THE teachings of Jesus can be applied "very directly to daily
life" - except for the instruction to sell one's possessions and
give the proceeds to the poor, the Prime Minister has
suggested.
Speaking on Thursday of last week at a "Cameron Direct" event,
Mr Cameron appeared taken aback when a member of the audience
asked: "What would your response to Jesus be on his instruction to
us to sell all our possessions and give the proceeds to the
poor?"
Mr Cameron said that it was the first time that he had been
asked such a question. It quickly became apparent that he had not
thought it through in much detail.
As a "Christian and an active member of the Church of England",
he said, "I sometimes struggle with some of the sayings and some of
the instructions, and some of the parts of faith, as I think most
people of faith do.
"But what I think is so good about Jesus's teachings is there
are lots of things that he said that you can still apply very
directly to daily life and to bringing up your children. Simple
things like: 'Do to others as you would be done by'; 'Love your
neighbour as yourself'; the Ten Commandments; the Sermon on the
Mount. To me they're still pretty fresh and good instructions."
However, Mr Cameron admitted that he found the instruction to
sell one's possessions and give the money to the poor - a teaching
of Jesus which was observed by the Early Church - "a little bit
more difficult. . .
"I'm not saying religion is like pick and mix; you just pick the
bits you like. But I've always felt the strength of the Christian
faith is the basic core of moral guidance. You can find moral
guidance from other sources, but it's not a bad handbook."