Justice, equality and truth
James Torrens
‘What is truth?’ Pilate’s question echoes down the centuries, long after he asked it of Jesus.
His query was prompted by Jesus’s claim that he came into this world ‘to testify to the truth’ and that ‘everyone on the side of truth listens to me’ (John 18.37). Significantly, Pilate did not wait for a reply to his question, but turned his back on the Truth and gave in to the cries of the crowd and the lies of the religious leaders.
Pragmatism?
James Torrens
The former Chancellor of the Exchequer, Alistair Darling (he of the white hair and black eyebrows), has written a memoir of his time at No. 11 Downing Street. It’s called Back from the Brink and provides a fascinating insight into the economic and political troubles the Labour government faced from 2007 to May 2010. Towards the end of his book, Darling charts a way forward, stressing the need for both private and public sectors to be involved in any sustainable recovery. Anticipating, perhaps, some criticism from the left wing of the Labour party, he says: ‘To me, what matters is what works’.1
Results are all that matters?
In other words, it is the end result that counts; how one achieves that result is not important. Ironically, he does not seem to realise that it is precisely this attitude which led the banks, politicians and regulatory bodies to ignore the serious weaknesses in the British economy. While the good times rolled, few questioned the shaky foundation on which those good times were built. The economy was ‘working’, delivering impressive results, and that was all that mattered.
After Pope Francis' death: Let's bury 'Rest In Peace'
The recent death of Pope Francis has shone a spotlight upon the Roman Catholic Church, including the rituals surrounding the death, mourning and burial of its leader.
Some of these traditions are unique to the Pope’s office: the sealing of the papal quarters; the destruction of the papal ring; the lying in state; the attendance of worldwide leaders at the funeral; and so on.