Bishop's Letter - April 2010
Bishop’s Letter
with Bishop Martin Wharton
In 2009, a poster in one of the British National Party's Election Campaigns showed a picture of Christ with the caption "What would Jesus do? Vote BNP"
One of their current website campaigns is to "Keep Britain Christian". These are yet further examples of the attempt to portray BNP policies as compatible with Christianity. Nothing could be further from the truth.
As we approach the forthcoming Local Elections and the General Election, there is a widespread disillusionment with the mainstream political parties in our country. Some may say there is a good reason for such disillusionment. However, it would be tragic if large numbers of people did not bother to vote or if they voted for an extremist party, such as the BNP, as a protest against our politicians.
We need to be very aware that there are those who are all too ready to exploit the present situation by advancing views that are the very opposite of the values of justice, compassion and human dignity which are deeply rooted in our Christian heritage. The conscious adoption by the BNP of the language of our faith should disturb us – especially as the effect of those policies is not to promote Christian values and social and community cohesion, but to foster fear and division within our communities, and particularly between people of different faiths and different racial backgrounds. In their carefully worded campaign material, intolerance is often cloaked in the language of culture and faith. BNP supporters and candidates have claimed to have established a 'Christian Council of Britain' which erroneously stresses the 'godly importance of race and nation'.
Last year a statement from the Archbishops of Canterbury and York warned against the dangers of voting for any party "whose core ideology is about sowing division in our communities and hostility on ground of race, creed or colour". We should never forget that there is only one race, the Human Race. We should never forget that every single human being, regardless of background, is made in God's image and must be treated with dignity and respect.
General Synod in 2004 stated that any political movement that seeks to divide our communities on the basis of ethnicity is an affront to the nature of God revealed in creation and scripture and is a grave danger to harmonious relationships.
The Synod called on all Christians in England to nurture a loathing of the sin of racism and to model the teaching of Christ in loving all our neighbours.
Whenever the General election is to be held – in May or June - it is vitally important that the people of this country use their vote, and use it in the forthcoming local elections too.
The BNP has openly stated its intention to contest the local elections in Newcastle, especially in the light of recent boundary changes. Both local and general elections are an opportunity for the renewing of a vision of communities united by mutual respect, high ethical standards and the pursuit of justice and peace. A low voter turn out could seriously damage democracy itself. Simply by doing nothing we could be helping extremist parties we do not stand for. We should not allow ourselves to be misled by the BNP propaganda. The BNP is NOT a party that stands for Christian principles.