For many years now I have been offended by the gross inequality in the world and in our nation.  I particularly became aware of how bad it was in the UK when my children were of an age to think about buying a house (Cathy and I were able to buy our first house at the age of 22!).  I looked at how much building societies would lend for a given income, and so what income one would need to buy a house.  I then looked at the income distribution in the country, and realised that without ‘parental’ help only a quarter of individual earners would be able to buy their own home.  And if your parents are unable to help, then there is no chance for someone on minimum wage.  The system ensures that the poorest are doomed to remain poor, particularly when you realise that the rental costs that they have to pay are far higher than the equivalent mortgage cost if they were able to buy a home.

This institutionalized system of stealing from the poor to give to the rich let me to become an active political campaigner.  But to no avail…

We are in the midst of the Covid19 pandemic, which I am hopefully will be the catalyst for great social re-engineering.  Poor and rich alike are realising who it is that keeps our world going; our key workers.  We are realising how fragile our safety nets are.  The government, who claimed that there was no money, and inflicted a decade of austerity has suddenly found it possible to inject billions into the economy – the money is there, we just need to choose what is important.  People are talking about a Universal Basic Income.

Some billionaires are giving large sums to help those in the majority world – and realising that their own day to day living standards are unaffected, but that giving brings the joy of helping and showing love to others.

Society could be transformed in ways that I’ve longed for, but been helpless to achieve.  The hearts and minds of people needed to change – and it seems that they are. Yet this is not being done by human hand, or by leaders rhetoric but by a consequence of the biological design of life.

It is not unreasonable to think that this powerful persuading force might be a providential gift from the one who created and sustains the universe.  A gift which, although it brings fear and immediate pain could lead to a transformed society that has the courage to value each human being, and to retreat from its wanton destruction of our natural environment.  Is this a glorious example of the power and love of God to bring us back to spiritual health?

I hope we choose to accept this gift, although I know that human beings are a stubborn people.  Thousands of years ago the prophet Amos wrote: “I sent among you a pestilence after the manner of Egypt ... yet you did not return to me, says the Lord.”  I pray the same won’t be said of us.