legally bound to offer marriage to homosexual couples. Christian ministers will not do this (unless they are very liberal). It means that schools will have to teach that marriage is not about one man and one woman, but about two people. Christian teachers, and church schools, will not teach this. And there are a whole host of other implications which have been pointed out by the Coalition for Marriage.
The sad thing is that you will be forcing the most benign, law-abiding, minority group in the country into law-breaking, and forcing Christians to be outsiders and outcasts in a society that was founded on Christian belief, morality and justice.
After this, my view of British politics is changed for ever.
Regards,
Andrew Burrows
That seemed straight forward to me and touched on the issue of what is now going to be happening in schools. Can teachers refuse to teach this 'extra' form of marriage? I doubt it. What will happen to them when they refuse? From other cases of Christian conscience, we already know the answer to that one. I didn't vote for the Cameron Socialist, used to be Conservative, party last time, and, like you, doubt that I'll be voting for them in the next year or two unless there are some unlikely radical changes.
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