public life public faith
Living faith as a County Councillor
Being willing to serve as a County Councillor calls for commitment but, according to Daphne Bagshaw, if you have the ability and opportunity and can afford the time and loss of earnings then it is a matter of duty. “After all”, said Daphne, “we should all make a contribution for the benefit of society.”
In 1997 Daphne was elected to the East Sussex County Council, and held several key positions before being elected to serve as Chairman in 2004. An active Christian, her motivation for entering the political world was the desire to change things for the better. When asked in what way her personal faith had affected her work as a politician Daphne responded: “If you have a coherent moral view that is formed by your faith then that cannot be divorced from your political role.”
About the time that she was elected Chairman, another Local Authority had abandoned the practice of holding prayers before Council Meetings. Daphne saw that as a challenge and felt that the alternative position ought to be held. “After all,” she told me, “the law, customs and history of our country has been strongly influenced by the Christian faith.” But ever the politician, the Chairman arranged for prayers to be said at a time prior to the Council Meeting and invited her colleagues, if they wished, to join her. There was an excellent response.
As an active Catholic, Daphne has not only sought to ensure that the opinions of those from other Christian traditions are given a voice in any issues that affect society, but also enabled inter-faith participation. In order to encourage this she
Daphne Bagshaw
arranged a civic dinner and invited the heads of the different faiths to attend. It proved a valuable way of developing local social cohesion.
Prayers at Council Meetings have been led by two Bishops, a non-conformist minister and a Muslim cleric during her time; all carefully prepared in advance to do so in a way that avoids bigotry and would not offend the faith of another. Not that this woman shrinks from confrontation or dissent. As she says: “Your faith values and moral convictions can’t be left at the door just because it might be inconvenient to someone else”.
On more than one occasion she happily stood alone on a matter of personal principle, believing that staying true to her personal values was more important than party loyalty. That said, though now retired from her time on the Council, and able to take life a little more easily in her Sussex country home, she remains very active.
Looking back on her time in local politics Daphne mused: “the thing I hope I achieved was to exemplify what it means to be a person of faith while always acting fully within the law and without inappropriate personal prejudice.”
Barry Osborne
www.arthurrankcentre.org.uk
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