Our hearts skip a beat, our excitement is almost uncontained, the sky is blue, the Members of the the UK Parliament are going to spend the day parleying.
Whilst this is - as the name suggests - what they are supposed to do, their parleying is usually about what the Government of the day is doing or about to do. Today they are, as far as we can tell, just parleying.
And, it so happens, our Church has a meeting to conduct business this very same evening. There is a natural instinct for us all to feel we could to better than the current Members of Parliament are doing. But can we be so sure.
1653. Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell is trying to sort out Parliament, and the Bible and the Churches are figuring large in the Protector's consciousness. They decide to go for a thoroughly Biblical 70 members - the same as the Jewish Sanhedrin. (An irony here, for the Sanhedrin proved less than perfect in the light of Jesus the Messiah's encounters with them.)
Not enough, it proved: So 144 (12x12) was settled upon as a larger, thoroughly Biblical number. Thence to the appointment. A few were appointed more directly, but to this Nominated Assembly churches of various kinds - including baptist-type churches - were given the power to elect Members of Parliament from their ranks.
Such a godly, Biblical set up. What could possibly go wrong?
To be fair, starting in April, the Parliament achieved some notable benefits for the nation. But then the religious arguments broke out. The State Church shouldn't be the State Church, said some Baptist and Quaker types. Yes it should, said the State Church types. Doing to that Parliament what Brexit has done to this one it all descended into acrimonious chaos. Cromwell sighed and dissolved the very Biblical Parliament.
Perhaps the clue is found by pondering the Gospels observation of the 12 disciples as they bickered and misunderstood their Lord. Whatever we think of the current crop of politicians, to err is certainly human: it is not uniquely their problem.
And, it so happens, our Church has a meeting to conduct business this very same evening. There is a natural instinct for us all to feel we could to better than the current Members of Parliament are doing. But can we be so sure.
1653. Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell is trying to sort out Parliament, and the Bible and the Churches are figuring large in the Protector's consciousness. They decide to go for a thoroughly Biblical 70 members - the same as the Jewish Sanhedrin. (An irony here, for the Sanhedrin proved less than perfect in the light of Jesus the Messiah's encounters with them.)
Not enough, it proved: So 144 (12x12) was settled upon as a larger, thoroughly Biblical number. Thence to the appointment. A few were appointed more directly, but to this Nominated Assembly churches of various kinds - including baptist-type churches - were given the power to elect Members of Parliament from their ranks.
Such a godly, Biblical set up. What could possibly go wrong?
To be fair, starting in April, the Parliament achieved some notable benefits for the nation. But then the religious arguments broke out. The State Church shouldn't be the State Church, said some Baptist and Quaker types. Yes it should, said the State Church types. Doing to that Parliament what Brexit has done to this one it all descended into acrimonious chaos. Cromwell sighed and dissolved the very Biblical Parliament.
Perhaps the clue is found by pondering the Gospels observation of the 12 disciples as they bickered and misunderstood their Lord. Whatever we think of the current crop of politicians, to err is certainly human: it is not uniquely their problem.
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