In this Thought for the Day this morning, Bishop David reflects on the courage it takes to change direction when faced with new truths—whether in politics, faith, or life. Inspired by the ordination of 20 new deacons and the transformation of Peter and Paul, he reminds us that true change is not weakness, but a response to deeper conviction.
Good morning
Economists are not generally known for their humour, so I love this quote, often attributed to John Maynard Keynes. After an opponent accused him of not sticking to his position, Keynes quipped, “When the facts change, I change my mind. What do you do?"
As the House of Commons prepares to debate the Welfare Bill tomorrow, the merits, or otherwise, of the Prime Minister’s and government’s late change to their proposed benefit cuts, are topics to be argued in other parts of this programme. What piqued my particular interest was how much of the conversation so far has appeared to be about the very concept of senior politicians changing their minds.
Yesterday, I ordained 20 new deacons into the ministry of the Christian Church. I spent all Friday meeting with each of them privately, hearing something of their journeys to this point. Much of what they told me was deeply moving. How the sudden realisation of the reality of God, or a slow process of deepening in faith, had led them to the point where, for them, internally at least, the facts had changed. From that moment on, whatever hopes and expectations they had for the rest of their lives, those had to change too.
Around England, many other bishops have also been conducting Ordination Services in their Cathedrals over the weekend. We do it at this time of year because yesterday was the feast day of St Peter and St Paul, perhaps the two greatest leaders of the Church in its first generation. For both, the facts changed when they met Jesus. Peter abandoned his fishing trade, Paul, hearing Jesus’s voice as he travelled to Damascus on a mission to arrest Christians, became Christianity’s greatest advocate.
There is of course a big difference between reacting to a change in the facts and simply being blown along by every passing wind. My new deacons have been through several years of testing and training, Were their calling simply a whim or passing fashion, it would never have survived the scrutiny to which they have been subjected.
Many of us, in whatever our walk of life, may reach a point where simply carrying on as things are no longer works. We need to let go of the old, in order to firmly grasp the new, whilst recognising that to do so may well come at a cost. Indeed, it can take more courage to embrace change than to carry on with things as they were. As my new deacons are well aware, Peter and Paul ultimately paid for their conversions with their lives.
Yet for all of us, including priests, politicians, and economists, Keynes’s challenge holds. When the facts change, what do you do?