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Please keep Rishi Sunak in your prayers

Regular contributor Andy Bryant urges us to pray for our political leaders, especially the new Prime Minister, and to avoid unhelpful judgementalism.

When Liz Truss last appeared in the House of Commons, during the statement by Penny Mordant, the Christian writer and speaker Jayne Ozanne noticed how stressed Liz Truss looked and, in a post on Twitter, encouraged everyone to pray for Liz Truss at this difficult time.  Jayne was then inundated with aggressive and critical responses. 
 
Similarly, after Liz Truss resigned, the Archbishop of Canterbury tweeted, inviting people to pray for Liz Truss and her husband at this difficult time and to offer thanksgiving for all who offer themselves for public service.  His message received a similar negative response as had Jayne’s earlier message.
 
We are living in a very judgemental culture where attacking and criticising people has become the norm.  This is reflected in broadcast, print and social media and can be heard in everyday conversations in the street.  We have become all too quick to pounce on people’s faults and failings.  The (usually) unspoken assumption is that we would not make such mistakes and that we could do better.
 
Given the loathing that is poured on those who stand for public office, it is remarkable that anyone wants to take on these roles.  Indeed, it is almost as if, because they are willing to offer themselves, we assume there is something suspicious about them.
 
Sadly, the Church too often becomes an echo chamber for the ways of the world and the same culture of judgementalism infects Christian commentary and debate.
 
The uncomfortable truth is that before God we are all sinners, and all have fallen short, and all deserve to fall under God’s judgement.  I have to remember that the plank is in my eye and the speck is the other’s eye and not the other way around.  The good news of the gospel is that, miracle of miracles, God treats us not as a divine judge but as a loving Father.  Although worthy of damnation, we are offered forgiveness and the right to begin again.
 
If God has treated us with such undeserved compassion, how then can we dare to stand in judgement over others?  As a forgiven people, we are called to share God’s love and mercy with the world.  We are forgiven even as we offer to forgive others.
 
Yes, we will all be required to give an account of ourselves before God but that will be done not in the fear of damnation but drawn out of us in the purity of the divine love.  We are tested and tried in the furnace not by wrath but by love.
 
As Christians we need to offer the world a different narrative, not full of bitterness and acrimony, but one of compassion, holding one another to account not in anger but in love.  We need to be slower to judge and quicker to understand, slower to attack and quicker to love.
 
Whatever our own political point of view, our task is to pray for our political leaders, to ask God to give them wisdom and guidance.  And when we need to oppose not to attack or belittle, but to pray that we may have the grace to ourselves speak with wisdom and discernment.
 
We are called not to echo the ways of the world but to show there is a different way, not adding to the bitterness and aggression in the world, but rather recognising that we too have fallen short, and that truth is not ours but God’s.  Amidst the coarseness of much public debate, we need to bring Christ’s healing touch. 
 
And please keep Rishi in your prayers – we are not asked to agree with him, but we do have a responsibility to pray for him.  Whether you like him not, we are called to love him, even as he is beloved of God.
 

Image by Kirsty Holloway from Pixabay
 



Andrew BryantCFThe Revd Andrew Bryant is the Canon for Mission and Pastoral Care at Norwich Cathedral. He was previously Team Rector of Portishead, Bristol, in the Diocese of Bath and Wells, and has served in parishes in the Guildford and Lichfield Dioceses, as well as working for twelve years with Kaleidoscope Theatre, a charity promoting integration through theatre for young adults with Down’s Syndrome.
 
You can read Andrew's latest blog entry
here and can follow him via his Twitter account @AndyBry3.



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Feedback:
(Guest) 27/10/2022 14:40
An excellent article speaking very clearly to our troubled times. It is quite possible not to like someone very much but, nevertheless, to show the love of Christ Jesus in praying for them sincerely and, in doing so, loving them.

Sheila Upjohn (Guest) 28/10/2022 09:49
Yes. We’re told there's no merit in praying for your friends. Anyone can do that We’ve got the hard job of even praying for our enemies and people who treat us badly, not just for those we disagree with
Reader (Guest) 29/10/2022 09:01
God bless you, Andy.
This is a timely reminder.

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