Plenary, 15 Mar 2000

Meeting date: Wednesday, March 15, 2000

Official Report 162KB pdf

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Time for Reflection

We welcome to lead our time for reflection today Dr Alison Elliot, who is the convener of the Church and Nation committee of the Church of Scotland.

Thank you.

The Bible is full of wonderful pictures—all the more so as it is written in words, and the same words can describe lots of different pictures.

Take Amos's call to

"Let justice roll down like waters, and righteousness like an ever-flowing stream".

We can see the river sparkling in the sunlight, bringing nourishment to the fields on either side. Justice is health giving: it quenches the thirst of the oppressed, seeps into the roots of our life and protects us from misfortunes that, luckily, we seldom dream of.

However, figures of speech are often most useful when they are pushed to their limit. For the people of Mozambique, the image of waters rolling down is associated with an oppressive and destructive power. Our systems of justice and our laws can be heavy handed unless they are tempered by the compassion that comes from understanding the needs of the weak in society.

Isaiah picks that up when he describes God's chosen one:

"I will put my Spirit on him and he will bring justice to the nations. He will not shout or cry out, or raise his voice in the streets. A bruised reed he will not break, and a dimly burning wick he will not snuff out. In faithfulness he will bring forth justice. He will not falter or be discouraged till he establishes justice on the earth."

The power that the Parliament has is the power to serve, to put strength into the hands of the weak, to affirm those who suffer discrimination and to point out to the majority their need of those who see life differently and who keep open the doors to change. It takes courage to use that power and to hold to a vision of a land where each person is cherished and where their gifts are used to the benefit of others. May members of the Parliament find that courage and the staying power that they need to see that vision bear fruit.

Let us pray.

God of power and of compassion,
You challenge the powers that rule the world
Through the needy, the broken,
The stranger and those on the margins.

Grant that we may all play our part,
In shaping a world where
The hungry are fed
The wounded are healed
The stranger is welcome
And where justice and peace prevail.

We ask it in Jesus's name. Amen.

This afternoon, it is more a case of where two or three are gathered together—[Laughter.] I understand that other excitements in the west of Scotland today and tomorrow will make attendance in the chamber rather thin.

Meeting closed at 14:34.