Failing with Dignity
Given Gordon Brown's self-confessed discomfort with the media, and the various attempts to 'humanise' him for the camera, it is ironic that he never looked or sounded more human than when he delivered his resignation speech.
The emotion, as he broadcast the news and thanked colleagues, was genuine; his gratitude to his wife, heartfelt; his love for his family, obvious; his personal sense of loss, palpable. Here was a man confronting rejection on a national scale, taking personal responsibility for losing the election, and having to give up a job he loved, and hadn't done for all that long.
Rejection, we might argue, goes with the territory when it comes to politics. Still, after days dominated by talk of talks aimed at securing political power, Brown's description of the role of Prime Minister as an opportunity to serve, and of its potential to 'make this country I love fairer, more tolerant, more green, more democratic, more prosperous and more just' was striking.
Labour's strategists might well have been asking themselves where this Gordon Brown was during the election campaign. They certainly would have been grateful for David Cameron's subsequent commendation of the former Prime Minister as having made Britain 'more open at home and more compassionate abroad' earlier in the proceedings.
And here's the thing: dignity is contagious, inspiring dignity and goodness in those who encounter it. Brown's dignity and sincerity in stepping down and wishing his successor well was matched in Cameron's tribute to him. It is as though both men rose above their political differences to embrace and acknowledge their common humanity.
Perhaps the events of recent days have changed our politics in ways more profound than we realise.
As I watched Tuesday evening unfold, I could not help but think of the centurion who oversaw Christ's crucifixion. Doubtless he had seen many men die in the course of his work - it went with the territory. Yet there was something about Jesus' death, specifically, the way he died, that caused the seasoned executioner to proclaim, 'Surely this man was the Son of God!' (Mark 15:39) Dignity dumbfounds our expectations and transforms our perceptions.
Most of us will never be Prime Minister, but each of us has the opportunity to work in such a way, and with such dignity, that it dumbfounds cynical expectations and transforms the perceptions of our colleagues, and summons their true humanity. Which means, of course, that we can all, by the grace of God, make a difference...
Nigel Hopper
Links
Gordon Brown's resignation speech is available to view online here...
As someone living just across the Forth from Gordon Brown's home, and with no party affiliation, I heartily agree with Nigel's observations. God's hand was apparent during this past week - the response of his grace to increased prayer up and down the land. Now we all have a part to play in prayer in the future of this nation of nations so that the King of Kings can take his rightful place. So let us pray... and act... carpe diem.
Date:
2010-05-14 09:46:31
Author:
Doug Flett