On Sunday morning, near the end of the service, we had the beginnings of some good conversation around the area of government … what it could, or should look like; what system of government can deliver the best and most just outcomes for the people; with a general election looming ahead, who will be leading our country for the next three years; what part do we need to play in voting in the next government. There is lots of fuel here for discussion!
All of this arose from our reflections on Israel’s desire for a king, unpacked in 1 Samuel 8. Implicit in 1 Samuel is the question, “If Israel is to have a king, what sort of king should he be?”. The Bible texts are quite clear that there is a theological answer to that question – namely that the “right” ruler will acknowledge the overarching rule and sovereignty of God, and govern the people in the light of that.
I guess we could probably ask a similar question right now about our own country: “Given that a new government is to be elected for a new term, what sort of government should they be?”. Of course, it’s not so easy to answer this in a democracy, where, to a large extent, we get the government that we as a people – collectively – vote for. So, the underlying values of society at large become reflected in our choices.
The question in my mind, though – given that we do have a general election ahead – is, how can we best discuss together the issues that NZ faces, and then encourage and support each other as we look to vote intelligently and well in this election. Sure, we will have different perspectives and viewpoints, but how can we air them together so that we all get to think our way around the core issues. At the end of the day we probably won’t all be voting uniformly – but if we have, at least, come to a place where we can use both of our votes wisely, it would great!
From what I understand, in the Ilam electorate there has generally been a “meet the candidates” session arranged by one of the local churches somewhere in our vicinity. I’ll see what I can find out about the what and when for this, this time around. For the other electorates represented by Ilamites? Let’s see what we can find out. Perhaps our discussions can begin with encouraging each other to attend meetings like these.