5 May: Be informed and prayerful
This Thursday 5 May, the people of Northern Ireland go to the polls to elect the membership of a new Assembly. In an earlier message, Bishop Harold encouraged us to, "engage in focused prayer for those who lead us politically, and for those who will be elected for the next stage of our lives together." And in his Easter message, he urged us to vote, “carefully, thoughtfully and unselfishly in May, with minds formed by the mind of the risen Jesus Christ.”
“It is easy here in Ulster to vote simply on tribal lines,” said Bishop Harold, “or simply to vote for those whom we believe will make life most comfortable and rewarding for us as individuals. For Christians the perspective needs to be wider. We might ask: what are the policies which are being suggested to meet the needs of the poorest of the poor in these days of financial strictures? What are the policies which will best enable the people of Northern Ireland to work together positively as one community? And what are the ethical and moral principles on which we are seeking to build our society?”
Please do pray for a peaceful election and for the formation of an Assembly that espouses Christian values.
Also on the ballot paper on Thursday will be the Yes or No decision about retaining the First Past the Post system, or changing to the Alternative Vote.
'Counting on Reform,' a report published by Theos, aims to help us better understand the options on offer, placing them in the broader context of why we value what we value about democracy. The report contends that any decision we make will invariably draw on deeply held personal commitments and beliefs around key questions of principle. What do we understand to be the basis of political representation? How should we weigh the relative value of political strength vs. political compromise? How important do we believe is the merit of electoral simplicity?
Only by thinking through such issues will we grasp what is - and isn't - at stake on 5 May and feel confident about which box we choose to tick.
Download the report for free by clicking
here