What is your manifesto?

With Rev Peter Bolton of the Hope Community Church

IT IS hard to believe it was on April 18 that the Prime Minister announced an election for June 8 and here we are, it’s now here. As I was growing up my parents would often say time goes quicker the older you get and now I understand what they meant. For many it will be a relief when it is over, no more election news, no more party political broadcasts.

For some people the choice will be easy, they know who they will trust with their vote. For others it will be a last minute decision after having weighed up all the arguments. Some simply won’t vote.

I have to say I do have some sympathy with the politicians: they will please some and offend others. But the standards we expect from our politicians is the standard we too need to live by. We look to them to be fair in the decisions, we look to them to consider other people and the difficulties they face. We expect honesty and for them to always act with integrity, not being judgemental. Yet if we are honest how often do we behave like this in our day today lives?

In the Bible, Matthew who wrote one of the Gospels, quoted Jesus who was teaching on how to live in a way which helps and encourages everyone. It is entitled the ‘golden rule’ - it is do to others what you would like them to do for you. We can see why it is called the golden rule for if men and women lived in this way the world would be a far better place both locally and nationally, there wouldn’t be the sad occurrences we see in the world today. It is interesting Jesus didn’t say “do to others what you would like them to do to you, if they do it first”. The emphasis is on individuals taking the initiative.

What transformation there would be in society if this element of Jesus’ teaching was adopted by those who will be elected and by those who do the electing. What would happen to selfishness, jealous, greed, lying etc?

It is easy to criticise and pick fault with others, whether they be political leaders or members of the public sometimes we have to look at our own lives, do we always practise what we preach? Let’s try and think, speak and act as we would like others to think about us, speak to us and act towards us, it might catch on and before long we will see society improve.