Saturday, February 13, 2010

Christians & the Conservatives

There's an absolutely fascinating feature length article in today's FT profiling the influence of Christians on today's Conservative Party, and Tim Montgomerie in particular. It's a superb piece of journalism and certainly told me a lot I didn't know.

Read it HERE.

Right, I'm putting my smiley face back on. Time to go to the annual dinner of Tunbridge Wells Conservatives, where, talking of Christian Conservatives, I am hosting the Ann Widdecombe cabaret. The things I do...

13 comments:

David Lindsay said...

The mounting hysteria of a secularist lobby, if it can even be called such a thing, which has never made the slightest serious effort to organise itself in the way that Christians do without even thinking about it.

Across the spectrum, MPs and party activists have long, long been overtly religious out of all proportion to the population at large. The relative absence of the militantly secular is not our fault. It is theirs. They need to ask themselves the problem with their own position.

And check out the distaste at appealing to the blacks. Secular fundamentalists are not as bad as theological liberals. But they are not much better.

Plato said...

Sorry to hear you didn't do a blinder - perhaps it's Fate telling you that you've more influence as you are than you'd ever have as an MP.

IIRC Mr Parris thinks he's in a better place now than then.

JANE 4 SHAFTESBURY said...

yes - I read this earlier today.
It struck me as a straightforward, uncynical piece of journalism.
Rare today, when the mere mention of Christians or Churches at our Town Council meetings prompts discomfited mutterings about discrimination.

Frugal Dougal said...

I'm not surprised: not for any secular reason, merely because Labour has fought the Judaeo-Christian tradition in Great Britain for 12 years, and this is the reaction.

Unknown said...

Any adult daft enough to reall believe that religious stuff should be barred from any public office.

Sean said...

This is the nature of democracy: it is the people who bother to vote who gain power.

If you don't like it, then get yourself and your friends who think like you similarly organised.

Nicholas said...

Tim Montgomerie speaks of "social justice". Can anyone define it? What does it mean exactly? No party of liberty should ever have anything to do with it, it is a chimera. He also says a Christian in politics must support this policy of using the state to reduce poverty. Well Gladstone was a Christian yet he was not a supporter of statist policies.

Horshamite said...

I am predominently secular in outlook and I agree with Sean.

Building alliances in a pluralist society has never been easier with the availability of the internet, blogs, viral marketing etc. But those with beliefs (in all or any thing) will have to get off their backsides and do some work. Merely moaning and wringing hands doesn't cut much ice these days.

Dick the Prick said...

The Widders cabaret? Photos! Photos urgently required.

hatfield girl said...

'Merely moaning and wringing hands' is a start though, Horshamite.

Silence is the traditional form of betrayal.

Anonymous said...

It's about time that Brothers and Sisters in Christ, woke up to the fact, that after over a decade in power, Labour has tried to erase Christianity from our Nation. Instead we have had a marxist society which promotes all the other faiths, and yet tries to silence the One True Faith. More worrying is the fact that Cameron supports Civil Unions and Gay Marrige. Cameron takes the Christian vote for granted. Christians need to be careful who they vote for.

Tapestry said...

Very interesting link Iain.

Cameron currently straddles the media and the traditonalists, throwing titbits to both.

He cannot get elected without the media and pleasing the Marxists, but he will not hold office for long without the support of the traditonalists like IDS, Montgomerie, and many more besides from that wing of the party.

The very same approach which is required for Cameron to win an election, might ensure he is slung out as leader after the election, unless he has a very clear understanding of where he stands.

Mrs Thatcher was felled by an alliance between the Media and modernisers. Cameron could be felled by the traditionalists, allied with the blogosphere.

Once Cameron is elected, the right wing blogosphere could become more powerful in influencing events than the BBC. Core values would predominate over veneer for the first time since Thatcher, if this happens.

Conviction seizing power from Consensus.

Richard Abbot said...

If the Tory party is going to pander to the demands of christian fundamentalists then it is highly likely they will never see government again. Christianity is its death throes and quite right to.
Labour do not propagate 'no religion' they propagate the religion of socialism.