KEY POINTS:
The suggestion at the Labour Party conference that the power that is should make room among its various single-issue and special-interest groups for a "Christian left" has left me rather puzzled.
For I have no idea what a "Christian left" might be, any more than I have any
idea of what a "Christian right" might be.
"Religious left" I can, perhaps, understand, and "religious right", too, and I am grateful that so far this country has escaped the sort of right-wing religious activism that so mars American politics.
(Yes, the tiny and strictly religious Exclusive Brethren sect caused a hiccup at the last election, but with any luck that was a one-off.)
We do have in this country groups which seek to uphold morality, the sanctity of life and the nuclear family as the foundation stone of society, but largely they find themselves preaching to the converted and their influence on government, and particularly a devotedly secular Government such as we have, is negligible.
And there is, of course, a religious left operating, too, consisting of those churchmen and women who support the Government's liberalisation of prostitution, its mandate for civil unions, its overt sympathy for the homosexual agenda and social engineering in general.
Labour already has the support of such people and if the party wants to formalise it, then that's fine with me. But please don't call it a "Christian" left.
The word Christian is bandied about as an adjective all over the world these days as if it were something that means all things to all men (and women, of course); and the noun "a Christian" seems to be used to describe anyone who has ever said to him/herself, "My God!"
This has apparently led many Christians to define themselves by adding a qualification to the noun, for instance "born-again Christian", "Spirit-filled Christian" or "Bible-believing Christian".
Yet all of those add-ons are tautologies because by definition the word "Christian" means all of those things.
So perhaps before the Labour Party ties itself up with a "Christian left", we could take a look at what "a Christian" really is.
It is not my place to declare any other human being either Christian or non-Christian.
That is something strictly between the person concerned and God. But what I can do is relate what being "a Christian" means to me.
A Christian is first and foremost a person who has formed a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, he who is the Son in the divine trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
A Christian will hold inviolate certain beliefs, which are perhaps best and most briefly outlined in a document called The Apostles' Creed. It dates from the very early times of the Church, believed to be half a century or so from the last writings of the New Testament, and it says:
"I believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord:
"Who was conceived of the Holy Spirit, born of the Virgin Mary, suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried.
"He descended into hell. The third day He arose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty, whence He shall come to judge the living and the dead.
"I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and life everlasting. Amen."
A Christian will also instinctively understand what Jesus meant when he said, "Most assuredly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God"; and, "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow Me"; and, " ... blessed are those who hear the word of God and keep it".
There is no doubt that the origins of the Labour movement were deeply rooted in Christianity, yet I wonder if modern-day union members even know why their local branch is often called a "chapel".
But social justice and a deep concern for the poor, the sick, the homeless, the disaster-stricken, the abused and the persecuted are but outworkings of Christianity. They are triggered by love - that love freely given by God, through his Son, to those who believe, surrender to his lordship and obey.
Thus billions of dollars and hundreds of millions of man and woman-hours are spent by Christians in charitable activities every year, without which the state of the world would be a lot worse than it is.
But let us never forget that the desire to serve the less fortunate among us in what is now a global village is planted in the hearts of Christians by the Holy Spirit, who empowers God's people to love and to serve their Lord and to do what he told us to do.
That same Spirit also convicts us of sin, tells us there is a heaven to gain and a hell to shun and whispers the Ten Commandments constantly in our ears. But at the same time he offers us the strength, if we choose to avail ourselves of it, to overcome self.
In short, the first call on "a Christian" is to strive to become more Christlike.
It's the toughest call there is, but if the Labour Party wants a piece of it, it's most welcome.
