Buzz speaks out
On confused conservatives and religions crossing state lines
Dearest departed Mother:
Out of respect for your deep hatred of greeting card holidays, I waited until after the designated maternal respect day to send you my most recent news from the land of the living.
I'm sure the heavenly horde is well aware of any news I might have, but I pretend you still care about your son's views on the events of the day. This year, my maternal guilt letter is about things you tried to teach me but I still had to learn on my own.
Apparently spurred on by the turmoil of recent political events in Europe, Alberta's right-wing opinion-makers are trying to explain the difference between right wing and conservative to the masses. The results of the tortured discourse are, as always, comical at best and embarrassing at worst.
Their efforts to maintain the mythical bonds between Alberta's conservative majority and a right-wing ideology are painful, but they do not compare to the suddenly resurrected debate over separating church and state.
Now, I'm not here to say the folks who defend the right and conservative views in Alberta's media are a bunch of mental sloths who have grown fat and weak in the unchallenging environment of provincial politics. I'm here to praise them. I understand the weight upon their shoulders. Ensuring that Albertans do not grow confused when presented with the strange idea that being conservative doesn't make you right wing and vice versa is a heavy responsibility. Add in Bishop Henry's revival of the old church and state debate and its enough to leave the Rosebud Quilters weekly tea in a regular tizzy.
The uproar over French presidential candidate Jean Marie Le Pen's election bubble and the shocking assassination of Dutch right-winger Pim Fortuyn have raised all sorts of existential questions for those who rarely question their political faith. It is long overdue.
Thirty years ago, it was easy to mesh being right wing with the true conservative's quest for gradual, thoughtful change that doesn't threaten the wealth and industry of the nation. Unfortunately, as you well know, thanks to years of liberal success, going back to the good old days when right-wing ideals reigned supreme would require radical restructuring and potentially tough consequences for many hard-working folks. Today, striving for gradual change that doesn't upset the wealthy and powerful makes you a federal Liberal – right-wingers are forced to call themselves neo-conservatives and run on platforms of radical change (except in British Columbia, where being right wing apparently makes you a Liberal).
Well, that's enough pity for columnists. The knee-jerk reaction to Bishop Henry's most recent excursion into politics yet again demonstrated the willful ignorance of our media-proclaimed opinionaters. From the supporters of the slighted Klein gang came menacing claims that Henry was mixing religion and the state. A taboo, apparently, for all but those of the right-wing faith.
As you taught me from the time I was barely weaned, never confuse politics with the state. Religion can play an important role in defining the politics of all sorts of people on the left and right. Religion and politics are both about deeply held principles and, for most folks, those principles are the same or similar. After all, how many deeply held principles can a person have?
The state – the law-creating and enforcement roles of government – must be blind to religion. Religious and so many other freedoms depend on it. The actions of politicians of all religious stripes, when in control of the state, must be watched to ensure religious freedom is not jeopardized, but that doesn't mean politicians should hide their religious beliefs when stumping for votes. In fact, knowing where they stand makes it easier to figure out when they are crossing the religion and state line.
Bishop Henry can expound to his faithful on any matter politic he desires. His choice this time, however – criticizing the government for its bargaining position with the teachers – is suspect at best. I can tell you, the boys that hang out in the showroom of my farm-implement dealership looked at this one every which way from Sunday to figure out the connection between religious beliefs and union bargaining (outside of 1980s Communist Poland, of course), and we came up empty-handed. If the bishop had criticized the Klein gang for downloading its problems on charities and then strip-mining their revenue sources for its own coffers, I want to hear what the good Bishop has to say. But teachers' bargaining rights?
You might be able to provide me with a little insight at the next seance, but I can find little direction on labour relations (outside of Moses's bargaining tactics with the Pharaoh) in the Good Book the United Church uses.
Your loving son,
Stanley |
