This is a question often asked since Dave became Prime Minister. Bloomberg seems to have come up with the answer: a discreet “yes”.
Like all middle-class Englishmen he has been shaped by his education and upbringing not to talk about religious matters beyond acknowledging a link with the Church of England.
However, recent events seem to have overcome the inhibition: “The Bible tells us to bear one another’s burdens. After the day I’ve had, [the Maria Miller sacking and PMQs] I’m definitely looking for volunteers.” *
According to Bloomberg, “he thanked churches for their work in society, including the growth of food banks to help the poor, and urged them to speak up for persecuted Christians around the world”.
He also referred to Jesus as “our saviour,” and went on to talk about his Christian faith in general. Moreover, the PM admits slipping into the sung Eucharist at St. Mary Abbots church in Kensington “every other Thursday. I find a little bit of peace and hopefully a bit of guidance.”
I love this next bit: “In a 2009 set-piece speech in opposition he borrowed the structure of Jesus’s Sermon on the Mount.” He was clearly aiming high, even then.
Linking his Big Society message with Christianity in general, he went on: “Jesus invented the Big Society 2,000 years ago; I just want to see more of it. If there are things that are stopping you from doing more, think of me as a giant Dyno-Rod clearing the drains.”
Watch out for the cartoonists take on that one. Let’s hope they are not too risque.
It is good to see a major leader going beyond his professional brief, without the excruciating self promotion of a George W. Bush.
* Miller, the former Culture Secretary, drove the policy of gay marriage, which has split the Tory party down the middle.
John Evans
… who is the author of The Eternal Quest for Immortality: Is it staring you in the face? Available from Amazon and all good booksellers.
Coming soon: Practical Mysticism: A different way of looking at the world.