The Cardinal Archbishop of Westminster, Cormac Murphy-O'Connor, has endorsed a new initiative to encourage Christians to play their role in the political life of our nation, saying:

I am delighted to endorse the Christians in Politics initiative. Our faith can never be a private affair. God's call to each one of us is a call into the fullness of our humanity, into a life of love. That means, at least in part, a life of service to our fellow human beings. Whatever our individual gifts, and whatever our vocation, each one of us has so much to give.
Like you I hope that people of Christian faith, as well as other faiths, will consider very seriously whether they have a calling to a life of service within our democratic political system.

Like any system it needs people of the highest integrity and ideals to bring to fruition the principles on which it is based - principles of fairness, freedom, mutual respect, democratic accountability.

As Christians we can and do make a difference in our society. We are a force for the common good. Standing for elected office is a brave and potentially deeply rewarding way to live out the Christian calling and, in the process, to underline the value of politics to the well being of our society.