A moral politician
From Mr Alastair Campbell Sir: Peter °borne ('The special relationship between Blair and God', 5 April) reiterates the observation that Tony Blair is the most religious prime minister since Gladstone but ignores the more pertinent point that, despite their shared Christian convictions, their respective attitudes to foreign policy are markedly different. For example, in his Midlothian speech of 1879, Gladstone: 1) deplores the government's commitment to international expansion, and the installation of British administration in Afghanistan, Transvaal, Cyprus and Fiji 'which the country has not the means to support'.
2) excoriates the government for ignoring its European partners ('the concert of Europe') and pursuing a unilateralist policy in the Middle East (Turkey specifically).
3) lambasts the warmongers who insist on subduing countries which pose no immediate threat, in particular 'the most wanton invasion of Afghanistan . . . under circumstances where the application of military power, and we have nothing but military power to go by, is attended at every foot with enormous difficulties'.
4) decries the hubris of imperial ambitions, which appeal to pride and passion rather than reason — 'the appeal from Philip drunk to Philip sober'.
He added, 'The great duty of a government, especially in foreign affairs, is to soothe and tranquillise the minds of the people, not to set up false phantoms of glory which are to delude them into calamity, not to flatter their infirmities by leading them to believe that they are better than the rest of the world, and so to encourage a spirit of baleful domination; but to proceed upon a principle that recognises the sisterhood and equality of nations, and the absolute equality of public right among them.' Alastair Campbell London N1 From The Revd Richard Fothergill Sir: I read Peter Oborne's article with some interest and found his observations and conclusions pertinent. As an Anglican priest, continually attempting to link Christian action with Christian belief, I have always found Tony Blair's Christian faith at best something of a mystery.
The old adage, sometimes heard in Church circles, of, 'If being a Christian were made illegal tomorrow, would there be enough evidence to convict you?' comes to mind. One can only feel that Tony Blair would have little fear of arrest.
Richard Fothergill Cape Town, South Africa From Mr Joseph Kane
Sir: Tony Blair's religious beliefs, as described by Peter Oborne, fit the MerriamWebster Unabridged Dictionary definition of Antinomianism: the theological doctrine that by faith and God's gift of grace through the Gospel a Christian is freed not only from the Old Testament law of Moses and all forms of legalism, but also from all law including the generally accepted standards of morality prevailing in any given culture. Joseph Kane
New Orleans, Louisiana, USA
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