A while ago, I was asked to address in Parliament a group of centre-right Christians in politics, public life and the clergy.
I received two criticisms. At the time, one theologian rightly corrected my pronunciation of the Greek word “storge”. Subsequently, a local vicar responded that I should have covered justice: it is a fair point. I think I would survey Rawls and Nozick, combining them to say God’s justice is that you get what you deserve: both the consequences of your actions and a basic minimum beneath which a civilised society should allow no one to fall.
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As usual before addressing matters of faith, I am clear that the use of power can only ever be legitimately justified by evidence and reason.
This is a speech about power and love as alternative organising principles of human relations. It is a speech about society and politics, about God and government.
It is not a Conservative speech, nor of course socialist, but one radically liberal in the old tradition, a tradition of freedom which arguably was and is only possible under the conditions of the Christian faith.
The fundamental point of this speech is this: the big story of the Bible – the reason Christ came and will come again – is that power, expressed in the law, will never set society right, not for God and certainly not for us, and not if free will is to have any meaning.
Find the speech in full for paid subscribers on my Substack.